(Jerusalem Post) Ophir Falk - In terms of proportionality, had the Oct. 7 massacre occurred in the U.S., Hamas' attack would have been equivalent to the murder of 50,000 Americans and the abduction of 7,500. The numbers are difficult to digest. The savagery is impossible to fathom. Many misunderstand the principle of "proportionality." In the course of defeating Nazi Germany, more than 5,000,000 Germans were killed by the Allies, while 400,000 American servicemen lost their lives. Did America and the Allies act disproportionately? Nonsense. Proportionality means doing what it takes - and no more - to obtain a legitimate goal. Israel is fully entitled to apply all military force necessary to achieve the legitimate objective of dismantling Hamas. It is a matter of survival. The IDF is not limited to attacks that are "equal" to the damage caused by Hamas. It has to destroy Hamas and guarantee such atrocities never happen again. The proportional response to the Oct. 7 massacre is the dismantlement of Hamas. The writer is a foreign policy adviser to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
2023-10-30 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive