A mosque in Thrithala, Palakkad, sparked controversy and received severe criticism for displaying images of terrorist leaders of Hamas during its annual Urus celebrations. The pictures of Ismail Haniyeh and Yahya Sinwar, key figures of the terrorist group Hamas, were prominently featured in the elephant procession, with the images paraded atop three elephants.
Kerala is sitting on a ticking time bomb!💣
Pro-Hamas slogans raised in Thrithala, Palakkad during a mosque festival.
Hamas is a terror group responsible for mass murder. @NIA_India @HMOIndia @IBNIndia, this radicalization must be stopped before it spreads further! pic.twitter.com/yuEtMyyp9f
— महारथी-മഹാരഥി (@MahaRathii) February 16, 2025
The controversial display of these images, including banners with the titles ‘Tharavadis, Thekkebhagam’ drew widespread outrage. During the procession, which was attended by over 3,000 people, young children were seen holding posters of Sinwar and Haniyeh, while the crowd cheered on. The incident sparked significant debate on social media, with many questioning the organizers for allowing such displays.
The participation of political figures, including Minister MB Rajesh and Congress leader VT Balram, has raised concerns, though the organizers have not responded to the controversy surrounding the banners.
This incident comes amid a series of recent events related to pro-Palestine sentiments in Kerala. In 2024, the Kerala University youth festival faced backlash for using the term “Intifada,” which has been associated with the Palestine-Israel conflict and Hamas. This led to a directive from the Vice-Chancellor to remove the term from all promotional material.
In October 2023, a rally in Malappuram, organized by the Jamaat-e-Islami youth wing, Solidarity Youth Movement, featured Khaled Mashal, a former leader of Hamas, who virtually addressed the gathering due to visa issues. The BJP strongly condemned the participation of Hamas leaders in these events, with state president K Surendran demanding an investigation into the matter, calling the involvement of Hamas extremists in Kerala “extremist.”
(With inputs from India Today)
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