Scrutinise the intellectuals probing Israel’s actions

ON DECEMBER 26, 2025, the Middle East Eye published an article on the document issued by Hamas, Israel to allow an impartial investigation into October 7.

- ELMA ROSS

With all the noise of the Hasbara (public advocacy), for which Israel has increased the budget to $780 million (about R13 billion) to counter negative perceptions about Israel, many of us have forgotten that a formal independent investigation report is still outstanding.

It might not be that easy to find the right people for such an investigation.

Many intellectual critics of Israel are in their final years. Noam Chomsky, consistently cited as one of the most quoted authors of all time, and author of The Fateful Triangle, is in his nineties. Asa linguist, he tears apart micro details that are often overlooked.

Chomsky used to mentor the now slighty younger Norman Finkelstein, who did his PhD on Zionism, and authored Image and Reality of the Israel-Palestine Conflict and The Holocaust Industry. Finkelstein is famous for pointing out the similarities between Jewish tunnels during the Holocaust, and the tunnels in Gaza.