Death to Hamas!

Damn you, ICC. There is no moral equivalence between Hamas and Israel.

Photo by Cole Keister on Unsplash

Let’s review what a war is, shall we? One country invading another country would be the easiest example. Germany’s invasion of Poland to start WWII and Russia invading Ukraine today are basic good versus evil scenarios. Then, we have the declaration of war, which is what Germany did to the United States, also, in WWII. There are civil wars like the Rwandan Civil War that became a genocide. Next, are acts of terror that lead to wars. The most obvious is 9/11, of course. But the most recent is October 7 when Israeli civilians were attacked, raped, tortured, and/or kidnapped by Hamas.

When acts of war occur, should leaders turn the other cheek or fight like hell against the aggressor? Wars end when one side defeats the other or the initial aggressor raises the white flag. The United States’ support of Ukraine against Russia, on its surface, is the right thing to do. Russia invaded. So why, then, is there less support when Israel was attacked?

The war that started between Hamas and Israel is no doubt Hamas’ doing. Hamas is a terrorist organization leading Palestinian Arabs in Gaza. This terrorist group came to power due to its 2006 defeat of Fatah in elections. Since then, instead of helping the Palestinian people by creating environments where peace and business would flourish, Hamas has been creating a vast tunnel system to smuggle weapons from Iran through Egypt. According to the Wilson Center, though tunnels were already built, Hamas “rapidly expanded [tunnels], and their use became integral to the group’s plans to attack and destroy Israel’s presence.”

To be clear, Hamas leadership is not the Boy Scouts. They want the complete annihilation of Israel at the expense of their own Palestinian people. As we watch the unfolding of pro-Hamas protests in America, we need to question why. Palestinians who live in America should be Americans first. When Northern Ireland had the Troubles, there was no vast amounts of Irish Americans blocking traffic, disrupting college campuses, or walking out on graduations. None took down the American flag and replaced it with an Irish flag.

That doesn’t mean they were disinterested, but, as illustrated by Kevin Cullen for PBS’ Frontline, “It is true that a small portion of Irish-Americans have always supported the Irish Republican Army, but the importance of the money they raised and the weapons they procurred [sic] for the republican movement tended to be exaggerated…”

History shows both Presidents Reagan and Clinton attempted diplomacy with Great Britain as a means of ceasefire. But Reagan ensured that Sinn Fein members were not allowed to come to the United States. Terrorism was still frowned upon then. Later, Clinton welcomed Sinn Fein’s leader Gerry Adams, which was basically a spit in the eye of our ally Great Britain. Though a ceasefire did happen for a short period of time, eruptions of violence renewed in 1996.

What should we have learned but didn’t? Negotiating with terrorists never works.

Hamas took a chance on October 7th. They sent a message to Israel that they were willing to kill civilians not merely go after military targets. Killing innocent civilians strikes at the heartstrings of the average human as an abomination. Does Israel have the right to strike back? Yes. Without conditions? Yes. They didn’t start the war, but they are a strong fighting force who has defended itself from Arab counties surrounding it for decades. Play with fire and you will get burned.

What about the innocent civilians in Gaza? I question how innocent they are when they cheer on the brutality Hamas has shown. Additionally, if Hamas was concerned about their own people, they would surrender. But, like Emperor Hirohito, they will not. Instead, what Hamas is hoping for is pressure from the international community applied on Israel. And right on cue, the U.N. stepped up.

Search the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs where they posted the following statement, “Hostilities in Gaza and Israel are ongoing, and violence in the West Bank has surged. Millions of Palestinians struggle to live with dignity under Israeli occupation, facing coercive practices and Palestinian political divisions.” Let this sink in.

Understand, it’s Israel’s fault that Hamas had to invade, kill civilians, rape women, and take hostages. Additionally, President Biden has shown more compassion for Hamas while attempting to rid Israel of Netanyahu. But it’s an election year. He needs pro-Palestinian votes believing he has the Jewish votes always given to the Democrats.

The clincher of the anti-Israel movement, however, is the International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor stating that he wants to prosecute both Israeli leader Netanyahu and Hamas leader Sinwar for war crimes. Prosecutor Karim A.A. Khan apparently believes that though Hamas has its faults, Israel has gone above and beyond in their attempt to locate and kill Hamas terrorists.

Be mindful that Khan wants to appear fair in his push for prosecutions.

Khan writes, "We submit that the crimes against humanity charged were committed as part of a widespread and systematic attack against the Palestinian civilian population pursuant to State policy. These crimes, in our assessment, continue to this day.” Then he adds, "We submit that the crimes against humanity charged were part of a widespread and systematic attack against the civilian population of Israel by Hamas and other armed groups pursuant to organisational [sic] policies. Some of these crimes, in our assessment, continue to this day” (NBC News).

Read the statements carefully. Once again, in a war Israel didn’t start, they are more of a bad guy than Hamas. What monsters Israelis are to fight back and not negotiate with Hamas!

A country attacked should be able to defend itself. The stated purpose of Hamas is to wipe Israel off the map. Why would anyone expect Israel to perform differently when Palestinians and their supporters in the United States and abroad chant “From the river to the sea” and “Death to Israel?” Freedom of speech is fine. Say what you want, and I will debate you. But Hamas took it one step further when they acted on their verbal aggression.

Furthermore, the ICC, the U.N., and our own government is showing its anti-Semitism when discussing humanitarianism in light of Hamas’ despicable actions on and after October 7th. It’s a war. As in every war, things are broken and people, including civilians, are killed. The side with more and better weapons, the side with more people to fight, and the side with more allies’ support will win. Unlike Ukraine, Israel stands alone so should not cave to outside pressure. They must root out every terrorist and terrorist sympathizer for their own survival.

Damn the ICC. Death to Hamas!