Debunking Hamas' Leaders As Billionaires On Forbes, As Social Media Users Are Forced To Choose Sides

Information and misinformation during wars is quite compelling.

In the realm of conflict, information becomes a powerful tool, shaping perceptions and influencing the course of events. In wars, both sides engage in a strategic battle for information dominance, and controlling information is crucial.

During wars, whoever controls the flow of information, can create propaganda, launch psychological operations, create censorship and cyber warfare, as well as spreading rumors and deceptions.

Accurate and timely information is crucial for military operations, intelligence, and public morale.

And following Palestine's Hamas surprise attack on Israel, social media is full of both information and misinformation.

Among the many misleading claims, include fabricated Forbes magazine covers that denounce two Hamas leaders for allegedly becoming billionaires through crime have been widely circulated.

In the first, post, it's said that Khaled Meshaal, a Hamas leader, has become a billionaire due to the war.

"While the majority of people in the Gaza Strip live below the poverty line, Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal has made the Forbes rich list with a net worth of $5 billion."

The post contains a Forbes magazine cover featuring a photo of Meshaal and text claiming he has amassed a fortune of $5 billion through connections to crime.

Meshaal is a former Hamas chief who resigned as chairman of its decision-making politburo in 2017, but he remains highly influential in the group, and continues retaining his key figure in the military group.

A second image circulating on social media features a photo of Ismail Haniyeh, another Hamas leader, whose Forbes cover claims that he has illegally made $4 billion.

Haniyeh has been at the head of Hamas's political branch since May 2017, and at this time, he is living in a voluntary exile, and divides his time between Turkey and Qatar.

"Now a magazine cover model," reads one post in Indonesian sharing the Haniyeh image on X, formerly known as Twitter.

The images were shared on social media accounts operated by the Israeli foreign ministry have shared the fake Forbes covers in numerous languages, including in English on X.

Even the Israeli embassy in Germany posted the covers, along with Israel's mission in Austria.

With official accounts sharing the covers prompted thousands upon thousands of reshares.

It was only later, that the American business magazine told AFP that the covers are fake.

After analysis has been done, the photos do contain publishing errors, like formatting irregularities that would not be found in a genuine issue.

To prove that they're fake, Forbes has displayed its English-language back issues in a dedicated page on its website, and none showed the Hamas leaders on the front cover.

What's more, Forbes, which also tracks the net worth of billionaires around the world, has never put either Meshaal or Haniyeh on its list.

It was only after this, that the Israeli foreign ministry replied to its own post on X that the covers are "satire and illustrative."

But still, a lot of social media users continued thinking that the photos are real, with some users even congratulating the Hamas leaders for being covered by Forbes.

The images have also been posted on other platforms including Facebook and Telegram, in numerous languages that include English, German, Spanish, Japanese, Vietnamese, Persian and more.

While Forbes never claimed the two Hamas leaders as billionaires, some Western news publications have alleged that some of them are billionaires.

It's said that Ismail Haniyeh, Moussa Abu Marzuk, and Khaled Mashal live a luxurious lifestyle in Doha, Qatar.

The three leaders have been seen at Qatar's diplomatic club, photographed inside private jets, stay at five-star hotels and mansions, dines at some of the Middle East’s best restaurants while abroad, among others.

Hamas is said to have earned more $1 billion a year from a global network that includes cryptocurrency, real estate, legitimate business and taxing and extorting Gaza residents.

The publications claim that the top Hamas men aren't interested in peace. Instead, they are war profiteers, and make money as war commences.

While information like this spreads and is shared, there is no way to conclude what is right and what is wrong, before it's debunked with facts.

In wars, spreading misinformation can give an advantage. And the internet is just a vessel, where this thrives.

Hamas is considered a terror group to some countries that side with Israel, such as the United States, the European Union, and more. These countries consider Hamas to be a terrorist group because of its attacks on Israel.

They also condemn Hamas for its anti-semitism and anti-Zionist ideology.

While those who side with Israel consider Hamas a terror group, Hamas origin can be traced back to the Palestinian movement against the Israeli occupation of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

In other words, it was born as a resistance towards Israel's advances in Palestine.

Hamas leaders are close to some Middle East leaders because they share some common interests, such as opposing Israel, supporting the Palestinian cause, and promoting Islam.