Hamas recently broadcast a children’s television program in which kids who appeared to be no older than 10 extolled the virtue of suicide attacks and expressed their desire to blow themselves up in order to liberate Jerusalem and the entirety of Palestine.

The al-Aqsa TV program broadcast in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip, translated by the MEMRI (Middle East Media Research Institute), featured the grandchildren of Umm Nidal, a former Hamas MP from Gaza who celebrated the deaths of her three sons who carried out suicide attacks against Israelis. Umm Nidal died in March in Gaza.

Umm Nidal’s granddaughter said she was proud of the actions of her father — who produced the first Kassam rockets to hit southern Israel — and wished to be a martyr for Hamas as well.

Get The Times of Israel's Daily Edition by email and never miss our top stories Free Sign Up

Another granddaughter launched into a rousing speech in which she called “upon all Muslim mothers, daughters, and sisters – Al-Aqsa Mosque expects us to be the next generation to march toward it. Do not spare us the commanders, the soldiers, and the martyrdom-lovers.”

“The mothers send their sons to victory or to paradise, Allah willing,” she said.

The assembled grandchildren of Umm Nidal, none of whom looked older than 10, then sang in chorus: “Jihad bestows pride and glory upon you when you become a martyrdom-seeker. Oh explosive device of glory – with her blood she created freedom. Ask [suicide bomber] Fatima Al-Najjar how one should live a life of pride.”

A man in a chicken costume received the singing with applause.

If the children’s message weren’t clear enough, the announcer, a girl of an age with the grandchildren, told the Hamas TV viewers that “We should sacrifice our lives for the sake of the homeland, so that we can please God and liberate Palestine and Jerusalem.”

A second child presenter chimed in: “We should wage Jihad and persevere, in order to liberate this land. When one of us is martyred, we say that his life is precious, yet it is a cheap price to pay for the liberation and defense of the homeland.”