SELF-INFLICTED TRAGEDIES IN GAZA
Our local paper detailed an awful story of suffering in Gaza, particularly pointing out the starving children. With the border closed, there are few options for these people. It sounds awful. And yet, the paper clearly proposes that Israel is using this as a war tactic and is solely to blame. It’s typical of California papers to take this approach.
The Truth
In fact, while hostages remain held and, presumably, many are dead, the blame falls solely on Hamas. They have had more than enough time to return the hostages AND stand trial for those they killed, both on October 7th and since then. They stand in the way of peace because of their intransigence against Jews and the State of Israel.
This war started because Hamas attacked Israel and did things only terrorists would do, even as they claim to be the government of Gaza. They have built underground weapon caches and hiding places for their soldiers under schools and hospitals. They made sure soldiers got priority for food, shelter and medical care; citizens have been long deprived of basic needs.
In contrast, doing something no military has ever done, Israel blanketed the cities with warnings of bombings, have actually helped in many ways and have tried to resolve this peacefully. Hamas refuses. Why do so many people and institutions blame Israel? Were they to submit to Hamas, the other illegitimate terrorist groups would repeat the ghastly attack because to submit says Israel is weak. This small country simply has no choice. It has to stay strong under terrorist attack. Sure, mistakes have been made. But none of them would have happened with the attack by Hamas.
Let’s remember America’s response to 9/11. We didn’t actually know if any government had supported the attack in the beginning, but we were ready to go to war. Now, we condemn Israel for doing the same thing. And while the death toll from 9/11 appears higher than those the Israelis suffered, when compared to the population, it’s really about the same. Why the demand for Israel to cave in? They are completely in the right here.
Antisemitism is the Cause
In fact, for reasons most of cannot understand, antisemitism has been rife for much of human history. Why are Jews hated? Is it their relative intelligence? The ability to amass wealth in many cases?
The cause doesn’t matter. If many people around the world were united in their hatred of blacks, Hispanics, women, etc., it would not be tolerated. Somehow, antisemitism has always been tolerated, even when it is camouflaged to some extent. While no one is rebuilding Hitler’s death camps, is the intolerance and bigotry an acceptable thing now?
What’s particularly shocking is that it is impossible to find a reason to applaud or support Hamas. Sure, I feel for the people, but their leaders can fix the hunger and solve this problem. But in the long run, even many of those who are starving are still hate Jews and blame Israel.
What world leaders need to do now is to stand up against Hamas, announce that they are the ones killing their own people and support Israel. Anything else is a continuation of the antisemitism that continues to run rampant.
(If you’ve ever wondered about my somewhat odd name, my grandparents escaped Nazi Germany in 1938, luckily able to find distant relatives to sponsor them here. But on arriving, it was suggested they change their name, as it sounded “too Jewish.” Just saying.)
