Ultra-liberal Marvel star Mark Ruffalo was blasted online for posting that a Israeli military operation to rescue of four hostages held by Hamas terrorists wasn’t justified due to the number of Palestinian civilian casualties.
The “Avengers” actor echoed the casualty figures reported by Gaza officials, which is controlled by Hamas, and implied that the exchange wasn’t justified for just four of hostages that were taken during the October 7 terror attack.
“It’s so good to see the hostages returned,” Ruffalo started off, before taking a hard left. “A ceasefire would have gotten many more hostages back and no civilians and children killed.”
“This siege is cruel and senseless,” he added. “Grinding innocent human beings and their culture into blood soaked rubble and dust, to be buried and forgotten.”
It’s so good to see the hostages returned. A ceasefire would have gotten many more hostages back and no civilians and children killed. This siege is cruel and senseless. Grinding innocent human beings and their culture into blood soaked rubble and dust, to be buried and…
— Mark Ruffalo (@MarkRuffalo) June 9, 2024
He said that rescuing four people at the cost of 274 lives is “a sinful equation that keeps repeating.”
The Hamas-controlled Gaza Health Ministry claimed at least 274 Palestinians, including 64 children, were killed during the Israeli operation to liberate the hostages on Saturday.
They also asserted that nearly 700 people were wounded during the raid, including 153 children and 161 women.
According to The Associated Press, the numbers are significantly lower. The outlet reported that during the daytime rescue of Noa Argamani, 26, Almog Meir Jan, 22, Andrey Kozlov, 27, and Shlomi Ziv, 41, from two locations near Nuseirat, a Gaza refugee camp, nearly 100 Palestinians were reportedly killed and more than 100 injured.
An Israel Defense Force (IDF) spokesperson said that the actual “number of casualties remains unknown at this stage.”
“We advise the media not to use information from the Hamas terrorist organization’s propaganda machine,” the spokesperson said on Saturday.
“This operation is solid proof of the fact that Hamas is hiding behind civilians and is holding hostages in the midst of densely-populated civilian areas.”
The statement added that the IDF is obligated to rescue the hostages, which they’re “determined” to while following international law.
“Every loss of civilian life is a tragedy—a tragedy that Hamas brought upon us all,” the message went on.
“The IDF will continue to take all feasible measures in order to minimize civilian casualties, while maintaining its efforts to rescue all the hostages and dismantling the terrorist [organization] that uses civilians as a human shield.”
Internet critics were quick to let Ruffalo know that Hamas didn’t willingly hand over the hostages, the IDF had to take them back with a military operation.
“Ah, except the hostages were not returned, were they Mark? The hostages were rescued,” one commenter countered.
“Sorry, did you mean rescued? They were not returned. They were extracted,” another parroted. “One from the home of an Al Jazeera journalist who had been holding her hostage.”
Three of the hostages were held in the home of Al Jazeera journalist, Abdallah Aljamal, who was also a spokesman for the Hamas-run labor ministry. He was killed on Saturday when special forces soldiers stormed his home in central Gaza.
The three hostages that he held were starved and beaten “almost every day” during their eight months in captivity, according to a report.
“Uh, mastermind, do you have any thoughts about civilians illegally holding hostages in densely populated apartment buildings and moving the hostages from apartment to apartment over a period of months and how many civilians were complicit in this war crime,” someone else pointed out.
“You are a complete f**king idiot,” Dave Rubin summed up.
No. Sorry. They are not “collateral damage” they are human beings who happen to have been born there and live there and most of those human beings are stuck there. Have some compassion, they are Palestinians not buildings or roads or things, they are human beings and so are the…
— Mark Ruffalo (@MarkRuffalo) November 13, 2023
It wasn’t the first time that Ruffalo made commentary about the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, in November, he blasted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for saying Palestinians are “collateral damage.”
“We’re deliberately doing everything in our power to target the terrorists,” Netanyahu told NBC’s Meet the Press at the time.
“And the civilians, as happens in every legitimate war, are sometimes what are called ‘collateral damage.’ That’s a longer way of saying unintended casualties.”
Ruffalo lashed out at Netanyahu on social media over the remarks. “No. Sorry. They are not “collateral damage” they are human beings who happen to have been born there and live there and most of those human beings are stuck there,” he tweeted.
“Have some compassion,” he added. “They are Palestinians not buildings or roads or things, they are human beings and so are the hostages whose lives you may also be destroying. They aren’t “collateral damage” either.”