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Source: https://www.usnews.com/opinion/articles/2023-12-14/hamas-wrought-destruction-but-at-what-price
The Oct. 7 Attacks Were the Most Barbarous Massacre of Israeli Civilians Ever
(U.S. News) David J. Michaels - Over more than two months of conflict, Hamas has perpetrated unspeakable atrocities among Israel's Jews and Arabs alike, while also imperiling Palestinian civilians by hindering their evacuation, firing and hiding among them, and diverting aid. The Oct. 7 attacks were the most barbarous massacre of Israeli civilians ever. Hamas glorifies the murder of Israelis, and it revels in terrorizing other Israelis in order to weaken the Middle East's only democracy and render it unlivable. But Hamas and its backers may have miscalculated. Israel's most fundamental raison d'etre is the prevention of the sort of pogroms Palestinians unleashed from Gaza, and their carnage instantly forged a resolve and unity among Israelis. Indeed, the credibility of Israelis - and the U.S. - as partners to moderate Arabs is dependent on ensuring that the jihadist model is seen as an unambiguous failure. Hamas scored certain ignoble "achievements" in October. But in the months to follow, Israel - the sole nation-state of a people that has outlived more than one genocidal fantasy - will do whatever possible to restore deterrence, attempting to lessen civilian harm while making the pogroms not worth their price. The writer is Director of UN and Intercommunal Affairs at B'nai B'rith International.