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Source: https://www.standard.co.uk/comment/israel-oscars-2024-gaza-billie-eilish-mark-ruffalo-b1144736.html
There Will Be No Peace until Hamas Is Dismantled
(London Evening Standard-UK) Matthew d'Ancona - When most people call for a "ceasefire," what they mean is that Israel must end its military campaign - unilaterally. Blame is laid squarely on one side. Yet it was Hamas, after all, that broke the ceasefire five months ago. It was Hamas that killed more than 1,160 people on Oct. 7, deploying torture, sexual violence and sadistic terror. It is Hamas that still holds 134 hostages, some of whom are believed to already be dead. The Oct. 7 attacks generated the certainty that no Israeli government could ever again do business with the terrorist group responsible for the slaughter. It is too seldom reported that Hamas remains utterly committed to the annihilation of Israel. Hamas deliberately constructed the warrens and public buildings of Gaza in such a way as to put as many civilians as possible in harm's way. The terrible death toll is a direct consequence of Hamas strategy. Even if Netanyahu is replaced as prime minister, no Israeli government can countenance an enduring ceasefire until this Islamist death cult has been destroyed as a viable military force. It will take time. It is a bleak task, forced upon the Israelis by what happened to them on Oct. 7. There will be no peace until Hamas is indeed dismantled.