(JNS) Melanie Phillips - Prime Minister Netanyahu's conduct of the war against Hamas has overwhelming public backing. The majority of Israelis insist that Hamas be defeated once and for all. After the Oct. 7 atrocities in Jewish communities, they demanded that Israel should never again be content with repeatedly inflicting "serious blows" on Hamas, only for it to resume its murder offensives within a few months. The idea that a ceasefire deal will bring the hostages home is sheer fantasy. Only a few of the hostages would be released in the first phase. Hamas would then use the ceasefire to regroup and rearm, spinning out the continuing negotiation farce to keep the rest of the hostages trapped and thus retain control of Gaza. The Biden administration forced Israel to proceed in Gaza far more slowly than the IDF judged necessary to defeat Hamas and thus save the hostages. Worse, for three months, the administration stopped Israel from entering Rafah - below which the six hostages were murdered this month. The writer is a columnist for The Times (UK).
2024-09-10 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive