By Ronald S. Lauder
(Photo: Andres Lacko)
NEW YORK — We knew this moment would come, but that does not make it any less agonizing. The images of caskets being paraded in Gaza are searing proof of Hamas’ brutality and the depths of its inhumanity.
While Israel is forced to release convicted terrorists – many who have taken innocent lives – Hamas is returning bodies, including those of babies. No deal can obscure this reality. Hamas is not a political movement. It is not a resistance group. It is a death cult, driven by a singular mission: the destruction of Israel and the annihilation of Jews. Every time Hamas shows its cloaked faces, it becomes clearer that there can be no future for Israelis, Palestinians or anyone in the Middle East as long as Hamas persists.
In all of my travels and meetings with world leaders, there is one common refrain: No one wishes to provide Hamas with a safe haven. No responsible government, no serious diplomat, no leader who values human life can see what we have seen and argue otherwise. The world cannot look away. This is a defining moral test of our time.
Israel is once again making an unbearable sacrifice because it values life – even in death. This is the price it has paid time and again, but it must be the last time. There is no future with Hamas. Only once it is gone can all people in the region hope to build something better.
As we mourn Ariel, Kfir, Shiri and Oded, we must channel our grief into action. Every remaining hostage must be brought home – immediately. The urgency could not be greater, and the responsibility falls on all of us who refuse to let Hamas’ reign of terror continue.
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Ronald S. Lauder is president of the World Jewish Congress
Comment on the Deaths of Shiri Bibas, her children Ariel and Kfir, and Oded Lifshitz, who were taken hostage from San Diego’s sister municipality of Sha’ar Hanegev on Oct. 7, 2023:
Hadassah
In response to the release of the bodies of four deceased hostages illegally held and murdered by Hamas terrorists, Hadassah, The Women’s Zionist Organization of America, National President Carol Ann Schwartz and CEO Ellen Finkelstein released the following statement:
“Our hearts are broken as the bodies of four hostages kidnapped on October 7 and murdered in captivity have been returned home. We stand with the families and respect their wishes for privacy as they wait for identification procedures to be completed.
“Hamas has butchered and murdered babies, children, women, elderly people and entire families. The hostages who have been released have shown signs of and recounted torture, sexual abuse, starvation and heinous mistreatment. We will not rest until all the hostages are home and Hamas is held accountable for these crimes against humanity.”