Exposing the Tactics of Hamza Saadah: A Critical Look at Influencer Activism and Misinformation
Since October 7, 2023, the media, and social media in particular, has become a cesspit of anti-Israel propaganda, misinformation and outright libel. A favorite method of discrediting Israel is inverting Israel’s lawful military operation in Gaza with the criminal acts of terrorism committed by Hamas and other jihadists To recap, on October 7, 2023, heavily armed Hamas terrorists together with other jihadi groups and several thousand Palestinian civilians, invaded Israel where they butchered approximately 1,200 people; their victims included, infants, children, elderly and entire families. They used methods of torture that are difficult for the human mind to conjure. They also kidnapped 250 people, many of whom they have since murdered, and still hold 55 captives, about 20 of whom are thought to be alive. From the testimony of released hostages, we know that they are being starved and tortured without mercy. It boggles the mind that any human being could withstand such conditions and for me personally, it is terrifying to contemplate what they are experiencing. In response to the continuing assault, Israel has pursued a military campaign to dismantle Hamas and retrieve the hostages.
No war in modern history has begun with such undeniable documentation of atrocities as the Hamas attacks on October 7. The evidence is overwhelming and horrifying: videos filmed by the terrorists themselves using GoPro cameras and their victims’ phones, uploaded to social media; survivor and first responder testimonies; and forensic proof. One terrorist livestreamed the murder of a grandmother to her Facebook page so her loved ones could watch in real time. Another video shows a Thai farm worker being beheaded with a shovel. In clip after clip, the attackers exult in their carnage—one even calling his parents to boast, “I killed Jews with my own hands.
The challenge for the Palestinian propagandists is to deflect from Hamas and its atrocities by accusing Israel of equal or worse offenses, like claims of “genocide” and deliberate targeting of civilians and even claims of sexual assault to match the well proven claims against Hamas. These accusations, however, not only lack credible evidence, they are downright preposterous when applied to Israelis. The IDF and Israeli politicians have been forced to devote valuable resources to fighting another enemy- the U.N. and its agencies, the media, the public and so-called human rights organizations who repeat Al Jazeera talking point like broken records. Israel has every incentive to be careful about civilians if for no other reason than to defend itself from the onslaught of hatred that is daily directed at them. But it’s more than that, anyone who has spent significant time in Israel knows full well that accusing IDF soldiers of taking potshots at children and killing babies is absurd. That is not how they operate despite what haters want you to think. Unlike their terrorist enemies, the IDF is a highly regarded armed force with a moral compass.[1] But the slander persists, amplified by sympathetic NGOs, foreign governments, and influencers who are already committed to an anti-Israel narrative. For the propaganda to stick, they must fabricate or distort evidence to fit the script: Israel the violent oppressor, Palestinians the innocent oppressed.
Reportedly many thousands of Palestinian civilians have been killed in Israeli strikes against Hamas. But in an environment flooded with misinformation, we won’t know the true number of civilian casualties until long after the war is over. However, even if Hamas’ casualty figures (which have been roundly discredited[2]) are taken at face value and compared with Israeli data on combatant deaths, the combatant-to-civilian casualty ratio stands at approximately 1.1 to 1—the lowest ever recorded in any urban warfare setting.
Palestinian civilian casualties are central to Hamas’ war strategy. It is well documented that Hamas uses Palestinian civilians as human shields, embedding its fighters and infrastructure in homes, schools, hospitals, and mosques.[3] This cynical tactic forces Israel into a Hobson’s choice: either abandon its military objectives and allow Hamas to continue terrorizing both Israelis and Palestinians, or act to protect its citizens, including hostages, while doing whatever is possible to minimize civilian casualties. Hamas depends on civilian deaths to shift blame for its own atrocities onto Israel and manipulate global opinion. But they cannot do this honestly, because, unlike Hamas, Israel is bound by the Laws of War.
Enter – TikTok, You Tube and other social media platforms where anyone with a modicum of technical skills can frame dialogue and manipulate images to present as truth, the story they want to tell. A basic understanding of algorithms, editing apps, and engagement tactics is often enough to build a sizable following. This unchecked influence can provide a distorted view of reality. On social media, influencers have gone to great length to portray the IDF as blood thirsty murderers. With a little digging, you can find soldiers making incriminating statements and scenes of battle portrayed as acts of violence by the IDF with no context. Some, but not all, of these scenes are fabrications.[4] Those that are not fabrications are designed to create the illusion of evidence of bad acts where there is none.
