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Western Leaders Should Be Pressing Hamas for a Ceasefire
(Telegraph-UK) Col. (ret.) Richard Kemp - In the Gaza ceasefire negotiations, Hamas is making demands that Israel cannot possibly accept. Hamas still thinks it is Israel that must surrender. It's like the Nazis calling on Eisenhower to pull back as the Allies crossed the Rhine in 1945. Hamas still remains dangerous, with thousands of armed killers on the books. Of course the IDF can't withdraw in the face of that. What makes Hamas think it still has the muscle to dictate terms to the side that is so obviously winning the fight? It knows it is no longer popular among the citizens of Gaza. During a recent visit to Gaza, I met around 100 Gazan civilians. Many of them told me how much they hate Hamas and want rid of them. So strong was their feeling, cheered by those around them, that I believe it's likely they are representative. The dreadful truth is that Hamas gets greater encouragement to continue fighting from widespread support in the West and the misguided and unjust condemnation of Israel from many political leaders and international institutions. They demand Israel stop fighting, yet never make any demands on Hamas. Our leaders have helped to prolong the war and increase the killing. Instead of looking to reward terrorism by recognizing a Palestinian state, they should be helping to make Hamas give up hope and demand a ceasefire followed by a negotiated end to hostilities on Israel's terms. The writer, a former commander of British forces in Afghanistan, was chairman of the UK's national crisis management committee, COBRA.