Israeli archaeologists recently uncovered a relief of a lioness, carved onto 1,320-pound basalt rock and dating to somewhere between the 4th and 6th centuries CE, in the village of el-Araj. While some experts have identified el-Araj with Bethsaida, a town mentioned in the New Testament, and with the adjacent Roman settlement Julias, others are skeptical. For now, the question to be solved is whether the lioness relief belonged to Jews, Christians, or pagans. Ruth Shuster writes that Mordechai Aviam, the excavation’s supervisor, believes it is Jewish, although he admits that it is too soon to say with certainty:

For one thing, during excavations at el-Araj in the summer of 2016, archaeologists uncovered the remains of a Second Temple-era Jewish village. For another, Judaism is rich in lion symbolism. Thirdly, the ancient synagogues of the Golan and Galilee often sported lion art, while the Byzantine churches did not. . . .

On the other hand, since the carving was found at a site Aviam believes to have been Julias, a Roman-era town, it could have graced a non-Jewish public building. Various items of art discovered around the region indicate grand construction in the area [at the time], though again, Aviam notes [that] there is no sign that the non-Jewish construction involved lion art. Synagogues, on the other hand, definitely did.

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.