According to Brown, Driver, and Briggs’ Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament, the term which is transliterated hamas means in Arabic “to be hard, strict, rigorous.” Not surprisingly, the Hebrew meaning is close: “act violently, treat violently.” It’s no doubt that Israel has been on the receiving end of the Hebrew meaning of the term when it comes to the terrorist group Hamas.
Now that its founder, Ahmed Yassin, has been killed, Hamas says that the Israelis are in for trouble:
Hamas figure Abdelaziz Rantissi vowed Israel will “not know security” after being named leader of the radical Islamist movement following the Israeli assassination of Sheikh Ahmed Yassin.
“[Prime Minister Ariel] Sharon and the Israelis will not know security,” he told thousands of Hamas supporters gathered here to extend their condolences for Yassin.
It now seems that Israel will have no security from the Palestinians. Now every day will await new terror. Have the Israelis, in killing the terrorist leader, unleashed more terror upon themselves?
Anyone who has kept up with the goings on in Israel over the last few years know that the threat of “no security” is as meaningful as a threat that it will be hot in the summer. All the Israelis have known for years is the very real threat of terror with very little sense of security. Threatening what is already happening should only be seen as a cry of desperation among the murderers. I hope Israel gets every last one of them.