Why does Hamas use civilians as human shields?

The recent massacre committed in Israel by the terrorist group Hamas is atrocious. It is difficult even to mention the evil with which the Palestinian terrorists operate, targeting the civilian population, going from house to house to murder, raping, beheading, taking Israeli hostages and, also, murdering the Palestinian civilians themselves, children and women who are used as human shields.

In most wars, children and women are taken to safety, hidden in the safest places. Hamas does precisely the opposite in the Gaza Strip. It installs military barracks near daycare centers, weapons depots in areas full of civilian apartments and has weapons factories in densely populated places. Rockets have been found in schoolyards, many of its tunnels are under schools, and its leaders give press conferences from hospitals. Using civilians as human shields is one of Hamas' main war tactics.

Hamas knows that in the current scenario wars are not won with soldiers alone; in fact, they are aware that their military capacity would not be able to win a war against Israel, but they are clear that wars at this moment are won with propaganda, with public opinion. Hamas wants Palestinian children and women murdered because they know that the international press and some shameless politicians will come out and accuse Israel of committing war crimes.

Civilians used as human shields are Hamas' way of undermining Israel. With the level of brutality with which this terrorist group acts, it is difficult to understand how the international press and some political leaders (mainly on the left) turn away from looking at the war crimes committed by Hamas and focus on what is happening in the Gaza Strip, with a completely wrong or biased view of the matter.

When military objectives, such as weapons and rocket factories, are placed near schools, civilian buildings or hospitals in the middle of a war, the person responsible for the death of these children and civilians is the one who places the population in the military zone. Israel has developed its technology to impressive levels to avoid the death of civilians as much as possible. Unlike those made by Hamas, its rockets are extremely precise; Israel warns the population before bombing. It uses techniques such as sending messages, drones, and shooting devices that alert people to leave before a possible explosion. But it is impossible for there not to be innocent deaths when Hamas not only places its military objectives in places full of civilians but also prevents them from leaving those places when Israel warns of a bombing.

Incredibly, Hamas knows that it can count on the support of the international press, which quickly forgets that the terrorist group has just committed heinous war crimes and is quick to blame Israel for the deaths of Palestinian children. And then, a group that seems to be growing comes out to ask for a ceasefire and to justify the rape and murder of women and children committed by Hamas terrorists, stating that Israel has subdued the Palestinian people. The reality is that Israel does not rule in Gaza; Hamas does. Israel does not attack Gaza, however, Hamas constantly attacks Israel.

Hamas openly says that its goal is to eliminate Israel. Despite continuous attacks, Israel's strategy is to defend its borders and not exterminate those who want to destroy it. Hamas and its allies, including Iran, know that they cannot win a war militarily, but even more importantly, they know that wars these days are won with public opinion. Sadly, they also know that they can count on the international media, and even after having committed the worst crimes, they point to Israel as the murderer of the children that Hamas placed at military objectives and demand that Israel not defend itself and not seek to recover its kidnapped people.