Talk show host Piers Morgan, engaged in a heated debate with two articulate guests, resulting in a fiery debate over the Israel-Hamas war.
The first was Mohammed Hijab, a philosopher of religion and co-founder of the Sapience Institute, and the other was Egyptian comedian and television host, Bassem Youssef. Youssef is also often dubbed the Jon Stewart of the Arab World.
In the intense debate earlier this week, Mohammed Hijab started by clarifying that he was sickened by the attack on Israel at the 7th October.
“This is something I want to put on the table because it’s fair for people to know this. In our religion (Islam), we don’t believe in the killing of any man, woman or child. So I believe this not despite religious teaching but because of it. I not only condemn Hamas but any other entity or party that kills or strikes people where its more probable than not that it will hit civilian target. But that’s why I condemn the IDF. Because when they strike, they know that more probable than not that it will hit civilian targets.
Things got heated when the topic of the report of the beheaded babies. This report was later withdrawn by many news outlets and even the White House made a U-turn on their “confirmation” that they had seen the pictures.
Hijab then said the picture in question was doctored. “Give me a source (that it was real.) You know full well. You were fired for fake images.” This was in reference to Morgan being fired by the Daily Mirror over a clash with the chief executive at the time over Iraq “torture” photographs. Morgan never accepted them as fake but the UK government did.
When asked if Morgan condemns the killing of the children by the IDF, he didn’t exactly answer the questions but said that what happened "was one of the worst atrocities“ that he had read or seen.
In one intense segment, when Morgan stated his opinion, Hijab interjected with: “You are stuttering.”
Morgan replied: “I’m not stuttering.” Hijab fired back: “You are stuttering.”
Upon being asked to condemn their deaths caused by the IDF, Morgan appeared to pause, to which Hijab responded: “So you refuse to condemn?”
When Morgan asked what exactly he should condemn, Hijab said: “I want you to condemn the fact that the IDF knows that it's more probable than not pressing buttons from the sky killing innocent civilians – one thousand of them children – that is a war crime, and that is not acceptable morally.”
Hijab asserted that such actions were morally unacceptable and equated to war crimes.
Morgan responded: “I believe, given the scale of what Hamas did, October 7th, that Israel is entitled ... to defend themselves with force.”
Bassem Youssef recently become a household name after he held his own while being a guest just days after Hijab challenged Morgan.
Youssef’s tone was more satirical and even compared Israel to Homelander. “You think Israel is a superhero like Superman when he is actually Homelander.”
In an excerpt, he took a shot at Ben Shapiro.
"I heard Ben Shapiro talking about human shields. My wife’s family live in Gaza so I asked them. ‘When Israel gives you the nice warning, the cute warning, does Hamas force you to stay in your homes to be bombed and used as human shields?’“
He said he asked his wife’s cousin which he jokingly referred to him as a loser and a liar because when Youssef asked him, he (obviously) said no.
“The lying son of b***h lied to me! I said ‘You don’t understand. Because Ben Shapiro and Ron DeSantis said Israel warned you and Hamas forced you to stay put.”
this might be the best use of satire I’ve ever seen be displayed. Bassem Youssef made a fool of both Piers Morgan, and the entirety of western media. pic.twitter.com/BiBdbCQvPZ
— hayat • حياة (@hayxtt) October 17, 2023
When Morgan tried to interrupt, Youssef affirmed his point with a witty remark.
“If we agree for the 14 000 casualties, but who is counting, are human shields are you saying that every single one of them are obscuring a military target behind them? Are they just some collateral damage?”
When Morgan replied that they are collateral damage and it was all about a “proportionate response.”
IOL