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Join on Telegram With more than 500 Palestinians, including women and children, killed in the heinous Israeli attack on the Al-Ahli Arab Hospital, following days of constant indiscriminate bombing and a life-threatening blockade on the Gaza Strip, there are some troubling questions we should ask: When will Israel cease its hostilities? How does destroying Gaza help? How many dead innocent Palestinians, for Israel and the West, are too many?
I don’t have the answer to any of these questions.
With thousands of deaths, more injuries, and widespread destruction, where entire neighborhoods, at least in Gaza, were reduced to rubble; there is another upsetting question we should ask: Who is winning in the Israel-Hamas war?
For this one, I have a clear answer — no one.
This is war. There are no winners in war, and the heartrending cost falls on civilians to pay for — with their lives.
Let me be clear, Hamas’ targeting of Israeli civilians is unacceptable, and Israel’s heinous crimes against innocent Palestinians do not make it otherwise.
As you can see, unlike some hypocritical Western officials, who often choose to ignore Israeli aggression in Palestine, I am proud to denounce violence, wherever it takes place — whether in Israel, Ukraine, or Gaza.
I have to confess, though, that Hamas’ actions — as intolerable as they were — would have never occurred if it wasn’t for the Israeli atrocities against Palestinians, for decades and decades.
Hamas’ attacks were foremost a reaction to years of Israeli killings of thousands of innocent Palestinian mothers, children, and elderly; a response to Israeli forces’ years of indiscriminate bombing of houses, hospitals, and schools; a response to Israel’s decades-long violation of international law, basic human rights, and human dignity; and tellingly, a response to the controversial policies of the recent Israeli far-right government against Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.
For years, having been misled by its military superpower and unconditional Western support, Israel has shown no inclination to pursue peace, choosing conflict over stability instead.
Unsurprisingly, this too is Netanyahu’s big legacy: a legacy of promoting unrest over tranquility, a legacy of inciting divisions at the expense of unity, a legacy of burying every peace initiative while sparing no effort to fan the flames of escalation.
Confronted with multiple corruption investigations, and a real possibility of imprisonment once he is no longer in office, Netanyahu found that intensifying the conflict with Palestinians served as an effective strategy to divert public attention from the corruption cases he faces and to forge extreme coalitions that would keep him in power.
That is what he did back in December of last year, when he formed a far-right government, with “the most extreme members.” These are not my words — they are President Biden’s.
Netanyahu’s recent “most extreme” government, with its controversial policies, further diminished the prospects of any peace agreement with Palestinians, as it refused to make any concessions. The Israeli far-right government believed it had no reason to seek peace with Palestinians.
On its face, this judgment turned out to be wrong, as Hamas’ recent attacks undoubtedly demonstrated.
For now, there is only one question that remains: Will Israel learn from its past mistakes, past atrocities, and choose peace over escalation this time? I hope so.
Today, Israel has only two options: war or peace — with nothing in between. Yet, regrettably, at this time, they continue to choose the path of war.
Through its continuous, indiscriminate, and brutal bombing of civilians’ houses, hospitals, and mosques in Gaza, along with its internationally condemned, disastrous, and deadly blockade of the besieged Strip, Israel is not retaliating against Hamas, but rather targeting more than 2 million Palestinians — whom Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has referred to as “human animals” — in blatant violation of human rights and international humanitarian law.
With its recent offenses against Palestinians, Israel is repeating the very same mistakes that triggered Hamas’ Saturday attacks.
Israel’s aggression against Palestinian civilians is not a solution.
On the contrary, each and every act of Israeli hostility only fuels Hamas’ rage, jeopardizing the safety of more than 150 hostages, who can be brought back safely to their families if the power of dialogue prevails over the dialogue of power.
Even more concerning, Israel’s aggression risks triggering a larger escalation in the region — potentially leading to Hezbollah’s involvement in the conflict.
There have already been reports of an exchange of artillery and rocket fire between Israeli forces and Hezbollah along the northern borders of Israel. These clashes have been of a limited scale so far, but Israel’s action will determine whether they remain so.
Indeed, a major escalation serves the interests of no one. It is not in the interest of Hezbollah to engage in an all-out war against Israel; and the formidable military group has been cautious in its actions, avoiding any intensification of the conflict.
Nor is it in the interest of Israel to fight a full-scale war on two fronts, given that Hezbollah, with its well-trained fighters and highly respected armaments, is a far more capable military group than Hamas.
Neither is it in the interest of the West. Already stretched thin from arming Ukraine in its war with Russia, Western countries, particularly the US, will struggle to support Israel in a war escalation scenario. Such support would come at the expense of other key geostrategic objectives, including defeating Russia in Ukraine and countering China’s rising influence.
What is even more alarming is that a major escalation involving Hezbollah would bring even higher risks of dragging Iran into the conflict, potentially plunging the entire region into a devastating war.
An all-out war is something no one desires, but only Israel’s actions can alter this course of events.
The further Israel escalates its hostilities, the harder it makes it for Hamas’ allies to turn a blind eye to these Israeli crimes, until they feel a moral obligation to join the war.
Under the umbrella of a “unity” government Netanyahu formed with some opposition parties, Western green light for “defending Israel,” longstanding hatred for Palestinians, and national outrage and a desire for revenge, the Israeli prime minister may opt for escalation — bringing once again a grave tragedy for both Palestinians and Israelis.
Innocent Palestinians pay a higher price with their bloodshed. Unlike their occupiers with the Iron Dome, Palestinians have nothing to shield them from Israel’s indiscriminate bombing.
But make no mistake: Any escalation will bring tragedy for Israelis, too.
A large military with the latest technologies does not guarantee zero deaths on the ground. A sophisticated defense system does not ensure the absence of civilian losses.
Ask Biden about the military casualties the US had in Afghanistan. Ask Putin why the S-400 defense system is incapable of protecting Russian skies from Ukrainian drones.
Militaries are always vulnerable; in wars, there are no winners.
This is something Netanyahu should understand each time he pushes for an escalation: If he does not care about the lives of innocent Palestinians(which is seemingly the case), he should at least care for the lives and well-being of his own people.
The time is now for Israel to consider peace.
This might be the last chance of an open window for de-escalation, avoiding a major war that would be in the interest of no one: not of Israel, not of Hamas and Hezbollah, and definitely not of the West.
And one last thing, one last final note, to the Israeli Minister who described Palestinians as “human animals.”
Those are human beings, Mr. Minister, with their full dignity and human rights, and if you consider them “animals,” then good luck with your crimes in Palestine, and may God protect the Palestinians.
