---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Strike the enemy's settlements, turn them…"
description: "\"Strike the enemy's settlements, turn them into dust, pave the Arab roads with the skulls of Jews.\" — Hafez al-Assad"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f9/hafez-al-assad-241122_dust_strike-the-enemy-s-settlements-turn-them_2808971.png"
---

#  Strike the enemy's settlements, turn them into dust, pave…

![“Strike the enemy's settlements, turn them into dust, pave the Arab roads with the skulls of Jews.” quote by Hafez al-Assad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f9/hafez-al-assad-241122_dust_strike-the-enemy-s-settlements-turn-them_2808971.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f9/hafez-al-assad-241122_dust_strike-the-enemy-s-settlements-turn-them_2808971.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f9/hafez-al-assad-241122_dust_strike-the-enemy-s-settlements-turn-them_2808971.png)

> “Strike the enemy's settlements, turn them into dust, pave the Arab roads with the skulls of Jews.”

Hafez al-Assad

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The directive to destroy enemy settlements and pave roads with skulls reflects brutal warfare.

**In simple terms:** War seeks to erase enemies and dominate territory.

Key Takeaway

Recognize the horror of war.

Themes

conflict violence history

Mood

grim critical

Type

historical political

When to use this quote

- military strategy
- human rights advocacy
- historical analysis
- peacebuilding

Key Concepts

war ethics genocide studies

Questions to Reflect On

- How can societies prevent such brutality?
- What are the human costs of war?

A Different Perspective

Glorifying violence can inspire further atrocities.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Enemy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enemy/) [Israel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/israel/) [Jew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jew/) [Judaism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/judaism/) [Strikes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strikes/)

## Related quotes

> [Strike an enemy once and for all. Let him cease to exist as a tribe or he will live to fly in your throat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shaka/strike-an-enemy-once-and-for-all-let-him-cease-to-exist-as-a-tribe-or/)

[Shaka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shaka/)

> [People go to restaurants for so many different reasons. To court a girl, to make some deal. Maybe to talk to some lawyer about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gay-talese/people-go-to-restaurants-for-so-many-different-reasons-to-court-a/)

[Gay Talese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gay-talese/)

> [Like myself, all Americans have a deep concern for the well-being of Iran. With them I have watched closely your courageous efforts, your steadfastness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/like-myself-all-americans-have-a-deep-concern-for-the-well-being-of/)

[Dwight D. Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-d-eisenhower/)

> [The core issue here is that the Israeli government refuses to commit to terms of reference for the negotiations that are based on international…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmoud-abbas/the-core-issue-here-is-that-the-israeli-government-refuses-to-commit/)

[Mahmoud Abbas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmoud-abbas/)

> [The settlement of the Land of Israel is the essence of Zionism. Without settlement, we will not fulfill Zionism. It's that simple.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yitzhak-shamir/the-settlement-of-the-land-of-israel-is-the-essence-of-zionism/)

[Yitzhak Shamir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yitzhak-shamir/)

> [We have to learn how to contact one another over an enormous land space, across five-and-a-half time zones, in what as once a wilderness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-w-powe/we-have-to-learn-how-to-contact-one-another-over-an-enormous-land/)

[B. W. Powe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-w-powe/)

> [It's very hard, for example, to justify the thirty-four-year occupation of the West Bank and Gaza. It's very hard to justify 140 Israeli settlements…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-said/it-s-very-hard-for-example-to-justify-the-thirty-four-year-occupation/)

[Edward Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-said/)

> [The Government wants a peaceful settlement. But we totally reject a peaceful sell-out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-thatcher/the-government-wants-a-peaceful-settlement-but-we-totally-reject-a/)

[Margaret Thatcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-thatcher/)

> [I don't often want to speak. I try to be a reasonable person and to be diplomatic, but you go to that place and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desmond-tutu/i-don-t-often-want-to-speak-i-try-to-be-a-reasonable-person-and-to-be/)

[Desmond Tutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desmond-tutu/)

> [May I strike my heart's keys clearly, and may none fail because of slack, uncertain, or fraying strings. May the tears that stream down…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/may-i-strike-my-heart-s-keys-clearly-and-may-none-fail-because-of/)

[Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/)

> [Beyond that is the fear that the United States will end up negotiating and agreeing to a deal with Iran. The Israelis do not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trita-parsi/beyond-that-is-the-fear-that-the-united-states-will-end-up/)

[Trita Parsi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trita-parsi/)

> [For a time during the early settlement of this country peace and goodwill prevailed, only to be followed later by violent and relentless warfare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-a-miles/for-a-time-during-the-early-settlement-of-this-country-peace-and/)

[Nelson A. Miles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-a-miles/)

> [We knew the Syrian situation was complex and there were lots of divisions, particularly on the side of the opposition... This is a tough…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kofi-annan/we-knew-the-syrian-situation-was-complex-and-there-were-lots-of/)

[Kofi Annan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kofi-annan/)

