Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt responded on Thursday to mainstream media groups that eulogized Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh as moderate and pragmatic.
"Since Tuesday night, I've watched CNN eulogize arch-terrorist Ismail Haniyeh as a 'moderating force' and a 'political leader.' The New York Times called him 'relatively pragmatic.' Washington Post called him 'one of the moderate figures' within Hamas.
"Give me a break," Greenblatt wrote on social media.
"Let's be clear: Haniyeh was a mass murderer who authorized and celebrated the unspeakable savagery of 10/7," he continued.
"For decades, Haniyeh specialized in barbaric violence and sinister propaganda that dehumanized Jews, demonized Israelis, disparaged America, and justified genocide. His hands were stained with the blood of thousands of Israelis. All the while, he embezzled hundreds of millions of dollars to enrich himself even as he impoverished his own people.
"Without question, the death of *any* civilian is a tragedy -- Jew, Druze, Muslim, Christian, Hindu, and individuals of no faith. However, Haniyeh was far from a civilian. He was a combatant and terrorist who reaped what he sowed," Greenblatt added.
He concluded: "While some try to sanitize this butcher, I will continue to mourn the real victims – the children of Majdal Shams, those murdered on 10/7, and all who have lost their lives to terror."