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Why the War Against Hamas Must Go On

(Jerusalem Post) Herb Keinon - Israel must continue fighting this war - despite the casualties and despite the Israeli hostages' unspeakable suffering and the suffering of their families. If the country runs out of patience or gives in to Hamas' demand to end the war and stop the fighting, Israel would be mortgaging its future for possible short-term gain. Since 2007, Israel has avoided a full-blown war with Hamas, trying to push the issue down the road, hoping that somehow, the problem of having a terrorist organization with genocidal intent right on its doorstep would disappear or become manageable. The same was true in Lebanon. Since the end of the Second Lebanon War in 2006, Israel has not wanted to go to war to prevent Hizbullah from arming itself with tens of thousands of missiles. But the problem only got bigger. As a result, Israel now faces the reality of needing to dislodge Hamas from Gaza and Hizbullah from southern Lebanon so that Israeli residents can move back into their homes near the border. If this war ends without a conclusive victory for Israel, then all of Israel's enemies will be emboldened, and its potential friends will reconsider forging ties with the Jewish state. Hamas will declare victory if it will be able to fire a single rocket at Sderot. So Israel needs to defeat Hamas in such a way that no rational person can conclude that it won this war.
2024-01-17 00:00:00
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