By Steve Kramer
KFAR SABA, Israel — Does it seem that the “whole world” is castigating Israel for defending itself from the Hamas Muslim jihadists who barbarously attacked it on October 7? Not to mention retaliating against the 11,000+ rockets Hamas has shot into Israel in just the first 100 days after that 10/7 onslaught. Israel’s defense against criticism should be first and always, BLAME HAMAS! Why?
The younger generations gets its “news” from Tik Tok, Instagram and others. The older generation watches NBC, MSNBC, reads The New York Times, Washington Post, and also popular pundits like Thomas Friedman, who has made a very lucrative career out of bashing Israel.
All the blame is on the Israelis, according to Israel’s detractors – and even some of Israel’s friends. Forgotten is the fact that Hamas broke a ceasefire on the holiday of Simhat Torah, echoing the vicious surprise attack on Yom Kippur 50 years before. (Right now it’s the holy Muslim month of Ramadan which Israel is supposed to respect – although the Muslim terrorists certainly haven’t and don’t.)
The “patience” of the Biden administration and other Western countries has grown thin, they say. The “only path” to peace is to impose a two-state solution on Israel: an official State of Palestine. This would reward the jihadists for their murderous behavior without even demanding a return of all the still-held 100+ Israeli captives – dead or alive – and an end to Hamas. In the meantime, there is the claim that Israel is perpetrating, or poised to perpetrate, war crimes on the Gazans. This makes a mockery of the fact that casualty figures, which never mention terrorists, are provided by Hamas and are referenced as if they were verified facts. Actually, the IDF (Israel’s armed forces) and intelligence agencies report that the ratio of civilians killed to terrorists killed is possibly the lowest in the history of modern warfare. So why the constant, insulting demands, which indirectly indict Israel?
Below are some of the atrocities that Israel is accused of perpetrating:
The “poor Palestinians” are starving. Actually, the more food, fuel, and water sent into Gaza, the more Hamas steals to enrich its supplies. Most of the shipments are commandeered by Hamas for itself, either to supply its supporters or to resell on the black market to the hungry citizens. This is not so much a problem of insufficient supply of goods, but a lack of enough money to buy food at vastly inflated Hamas/black market prices. Therefore, BLAME HAMAS.
Many “civilians” are being killed. Among the so-called civilians are many Hamas and Islamic Jihad fighters, who may or may not wear military apparel. This is the inevitable result of a terrorist force that uses the civilian population as human shields, protecting themselves behind and among non-combatants, and in public and private buildings. Concurrent with that is the tactic that civilian deaths are part of the Hamas strategy to dehumanize Israel. The more dead, the better. Therefore, BLAME HAMAS.
There is no longer medical care in Gaza. Despite more than 100 “hospitals” that existed in Gaza before it attacked Israel, medical care was always deficient; Hamas doesn’t care. When one of the higher ups in Gaza needed excellent care, they usually got it in Israel. (Go figure!) When hospitals, schools, mosques, and other public facilities are attacked by Israel it’s because they are no longer protected targets, due to their use by terrorists as part of their military infrastructure. Unfortunately, Western media outlets have been way too quick to condemn Israel’s actions, or those falsely attributed to the IDF, as “war crimes.” Therefore, BLAME HAMAS.
See the links: Between 100 and 300 believed killed in Gaza hospital blast, according to preliminary US intelligence assessment (Within days this article was completely refuted as incorrect, but the public rarely notices corrections.) How the Media Got the Hospital Explosion Wrong
Gazan lives are a multi-generational tragedy. The Gazans are victims of the PLO strategy of “Stages,” whereby generations must suffer as small victories are accumulated to eradicate Israel. In particular is the fact that Israel completely left Gaza in 2005, giving the population the chance to build a beautiful, prosperous enclave for themselves. Instead, they allowed the terrorist Hamas organization to use them as fodder in the continuous struggle to usurp Israel. Therefore, BLAME HAMAS.
Gazans’ stress, fear and anxiety results from the sound of invisible drones and nighttime explosions. Yes, the Gazans live in a war zone. But who made it so? Hamas alone has attacked Israel with more than 15,000 rockets(!) since it gained control in 2006. Do you ever hear about Israelis’ fear and anxiety? What nation in the world would not react to such attacks – none. If Hamas released the Israeli prisoners, gave up its arms and surrendered, the war would end and Western and Arab countries would line up to rebuild it. But instead, Hamas boasts that it will perpetrate many more “10/7” events and will never stop until it destroys Israel. Therefore, BLAME HAMAS.
Life for Gazans is equivalent to a prison, but worse, like a concentration camp with no way to escape, under blockade. Gaza has two countries bordering it, mostly Jewish Israel and mostly Muslim Egypt. Both block Gazans from entering freely because of grave security concerns. If the rockets aimed at Israel were instead aimed into Egypt, the war now raging in Gaza would look like a picnic compared to an Egyptian response. Gazans should be free to leave the area voluntarily, but so far there has been little appetite shown by other nations to take them in. Some would even disallow voluntary emigration. Therefore, BLAME HAMAS.
To accomplish its goal, Hamas is quite willing and able to sacrifice the people of Gaza. From its perspective, the more dead babies the better; the more wounded and crippled Gazans, the better; the more stolen food and fuel, the better; the more destruction of Gaza, the better; the more suffering in Gaza, the better. It hopes global pressure will force Israel to stand down without Hamas giving up anything. If so, Hamas wins big-time and Israel loses both its security and its essential respect.
Israel is protecting its sovereignty from a terroristic Muslim enemy whose current and ultimate goal is to usurp Israel, killing as many Jews as possible while eradicating the Jewish state. The first two words of reply by Israeli representatives to condemnations against Israel must be, BLAME HAMAS. It is responsible for the dire consequences that the Gazans are dealing with, not Israel.
ADDENDUM: Should Israel’s greatest ally, America, be pressuring Israel with a curtailment of necessary armaments if it enters the town of Rafah? This town, on the border between Egypt and Gaza, is the major conduit for weapons to Hamas. Is this the way the US should treat its foremost ally in the region, with other Arab allies watching the US sell out Israel?
Because Muslim jihadism (the defeat of all non-Muslims) is rampant especially with countries under Iran’s sway, its defeat is mandatory. Israel is the final line of defense for its Abraham Accord allies and friends. It is in US interest to support Israel when it needs backing, not insinuate guilt about its tactics . The Biden administration is putting roadblocks in front of Israel, perhaps to enable the president’s reelection via a hoped-for progressive wave. Instead of standing up to the Iranians, such tactics promote the Iranian strategy to divide the West, heralding first an Iranian-led caliphate throughout the Middle East, then its spread westward. We see this strategy working already in Western Europe and perhaps even in Michigan and Minnesota. Consequently, Iran and its proxies, such as Hamas and especially Hezbollah, must be stopped at all costs.
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Steve Kramer is an American Israeli freelance writer based in Kfar Saba, Israel. He may be contacted via steve.kramer@sdjewishworld.com