No.
The morons that listen to only one side are morons. Hamas is a terrorist organization not because the big meanie US says so, but because that’s how they behave and have behaved since their inception.
If that weren’t enough proof, October 7th removed all doubt.
There are lots of accusations flying. Allegations of involvement of Gazan civilians in the massacre have been credibly made. Kinda. Terrorists and civilians are notoriously difficult to distinguish because the terrorists refuse to wear uniforms. That means the reports can be truthful but mistaken.
Or they can be flat out lies. Israel isn’t in the running for sainthood. Humans do bad things and sometimes become more likely to do bad things when they are mad.
It would be nice if life came in episodic form. Three fifteen minute segments of working it out and one of solving the whole thing. Life would be so much easier if we didn’t have to figure out the messy, complicated stuff – us.
Instead we get to sort out all the conflicting reports. Hamas claims tens of thousands of civilian deaths – but doesn’t release videos documenting ALL the deaths. IDF releases tons of video documenting their activity and owns their mistakes, even the tragic ones. That doesn’t mean everything Hamas says is a lie or everything the IDF claims is true but it does tell us that the IDF has the credibility high ground.
But let’s assume the worst, that Israel is lying about the impact in Gaza. Would that make their actions in Gaza genocide? No.
Genocide is pretty specific in international law but let’s be a bit less pedantic. Genocide as the destruction of a people group is simply not what’s happening. 30,000 is a whole lot less than 2,000,000. The US has been dropping food and supplies into Gaza. Israel has allowed some aid in via truck.
In all likelihood much of that aid is stolen and misappropriated by Hamas. People don’t normally risk drowning over extra boxes unless they doubt they will get any part of the other boxes.
Also, it’s on Page 2 of the Terrorist Handbook. Starve your own people to better control them.
I could be overly cynical but there’s yet more evidence that the Gazan civilians are more pawns than victims. Egypt.
Now, no Middle Eastern nation wants Hamas or the Gazans. None, zip, zero. Why? Jordan and Lebanon both made that mistake and ended up with terrorist activity on their own lands. Lebanon is a shell of its former self. Jordan refuses to accept any more Palestinians.
But Egypt is a different animal. The Sinai is big and empty. Egypt has the capability to provide sanctuary. Egypt is LITERALLY on the border with Gaza. All they have to do is open a gate and the Gazans can escape Gaza.
Are Egyptians so heartless as to deny victims of genocide sanctuary? Or is it that Egypt doesn’t believe there is a genocide and so is more concerned with protecting its own hide from the Hamas crazies that will undoubtedly cross the border with the civilians?
The reality is something in the middle but the point stands: Egypt is not behaving as if it believes there is a genocide being committed against their Muslim brethren.
Both Egypt and Saudi Arabia are actually acting more like they favor Israel. Not overtly but if they didn’t hope for an Israeli victory, they would likely both be joining the chorus of denunciations instead of their rather muted responses.
But if that’s not enough for you, I give you Iran. 350 weapons were launched at Israel. Why? it won’t stop the war. If anything, it would make it worse. Would, except that Iran’s reason is more mundane: they didn’t want to look bad after Israel bombed their military personnel in a building next to an embassy.
FYI: No, military should NOT be based or operating near an embassy.
Even if Israel had been at fault, and it wasn’t, Iran wasn’t justified in unleashing so much firepower.
That was promptly shot down, in at least part because Iran went out of its way to tell everyone it was attacking. It’s the kid that taps you to annoy you but then tries to convince you not haul off and hit them because they didn’t ‘really’ hit you.
Yes, international relations really are that juvenile.
Israel will bide its time and hit them anyway. Yes, it’s just as juvenile but that kid stops hitting people once he gets hit a few times himself.
Speaking of juvenile, no, this won’t start World War III (aren’t we on WWIII point ten at this point?). It won’t set off the entire region, either. Iran is being enough of a pain in the backside to convince people it’s still a player in the region. Okay, really dumb people but they will take what they can get.
Iran can’t afford a war with the Girl Scouts at this point, let alone ticked off neighbors and superpowers.
If you want a cartoon villain, try Hamas. Oh, they are the villains of the story alright but more Snidely Whiplash than Goldfinger. Let’s go on a rampage at a peace concert – that alone was moronic – and kill innocent civilians. Let’s go after the children of Holocaust survivors in the process! What could go wrong?
Well, everything. Israel is still playing fairly nice and at least trying to avoid civilian casualties but the kid gloves are not only off, they are off the planet. There is no going back and there is no nation state truly willing to come to the aid of Hamas. That takes boots on the ground, not random potshots at unarmed ships and telegraphed attacks.
Mind you, Egypt doesn’t really want the headache but if there were a serious coalition in the Middle East, Egypt could be pressured into letting troops into the Sinai for the counterattack. There simply is no such coalition.
Lip service and strategic apathy has been the overwhelming response from the Middle Eastern leadership. Probably some backroom debates about just how many weapons the stupid Houthis have and how soon Saudi Arabia can attack them once this crisis dies down.
No, not in defense of Israel – the Saudis aren’t that chummy with Israel yet. Nah, the Saudis just want to be rid of the Houthis. If the idiots insist on disarming themselves kinetically, the Saudis won’t complain.
Everyone else will but not the Saudis.
Does this sound even remotely like these nations think their brothers are undergoing a true genocide? ‘Cause it sounds more like they are just waiting it out while their annoying little bro gets a walloping for starting a fight he couldn’t finish.
Hamas is as close to a villain as you get. In reality, Hamas is an overhyped gang with just enough rope to hang itself and enough desperate and stupid people to make the thing painful for everyone. Humans do come in Size Complex. But no matter how sorry we might feel for people who had their futures robbed from them by the very organization they are fighting for, what they did on October 7th is not and can not be justified.
There is no big baddie. There are just people. One group decided to do the unthinkable. The other group decided to end the problem.
Hopefully, without losing themselves.
No, Israel isn’t the baddie. The closest thing to a baddie is Hamas with Iran playing a very bad version of Goldfinger.
Hamas made its choice and did so on behalf of all the Gazans. There will be no peace in Israel as long as Hamas exists and occupies the Gaza.
Israel just took them at their word.
