To Israel and the West, Hamas are terrorists. But for Malaysia?

Malaysia has long welcomed the Palestinian militant group with open arms, hosting its leaders and even maintaining an ‘unofficial embassy’ for Hamas

Its staunch support for the cause cuts across political factions, but has also earned it animosity from sporting bodies – and Israeli intelligence

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People stand outside a mosque in the Gaza Strip, identified as the Muhammad al-Amin mosque built with Malaysian donations, that was destroyed by an Israeli air strike on Sunday. Photo: AP

Published: 11:30am, 14 Oct 2023Updated: 6:30pm, 17 Oct 2023

Built a decade ago with US$1.3 million in donations from Malaysian Muslims, the Muhammad al-Amin mosque in Gaza now lies in ruins, destroyed by an Israeli bombardment.

Videos circulated by the Gaza-based Muslim Care Malaysia Society aid group of the obliterated religious site have stirred up an outpouring of support in the Southeast Asian nation for a cause thousands of miles away.

“Don’t worry, we will contribute more [and build] a bigger mosque,” said a Malaysian user of social media platform X, formerly Twitter.

A protester holds a Palestinian flag outside the US embassy in Kuala Lumpur during a 2017 rally against Washington’s decision to recognise Jerusalem as capital of Israel. Photo: EPA-EFE

More tellingly, backing for the militant group Hamas – which led the assault on Israel last weekend that killed hundreds of mostly civilians – is so far undiluted.

Malaysia has over the years welcomed Hamas leaders who are denounced as terrorists by Israel and the West and been accused of hosting an unofficial Hamas embassy packaged up as a cultural office, an accusation it denies.

In apparent response, a Hamas member working at a Kuala Lumpur university was killed in a drive-by shooting in 2018 and another Palestinian was kidnapped last year, allegedly by Israeli intelligence agency Mossad.

“Malaysia does not see Hamas as a terrorist organisation, rather it considers Hamas as fighting for the freedom of Palestine,” said political analyst Tunku Mohar Mokhtar of the International Islamic University in Kuala Lumpur.

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