Comment & Debate
Benjamin Netanyahu. “Militant Islam Threatens Us All”. Wall Street Journal. January 7, 2009 – We stand united against Hamas because we know that only by defeating Hamas can we provide security for our people and hope for a future peace.
David Harris, Executive Director for the American Jewish Committee. “Israel has shown surprising patience with Hamas”. Freep. January 6, 2009 – Let’s be clear. It is in Israel’s interests to have a peaceful and prosperous Gaza on its border. Instead, it is faced with Hamastan, a terrorist enclave. What Israel is doing now is exactly what any other nation would do under similar circumstances. In fact, Israel has probably held back longer than many other nations, including the United States, would have done
Israeli President Shimon Peres – It is the first time in the history of Israel that we, the Israelis, cannot understand the motives or the purposes of the ones who are shooting at us. It is the most unreasonable war, done by the most unreasonable warriors.[1]
“Rockets from Gaza have exhausted Israel’s patience”. The Seattle Times. December 31, 2008 – Hamas, both a ruling political party and resistance movement, is the primary irritant to the festering wound that is Gaza.
Reviled by political rivals in the Palestinian parliament and despised by neighboring Egypt, Hamas is an open surrogate for Iran.
In response to the rockets, Israel imposed a harsh economic blockade, and Hamas still attacked rather than relent for the welfare of its own.
As the rest of the world has averted its eyes and been mute, Israel chose to act, and not as the bully.
Harold Tanner, Chairman, and Malcolm Hoenlein, Executive Vice Chair of the Conference of Presidents. – Hamas has been declared a terrorist organization by most democratic nations. We take their declarations of war and their intent to kill and maim Israeli civilians seriously and we believe the international community should do so as well. Tolerating terrorism anywhere means escalating it everywhere.[2]