A pro-Hamas video cartoon has been taken off the air following a huge public outcry from rival Palestinian faction group Fatah.
When Disney animators created Simba, the lion cub in their blockbuster cartoon, the last thing they would have imagined is that he would be used as a weapon in the Palestinian conflict. But someone in Hamas liked the cartoon and moved Simba from the Walt Disney Studios in California to the centre of the street fights in Gaza. The calm, confident lion now portrays Hamas as he takes over the Strip from sneaky Fatah rats, brandishing guns and being showered with American dollars. The propaganda is aimed at the intellectuals of the West Bank to convince them that Hamas’ takeover in Gaza is legitimate. Hani Sarhan works for the local television station and while impressed with the quality of the video, says it is hardly objective. “It’s a good job, but it’s not talking about all things in Palestine,” observed Hani Sarhan, Palestinian cameraman. In the university of Tulkaram students were harsher in their criticism: “Hamas has moved from the main issue of fighting Israel. I call on Hamas not to make cartoons like this and instead get back to fighting the real enemy,” a student said. But the propaganda machine has no plans of grinding to a halt and it seems that this round has been won by Hamas. But they’re not winning on the ground. In the West Bank, the situation is not a children’s game. And it’s going to take more than cartoon characters to change Palestinian society.