As October 7 unfolded one year ago, I watched along with the rest of the world, devastated, as the terrorist cult that had brutally ruled my home for 17 years unleashed its savagery on Israel. Hamas claimed the atrocities of October 7 were part of their "resistance" against Israeli occupation and aggression. One year later, I hope it is clear for all to see that Hamas's attack was not an act of resistance but one of a nihilistic terrorism.

Though Hamas's brutality was not new to me, though I myself was tortured by Hamas militants for the crime of dissent, I still had never witnessed the level of viciousness and cruelty that was unleashed on October 7—women raped, towns burned, innocent people and entire families killed in their homes and at a music festival. Over 200 people were taken hostage by Hamas and violently carried back to Gaza, where they were paraded around the streets and jeered at by the crowds. It was the single bloodiest day for Jews since the Holocaust, carried out by Hamas terrorists.

This was not resistance or a fight against occupation for freedom; it was a series of brutal acts that served to further solidify the cycle of violence in the region.

Although that day was a nightmare for Israeli society, Gaza also paid a heavy price for October 7 throughout the following year in the form of the high number of civilian casualties, the widespread destruction, and the cruel conditions Gazans still endure.

Hamas is a death cult that regularly tortures and kills and ruthlessly controls the people of Gaza; its primary goal is to eradicate Israel and install an Islamist caliphate where they can control people's lives........

© Newsweek