It is estimated that over 26,000 civilians have been murdered by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) in Gaza — including 10,000 children — following the brutal Hamas attack on Israelis carried out on Oct. 7, 2023, that slaughtered 1,139.
On Tuesday, Hamas said it was considering a ceasefire proposal and there was a momentary sense of ease.
This meager shred of hope quickly faded, as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would not withdraw IDF forces from Gaza until Israel had achieved “total victory.” Netanyahu defines this as, “eliminating Hamas, returning all of our hostages and ensuring that Gaza will no longer pose a threat to Israel."
There are a few major problems here. Problem one is that the ceasefire proposal included the release of the Israeli hostages taken by Hamas. Problem two is that two civilians are murdered for every Hamas militant eliminated, a statistic a senior Israeli official deemed “not bad.”
This means Israel is doing more to kill thousands who have nothing to do with Hamas than it is to actually target Hamas itself.
The implications of Netanyahu’s vague statement are beyond ominous given how many have already been murdered. Entire families deemed collateral damage to the vague testament of, “ensuring Gaza is no longer a threat to Israel’” mean nothing to Netanyahu or his cabinet, which includes anti-Arab fascists.
It's an interesting strategy because thousands of orphaned children are unlikely to grow up with warm and fuzzy feelings toward Israel and will instead seek out some sense of revenge against the state that robbed them of their innocence, of a warm bed to sleep in, of their mothers’ arms.
Netanyahu is only creating more problems for Israel down the line, continuing a pattern of radicalization that has gone on for decades.
The best hope for long-lasting peace between Israel and Palestine is to grant Palestinians equal rights over their land. This means ending the restriction of Palestinian movement and the flow of water and electricity to Gaza and the West Bank.
That also means that Israeli authorities need to stop transferring Israeli citizens into settlements on the West Bank and end the demolition of Palestinian homes when there is not a war going on. And right now, of course, Israeli forces need to stop raiding Palestinian homes and schools and raiding hospitals.
Netanyahu is evil. This goes beyond protecting Israelis, beyond striking back. Hamas swung first so the IDF is beating Palestinians to death in a fight they did not start. Israel is not defending itself, and Netanyahu is not acting with the good of his people in mind. What is happening in Gaza is a genocide the Israeli government will not pay for, but that Muslims and Jews around the world will.
President Joe Biden can discuss slowing weaponry deliveries all he wants, but that does not take away from the U.S.’s direct involvement in the slaughter that is happening in Palestine right now.
Megan Diehl is a junior studying journalism at Ohio University. Please note that the views expressed in this column do not reflect the views of The Post. Want to talk to Megan? Email her at md396520@ohio.edu.
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