Canberra: In a shocking development, a Hamas-themed birthday cake for a four-year-old Australian kid, featuring a militant surrounded by Palestinian flags, has sparked widespread outrage, causing the Australian Federal Police to launch an investigation. The Australian bakery responsible for making the cake had proudly posted pictures of it online, which have now been deleted after intense backlash, as per reports.
According to the New York Post, Oven Bakery by Fufu posted images on Tuesday showing the young boy standing beside a large cake decorated with the Palestinian flag and a picture of Abu Obaida, a spokesman for Hamas, with his finger raised. The boy was dressed in a headscarf and outfit similar to the figure on the cake as he mimicked the pose.
Initially, the bakery received positive comments for the cake, with people calling the boy “a champion”. Soon afterwards, the post was heavily criticised, leading to shutting down its Instagram and Facebook pages as opposing religious leaders called out the “indoctrination” of the young boy. "Dressing a child up as a terrorist, including with what appears to be a Hamas headband is reprehensible and a form of child abuse,” said Robert Gregory, chief executive of the Australian Jewish Group.
“Islamic extremism and radicalisation of youth is not just a problem for the Jewish community. It’s a threat to all Australians,” added Gregory. “Australia has seen several recent incidents of Muslim youth allegedly stabbing or plotting to attack other Australians. Indoctrination starts at a young age and is similar to what is seen across the Middle East. This is nothing short of child terrorist grooming.”
Chris Minns, the premier of the Australian state of New South Wales, termed the images adorning the cake as “horrifying”. “Hamas is an evil terrorist organisation. Kids parties should be innocent and fun, not hateful,” he said. Alex Ryvchin, the co-chief executive of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry said anybody glorifying terrorist organisations in this way was suffering from “a rare kind of psychosis”.
According to the country's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Australia has listed Hamas as a terrorist organisation and it is also a designated entity subject to counter-terrorism financing sanctions under the Australian sanctions law. It is a criminal offence to fund terrorist organisations, either directly or indirectly.
Hamas-led militants launched an unprecedented attack on Israel on October 7 last year by firing a barrage of missiles that killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians, triggering the nearly eight-month-long war in Gaza. The militants also took 250 hostages, over 100 of whom are still captured in Gaza, while Israel says that 30 captives have been killed.
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