Located on the shores of the Sea of Galilee, the town of Magdala became an important economic center during the 1st century CE; it is also thought to be the birthplace of the New Testament’s Mary Magdalene. The wealth generated by the export of salted fish, and perhaps glass vessels and other manufactured goods as well, accounts for the size of the town’s ruins, which archaeologists are still excavating, as well as its elaborate synagogue. Marcela Zapata-Meza writes:

Magdala’s income sources could allow the residents to afford expensive and well-constructed buildings, such as the 1st-century CE synagogue and Jewish ritual baths discovered in excavations. Magdala is the only town in Galilee, so far, [where archaeologists have found] a 1st-century synagogue with frescoes, mosaics, and a unique Second Temple model carved in stone. [This is the only such stone to be] discovered in the biblical lands. The Jewish ritual baths . . . are [also] dated to the 1st century CE and are fed by underground water.

For some time, opponents of U.S support for Israel have been urging the White House to end the war in Gaza, or simply calling for a ceasefire. Douglas Feith and Lewis Libby consider what such a result would actually entail:

Ending the war immediately would allow Hamas to survive and retain military and governing power. Leaving it in the area containing the Sinai-Gaza smuggling routes would ensure that Hamas can rearm. This is why Hamas leaders now plead for a ceasefire. A ceasefire will provide some relief for Gazans today, but a prolonged ceasefire will preserve Hamas’s bloody oppression of Gaza and make future wars with Israel inevitable.

For most Gazans, even when there is no hot war, Hamas’s dictatorship is a nightmarish tyranny. Hamas rule features the torture and murder of regime opponents, official corruption, extremist indoctrination of children, and misery for the population in general. Hamas diverts foreign aid and other resources from proper uses; instead of improving life for the mass of the people, it uses the funds to fight against Palestinians and Israelis.

Moreover, a Hamas-affiliated website warned Gazans last month against cooperating with Israel in securing and delivering the truckloads of aid flowing into the Strip. It promised to deal with those who do with “an iron fist.” In other words, if Hamas remains in power, it will begin torturing, imprisoning, or murdering those it deems collaborators the moment the war ends. Thereafter, Hamas will begin planning its next attack on Israel:

Hamas’s goals are to overshadow the Palestinian Authority, win control of the West Bank, and establish Hamas leadership over the Palestinian revolution. Hamas’s ultimate aim is to spark a regional war to obliterate Israel and, as Hamas leaders steadfastly maintain, fulfill a Quranic vision of killing all Jews.

Hamas planned for corpses of Palestinian babies and mothers to serve as the mainspring of its October 7 war plan. Hamas calculated it could survive a war against a superior Israeli force and energize enemies of Israel around the world. The key to both aims was arranging for grievous Palestinian civilian losses. . . . That element of Hamas’s war plan is working impressively.