Mo Husseini's viral post on Israel-Hamas conflict offers a nuanced perspective - opinion

• Published date: 07 May 2024
• Author: ANDREW SILOW-CARROLL/JTA
• Publication title: Jerusalem Post, The: Web Edition Articles (Israel)

Identifying himself as "a Palestinian American who is tired of stupid people," Husseini set out to puncture myths on both sides of the conflict, suggesting that neither Palestinians nor Israelis had a monopoly on truth, justice or the moral high ground

"This isn't an essay in Foreign Affairs, you know? This is an idiot shitposting on the internet in trying to leverage a sense of humor to point out the delusions on both sides," Husseini said in an interview with the Jewish Telegraphic Agency on Monday, using internet slang for aggressive, often ironic social media content.

"It's not my place to decide what happens between Palestinian and Israeli negotiators," he told JTA. "What matters to me is helping people, and getting past the delusions."

The post - witty, profane and anguished - got a polite if unspectacular response on Threads, which is owned by Meta.

Three days ago Husseini re-upped the post as an essay on the self-publishing site Medium, and in the days since its readership has soared. Husseini has seen his once modest following on Threads grow to over 16,000. The essay on Medium has been read more than 3,500 times. It's been shared countless times on Facebook, a platform where Husseini barely had a presence before the weekend.

Seeking common ground

Many of those sharing the post are Jews who seem eager to read and identify with an essay that seeks common ground in a polarizing debate, and, as one Facebook user commented, "tried to push through some of the double talk and extremism."

Husseini offers plenty to trigger partisans of all stripes, from campus protesters to pro-Israel groups. He notes that there "are shitty and awful people" on all sides of the conflict, that Israelis and Palestinians have both committed "acts of terror and violence," and that their respective governments do not necessarily speak for their people.

Many of the essay's short declarations refute some of the shibboleths of partisans: He undercuts, for example, the far-left assertion that the conflict is a clash between white supremacists and people of color, and mocks the far-right Zionist view that the Palestinians have no legitimate claims to a state of their own.

As for the war, Husseini condemns the October 7 attacks and writes that Hamas has earned "every f–king thing that the Israeli military throws at them." At the same time, he laments the enormous toll among civilians in Gaza. "What is happening in Gaza to civilians is f–king awful, and not the smartest thing for...