> [Peace is more of an internal settlement rather than what is visible on the external.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/criss-jami/peace-is-more-of-an-internal-settlement-rather-than-what-is-visible/)

[Criss Jami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/criss-jami/)

> [ The fundamental principle \[of settlement work\] remains: that people shall take up their residence in industrial communities, giving what they may have of public… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lillian-wald/the-fundamental-principle-of-settlement-work-remains-that-people/)

[Lillian Wald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lillian-wald/)

## More Dust quotes

> [Perhaps no order of mammals presents us with so extraordinary a series of gradations as this \[step by step, from humans to apes to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/perhaps-no-order-of-mammals-presents-us-with-so-extraordinary-a/)

[Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/)

> [“Veiled by the dust of its own passing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cameron-rogers/veiled-by-the-dust-of-its-own-passing/)

Cameron Rogers

> [She had been dragged in the most humiliating of all dusts, the dust reserved for older women who let themselves be approached, on amorous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-von-arnim/she-had-been-dragged-in-the-most-humiliating-of-all-dusts-the-dust/)

[Elizabeth von Arnim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-von-arnim/)

> [We think literature is immortal, but even that decays and ultimately turns to dust.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mick-farren/we-think-literature-is-immortal-but-even-that-decays-and-ultimately/)

[Mick Farren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mick-farren/)

> [Wild honey smells of freedom The dust - of sunlight The mouth of a young girl, like a violet But gold - smells of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-akhmatova/wild-honey-smells-of-freedom-the-dust-of-sunlight-the-mouth-of-a/)

[Anna Akhmatova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-akhmatova/)

> [“People were made of nothing so much as dust, and I couldn't see that doctoring all that dust was a bit better than writing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/people-were-made-of-nothing-so-much-as-dust-and-i-couldn-t-see-that/)

[Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/)

> [Mr. Bumpy from Bump in the Night was this funky little guy who lived under the bed and thought eating dust bunnies was a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cummings/mr-bumpy-from-bump-in-the-night-was-this-funky-little-guy-who-lived/)

[Jim Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cummings/)

> [At about 10 o'clock in the morning the sun threw a bright dust-laden bar through one of the side windows and in and out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/at-about-10-o-clock-in-the-morning-the-sun-threw-a-bright-dust-laden/)

[John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/)

> [I assume my stance, and take back the club, low, slowly; at the top, my eyes fog over, and my joints dip and swirl…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/i-assume-my-stance-and-take-back-the-club-low-slowly-at-the-top-my/)

[John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/)

> [When any civilization is dust and ashes," he said, "art is all that's left over. Images, words, music. Imaginative structures. Meaning—human meaning, that is—is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/when-any-civilization-is-dust-and-ashes-he-said-art-is-all-that-s/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [When a man is not wanted in the village, he is always accused of raising dust even when he falls in a pool of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/when-a-man-is-not-wanted-in-the-village-he-is-always-accused-of/)

[Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/)

> [Gatsby turned out all right at the end; it is what preyed on Gatsby, what foul dust floated in the wake of his dreams…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-scott-fitzgerald/gatsby-turned-out-all-right-at-the-end-it-is-what-preyed-on-gatsby/)

[F. Scott Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-scott-fitzgerald/)

> [I'm not a prophet, but I always thought it was natural for dictatorships to fall. I remember in 1989, two months before the fall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/i-m-not-a-prophet-but-i-always-thought-it-was-natural-for/)

[Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/)

> [Passing beauties are only the fugitive reflections of the eternal. All beauty alters and all life melts away; in short, everything passes with marvelous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliphas-levi/passing-beauties-are-only-the-fugitive-reflections-of-the-eternal-all/)

[Eliphas Levi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliphas-levi/)

> [The trees are white with dust, that o'er their sleep Wave their broad curtains in the south-wind's breath, While underneath such leafy tents they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/the-trees-are-white-with-dust-that-o-er-their-sleep-wave-their-broad/)

[Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/)

Browse all 1,783 Dust quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Strike the enemy's settlements, turn them into dust, pave the Arab roads with the skulls of Jews.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Hafez al-Assad"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hafez-al-assad/strike-the-enemy-s-settlements-turn-them-into-dust-pave-the-arab/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Dust"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hafez-al-assad/strike-the-enemy-s-settlements-turn-them-into-dust-pave-the-arab/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f9/hafez-al-assad-241122_dust_strike-the-enemy-s-settlements-turn-them_2808971.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f9/hafez-al-assad-241122_dust_strike-the-enemy-s-settlements-turn-them_2808971.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f9/hafez-al-assad-241122_dust_strike-the-enemy-s-settlements-turn-them_2808971.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Strike the enemy's settlements, turn them into dust, pave the Arab roads with the skulls of Jews.” — Hafez al-Assad",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Hafez al-Assad",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hafez-al-assad/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Strike the enemy's settlements, turn them...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hafez-al-assad/strike-the-enemy-s-settlements-turn-them-into-dust-pave-the-arab/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hafez-al-assad/strike-the-enemy-s-settlements-turn-them-into-dust-pave-the-arab/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
