| THE LIE Israel could achieve peace with Hamas through diplomacy and concessions rather than military force. |
| THE TRUTH Hamas attacked Israel precisely because Israel pursued diplomacy, and the group remains openly committed to the genocide of Jews. Military force is the only solution. |
| BACKGROUND In an April 26, 2026 New Yorker interview, Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr criticized Israel for responding to the October 7th massacre with military force: “Violence begets violence…there was an opening for Israel to handle their business with the Palestinians diplomatically that would have solidified the Abraham Accords and allowed stronger alliances with Arab countries that would have really cornered Iran.” (New Yorker), (Ynet News) He also claimed Israel was pursuing “revenge” rather than security by retaliating, and should have instead pursued diplomacy through the Abraham Accords. Kerr lamented that 72,000 Palestinians have reportedly been killed in Gaza and accused Israeli settlers of illegally taking over the West Bank. |
| TRUTH EXPLAINED Kerr’s argument is absurd because Israel was actively advancing the Abraham Accords — and Hamas, backed by Iran, launched the October 7 massacre precisely to destroy those accords and prevent further Arab normalization with Israel. (White House), (Grokipedia), (Washington Institute), (X), (National Review) Hamas has always rejected diplomacy on principle; its 1988 Charter explicitly states there is no solution to the Palestinian question except through Jihad and declares that “Israel will exist until Islam will obliterate it.” It also includes a genocidal Quranic hadith calling on Muslims to kill Jews. No amount of diplomacy can work with a group whose founding document demands the extermination of Jews. (Hamas charter) In 2005, Israel forcibly removed all 10,000 Jews from Gaza and withdrew completely from the territory, handing it over to the Palestinians. Gazans responded by electing Hamas, which spent the next 18 years launching more than 20,000 rockets at Israeli civilians, carrying out suicide bombings, kidnappings, and repeated terror attacks—culminating in the deadliest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust. (Washington Institute) Israel’s military campaign was not “revenge” as Kerr claimed — it was pure self-defense. If Israel wanted revenge, it would have deliberately targeted civilians like Hamas did on October 7, instead of focusing on Hamas terrorists. Kerr’s figure of 72,000 Palestinian deaths includes the vast majority who were Hamas fighters, not innocent civilians, contrary to the misleading picture he painted. (ITN) Kerr’s accusation that Israeli settlers are “taking over the West Bank illegally” is false. Jews have lived continuously in Judea and Samaria for nearly 4,000 years, and settlement building occurs in Area C under the Oslo Accords signed by the Palestinian Authority. (ITN) Kerr’s slogan “violence begets violence” is simplistic hypocrisy. He shows no objection to violence when Jews are being slaughtered, but condemns Israel the moment it fights back to survive. By blaming Israel for insufficient diplomacy despite Hamas’s explicit rejection of peace, Kerr effectively argues that the Jewish state “asked for” the October 7 atrocities — a morally perverse position that excuses terrorists and punishes victims for defending themselves. |
| QUOTES “It’s hard to negotiate when the other side’s bargaining position is: ‘You all die and disappear.’” — Bill Maher “It’s now Hamas that’s playing the victim. It’s now Hamas that says, “Oh, stop bombing us. Stop doing all this.” And I’ll be honest, it falls on deaf ears for me….spare me your caterwauling. You guys were the ones that launched this war. And war is nasty. War is awful. And they’re saying they’ll do it again. The Hamas leader comes out and he says just a matter of time till every single day is October 7th.” — Charlie Kirk |
| TAKEAWAY Steve Kerr’s New Yorker interview lays bare his ugly double standard: he isn’t against violence — he’s only against Jews defending themselves. He blasts Israel for responding to Hamas’s October 7 slaughter of 1,200 civilians, peddles the fantasy that “more diplomacy” with a jihadist group sworn to Israel’s destruction would have worked, and sheds crocodile tears over Palestinian casualties while ignoring Hamas’s own genocidal charter that demands the killing of Jews. Kerr seems to have no problem with babies burned alive and women raped at a music festival, but suddenly begins moralizing when Israel hits back. His real message is clear: Jews must absorb pogroms quietly and never dare to win. |
