Here is a photograph from yesterday of Hamas' pre-rallys celebrating their 22nd anniversary. The streets are getting busy with hundreds of men and boys riding on cars and trucks holding up the green flags representing the socio-political organization.
Hamas is the current de-facto government on the Gaza Strip which took control over Gaza in 2007 after it had shared control with Fatah (now in full control of the West Bank).
A few facts about Hamas:
- Hamas (حماس ) is an acronym that stands for : حركة المقاومة الاسلامية Ḥarakat al-Muqāwamat al-Islāmiyyah, meaning "Islamic Resistance Movement"
- Hamas's 1988 charter calls for replacing the State of Israel with a Palestinian Islamic state in the area that is now Israel, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip
- As of 2009, Hamas is listed on the U.S. State Department list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations.
- The European Union lists Hamas among the entities against which it applies restrictions in order to combat terrorism.
- It is said that "Hamas devotes up to 90% of its estimated $70 million annual budget to an extensive social services network, running many relief and education programs, and funds schools, orphanages, mosques, healthcare clinics, soup kitchens, and sports leagues"
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