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The Futility of Compassion for Those Who Want to Kill You

(JNS) Jonathan S. Tobin - The notion that the Gaza conflict is only between Israel and Hamas, and not the Palestinian people, is mistaken. Many of those who crossed the border between Gaza and Israel on Oct. 7 and took part in the orgy of mass murder, rape, torture, kidnapping, and wanton destruction were ordinary Arab civilians. Palestinian civilians not only supported Hamas but cheered on the terrible deeds done in their name. Almost all of the freed Israeli hostages reported that their captors, who sexually abused, starved and tortured them, were ordinary people and not just armed cadres. Not a single Palestinian civilian helped an Israeli escape, not even to collect the $5 million reward that Israel offered for information as to their whereabouts. As has long been apparent to those willing to see beyond their idealistic projection of good feelings onto those who hate Israel, the conflict is not just carried on by a few terrorists but by the Palestinian people as a whole. Sadly, their national identity is inextricably tied to the century-old war on the Jewish presence in this tiny country. That is why their leaders have rejected peace offers involving an independent Palestinian state, going back to 1947. The world now knows that Hamas and the Palestinians cannot be bought off with money or food. Their cause is not the struggle for a better life but to destroy Israel. And, as they've demonstrated in the last 22 months, they are willing to sacrifice as many of their own people on the altar of that cause as necessary. Compassion, even for one's enemies, may seem high-minded. And, of course, we deplore all the deaths and the suffering that this war has brought to both sides. However, when it is applied to those who wish you dead, it becomes an incentive for hate, not an act of kindness.
2025-08-14 00:00:00
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