One such purveyor of this trash, but by no means the only one, is Hamza Saadah, a social media influencer whose “Free Palestine” channel targeting Israeli soldiers and promoting anti-Israel rhetoric regularly attracts thousands to millions of views across platforms. His content typically features him cold-calling Israeli soldiers, recording the interactions, and broadcasting them to his large audience. These conversations are often edited to show the soldiers in a poor light—either by exposing their confusion, mocking their responses, or using them as a springboard for his anti-Israel commentary. In these videos, Israeli soldiers—some of whom are young draftees performing compulsory service—are caught off guard. Sometimes it is clear from the demeanor of the soldiers that they are playing their own games with the caller smirking with obvious sarcasm or earnestly trying to explain what soldiers are experiencing in the battlefield as if they were talking to someone who cared. Saadah's content hinges on entrapment—provoking individuals under false pretenses, recording them without their knowledge, and presenting the footage in ways that strip away context and nuance.
The anti-Israel brigade not only accepts these scenes as evidence of Israel’s wrongful conduct but shares them globally. I have seen videos of soldiers talking about killing, but not actually killing anyone and there is a big difference. Contrast this with video footage of Hamas fighters dressed in civilian clothes, shooting from hospitals[5] or shooting civilians at point blank range.[6]
The soldiers are not public figures or policymakers, yet they are thrust into the spotlight as representatives of a nation’s military, manipulated for viral content. Like any military, Israel has its share of bad applies. But they are not representative of the IDF. In contrast, every Hamas fighter targets civilians. The destruction of Israel and the murder of Jews is their reason for being and they are proud of it.
Social media platforms like TikTok and YouTube are engineered to reward engagement—especially content that triggers outrage, anger, or shock. Hamza Saadah’s videos are perfectly calibrated for this environment: confrontational, easy to share, but difficult to verify or contextualize. His content targets young, impressionable viewers who often lack the historical or geopolitical knowledge to critically assess what they’re seeing. These are not just provocative tactics—they are exploitive. They may also be illegal. Recording individuals without consent, particularly to mock or shame them publicly, raises serious legal and ethical concerns. When this involves foreign military personnel and is broadcast globally, it opens the door to even graver issues: violations of digital privacy, misuse of false identities, and the potential for cyberwarfare.
Freedom of speech is not a shield for deception or incitement. While Saadah’s content may attract clicks, it reflects a dangerous shift in digital activism—where sensation trumps truth, and ethical boundaries are sacrificed for viral success. Don’t be fooled.
[1] G. Killam, Jr. R and Wald, Chuck< General Charles, USAP (Ret.) (January 16, 2025)“Correcting the Record on the IDF and Lethal Targeting” The Cipher Brief https://www.thecipherbrief.com/column_article/correcting-the-record-on-the-idf-and-lethal-targeting
[2] Fox, A (December 2024) “Questionable Counting” Analyzing the Death Toll from the Hamas-Run Ministry of Health in Gaza.” Henry Jackson Society.
https://henryjacksonsociety.org/publications/questionable-counting/
Simpson, T. , Stone, L and Rose, Gregory (March 2024) “Statistically Impossible: A Critical Analysis of Hamas’s Women and Children Casualty Figures” Fathom Journal
[3] “Hamas’ use of human shields in Gaza” https://stratcomcoe.org/cuploads/pfiles/hamas_human_shields.pdf
McCoy, T. July 31, 2014 “Why Hamas stores weapons in Hospitals, Mosques and Schools” The Washington Post https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/07/31/why-hamas-stores-its-weapons-inside-hospitals-mosques-and-schools/
Fox, A. an d Aizenberg S. (April 2025) “Hamas’s Human Shield Strategy in Gaza” Henry Jackson Society https://henryjacksonsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/HJS-Hamass-Human-Shield-Strategy-in-Gaza-Report-WEB.pdf
Ecanow, N. (November 1, 2023) “Hamas officials admit its strategy is to use Palestinian civilians as human shields” Foundation for Defense of Democracies
[4] Walter, Jan D. (February, 2, 2024) “Fact Check: ai-generated images of children in Gaza” https://www.dw.com/en/fact-check-ai-generated-images-of-children-in-gaza/a-68146699
Mohamed, Rahim (March 27, 2024) “Hamas Death Numbers cannot be trusted- here’s more evidence they are inflated”
https://nationalpost.com/opinion/rahim-mohamed-hamas-death-numbers-cant-be-trusted-heres-more-evidence-they-are-inflated
[5] https://www.cnn.com/videos/world/2023/11/13/hospital-gaza-al-quds-idf-terrorist-hamas-rpg-launcher-vpx.cnn
https://stratcomcoe.org/cuploads/pfiles/hamas_human_shields.pdf
[6] [graphic content] https://www.hamasvideo.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/IMG_8366.mp4?_=1;
Why does Israel allow this POS access to its soldiers? He wouldn't dare pull this with Russian soldiers in Ukraine.