Archaeologists first discovered a 10th-century fort in the Timna Valley—located near Eilat at Israel’s southern tip—in 2014. But only recently, by performing tests on the remarkably well preserved animal bones and dung in the complex’s stables, were they able to realize some of their discovery’s implications. James Rogers writes:

Built of sturdy stone to defend against invasions, the fortification had pens for draft animals and other livestock. By studying pollen, seeds, and fauna in the dung, experts found that the animals were fed with hay and the remains of grapes, which were delivered from the Mediterranean coast hundreds of miles away.

The research . . . highlights the ancient community’s sophisticated defense system and trade links. “The evidence demonstrates long-distance connections with the Mediterranean region,” said Erez Ben-Yosef, [one of the leaders of the excavation]. In addition to transporting materials to other regions, the donkeys at the fortification would also have been used in copper production.

The fact that the two-room fortification is located within one of the largest ancient smelting plants in the Timna Valley is particularly important, according to Ben-Yosef. “Until now we didn’t have evidence for military conflicts in the copper mines of Timna at this period,” [he said]. “Moreover, they are in accord with the biblical accounts depicting wars between David and the Edomites who inhabited this region.”

The archaeologist added that, with biblical historians hotly debating these accounts, any evidence is of great importance.

If there is to be peace, Palestinians will have to unlearn the hatred of Israel they have imbibed during nearly two decades of Hamas rule. This will be a difficult task, but Cole Aronson argues, drawing on the experiences of World War II, that Israel has already gotten off to a strong start:

The population’s compliance can . . . be won by a new regime that satisfies its immediate material needs, even if that new regime is sponsored by a government until recently at war with the population’s former regime. Axis civilians were made needy through bombing. Peaceful compliance with the Allies became a good alternative to supporting violent resistance to the Allies.

Israel’s current campaign makes a moderate Gaza more likely, not less. Destroying Hamas not only deprives Islamists of the ability to rule—it proves the futility of armed resistance to Israel, a condition for peace. The destruction of buildings not only deprives Hamas of its hideouts. It also gives ordinary Palestinians strong reasons to shun groups planning to replicate Hamas’s behavior.