feel like I need to reiterate that I believe all humans deserve safety. It’s a tragedy even when a soldier dies, far more a civilian. Life is precious and fragile and should be regarded as such with every decision we make.
Yes, you should reiterate this.
I have no clue how you define what’s acceptable leadership or not, but I have to assume that you tacitly accept a lot of really fucked up human rights abuses if you believe Israel has “acceptable leadership” - so let’s start from there. Tell me why Israel as a nation deserves to have safety from Palestine/Gaza. I know they want safety. Tell me why they deserve it.
Since you say you have no clue, you not only don’t have to but also shouldn’t assume. As for your demand of me, generally see the first sentence of your post immediately above. I guess this post here caught yourself with that need to reiterate.
The only path through this is a viable two state solution. Practically that has no chance of happening other than where the Palestinians and Israelis presently live. And that will require that one state cannot have as its stated goal the destruction of the other state. That state cannot align itself with states or organizations who call for the destruction of that other state. And that state will have to recognize the right of the other state to exist and agree to recognize and respect its borders. It also will require the other state to recognize the right of the first state to exist and to agree to recognize and respect its borders. And in doing so it cannot contain that state in a stockade that enables it to cut off basic human necessities at will or interfere in peaceful trade.
If the Saudis and Israelis had normalized relations the world may have had a non-zero chance of that happening years from now. The world feels like it is now many decades from that having a non-zero chance of happening.
Hamas is the name of the “elected”government party of Gazans, made up of Gazans and Palestinians, which has a military made up of Gazans. This is not an occupying force like ISIS or Al Qeada. they aren’t hiding among civilians any more than the Israeli government is hiding among civilians when they receive rocket fire from Gaza.
So Hamas, as an elected government, committed an insanely depraved act of war against a bordering nation with a vastly superior military? That same elected government (your view, not so much mine given it has been 17 years) has an obligation to its citizens to consider the geography, demographics and political realities of their situation before making any attack, much more the one it executed a week ago. It has either failed miserably in its obligations to consider the safety of its own citizens or purposefully placed them in mortal danger. Sophistry of thought.
And that doesn’t mean it is acceptable for Israel to cut off food, water and power or give 1M civilians just 24 hours notice to move a dozen or more miles towards some added safety (absolutely absurd if it holds). And it also isn’t acceptable for Hamas to tell people to stay in place or to set up checkpoints turning them back.
I’ll leave you with this. Seems like someone experienced who thinks critically.
www.vanityfair.com