Last week, three Israeli Arabs on a beach near Haifa were attacked and severely beaten by a group of Israeli Jews armed with clubs and knives and shouting ethnic slurs; the incident ended when passersby intervened. Police have arrested two suspects thus far. Ben-Dror Yemini cautions against joining what Salman Rushdie termed the “but brigade”—those who immediately follow condemnations of acts of terror with the word “but,” followed by justifications and rationalizations:

[A]nyone who condemns, but then immediately moves to “but,” is not really condemning—he’s supporting. This is exactly the story of those in the gray area between “understanding” and “justifying” terror attacks against Jews, and this is exactly where we must not be when dealing with Jewish terrorists. There is also no need for generalizations. The fact that hundreds shouted “in blood and fire we’ll save Palestine” at the funeral of Ahmad Mohammad Hamid, [the Israeli Arab killed while trying to stab a police officer], doesn’t turn all Israeli Arabs into supporters of murder and terrorism. And the fact that among the Jewish public there are a few who carry out abominable acts, or support them, doesn’t turn Israel into a racist and inciting state.

There is official incitement from the Palestinian Authority against Israelis and Jews. Here and there, there is also incitement against Arabs in Israel. But comparing the two is like comparing apples and oranges. Palestinian terrorism is the result of incitement. The fact that Jewish terrorism—such as the murder of the Arab teen Mohammed Abu Khdeir [in 2014]—is a rare, very rare occurrence is the result of the lack of incitement. . . .

[T]he fact that inside Israel there is Arab violence against Jews—even if it’s a rare occurrence—does not justify leniency when it comes to violence against Arabs. The violence must be eradicated with a firm hand. No forgiveness. No understanding. And if the punishment of Jewish hooligans is lesser by even an inch than the punishment of Arab hooligans under similar circumstances—that would be racism and the encouragement of violence.

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.