The Combat Antisemitism Movement (CAM), a global coalition of 850 organizations dedicated to combating antisemitism, is calling for urgent legal action against Hamas and the nations that support and harbor its leadership, including Iran, Qatar, and Turkey. The demand comes in response to recent, widely condemned footage showing the release of Israeli hostages, which CAM describes as evidence of war crimes.
Sacha Roytman, CEO of CAM, drew parallels between Hamas’s atrocities and the crimes of the Nazis during the Holocaust. “What Hamas is doing is reminiscent of the Nazis, who also used murder, rape, torture, and starvation against innocent Jewish victims during the Holocaust,” Roytman stated. He emphasized that international law, as it exists today, was established in the post-Holocaust era specifically to prevent such crimes against humanity from ever occurring again. “However, they are happening before our very eyes, and the international community and so-called humanitarian NGOs appear to be reacting with a collective sigh of disinterest.”
Roytman asserted that under international humanitarian law and the principles of universal jurisdiction, Hamas and its enablers must be held accountable. “We are calling for immediate legal action, not only against Hamas and its leaders but against all those countries which have assisted it and provide sanctuary to its leaders,” he said. “We should remain focused on the crimes of October 7th, but we must also draw attention and attach culpability to all those involved in the countless crimes of murder, rape, maiming, torture, and starvation of Israelis and other nationals being held in Gaza over the last 16 months.”
The call for legal action aligns with increasing global scrutiny of Hamas’s operations and the complicity of certain governments in enabling its activities. Critics have long accused Iran, Qatar, and Turkey of funding and sheltering Hamas leaders, allowing the terrorist group to maintain its operational command structure despite international sanctions.
As pressure mounts for legal and diplomatic measures against Hamas and its backers, CAM’s statement serves as a reminder of the urgency to uphold international law and human rights in the face of ongoing atrocities.