“I’m sure the majority of Gazans curse the trouble Hamas has brought them. Most are simple people looking to work and grow a family.”
Perhaps. . . . but let’s be clear about something, shall we?
After the Israelis, in great anguish, abandoned Gaza (the Gush Katif bloc of 17 Jewish communities) in 2005 — removed everything Jewish (even the graves of their own parents & grandparents), and left the place — the Gazan Palestinians conducted an election [Jan 26, 2006] to express their right to self-determination.
About 1,073,000 Palestinians voted, a massive turnout of 77% of registered voters, according to Hana Naser of the Central Election Commission.
The election was witnessed & overseen by international observers, the head of which, Jimmy Carter, subsequently declared it to have been “free and fair.”
In that fair and free election, the Hamas list swept the field — garnering a landslide victory which secured 76 seats in the 132-member legislature.
So, Hamas was not ‘imposed’ on the people of Gaza. They actively sought it, and they are not blameless, nor as ‘separate’ from Hamas as is being suggested. Think about it . . . .