Is Gaza Coming Undone?

Reports from those who have recently fled the Gaza Strip indicate that the situation there is growing increasingly dire—the fruit of nearly a decade of Hamas rule. Now, writes Alex Fishman, there is reason to fear not only another war with Israel, but complete social and political collapse:

In Israel, we often see the infrastructure crisis in Gaza—electricity and water shortages and broken sewage systems. But that only scratches the surface: Gazan society has started to disintegrate.

The number of suicides has reached unprecedented levels. The number of instances of murder within the family has grown: for instance, . . . women are stabbing their unemployed husbands. . . . There has been an increase in drug use, as well as crime in general and prostitution in particular. [There are also increasingly frequent instances] of teenage [girls] marrying much older men who are able to support them as a second or third wife. On the other hand, . . . young people aren’t getting married, and the average age of marriage is rising.

Several people in Gaza have already set themselves on fire in protest. In Tunis, such actions led to the Arab Spring. Gaza is also starting to flare up. While it is true that the population is religious, traditional, and more willing to accept its fate [than many other Arab societies], the pot is still about to boil over.

Read more at Ynet

More about: Arab Spring, Gaza Strip, Israel & Zionism, Palestinian economy, Palestinians

For the Sake of Gaza, Defeat Hamas Soon

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.

Read more at Commentary

More about: Gaza War 2023, Hamas, Joseph Biden