In 2009, archaeologists in Tiberias discovered a large basalt door with a seven-branched menorah carved into it. Although the style of the door and the carving were typical of Jewish tombs built between the 2nd and 4th centuries CE, the carving became part of a staircase in a complex built much later by Crusaders. Now the archaeologists have a theory of how it got there, writes Amanda Borschel-Dan:

Following the Muslim conquest in 635 CE, [Tiberias] became a seat for the early caliphate. It was during this period, said the excavation’s leader Katya Tzitrin Silverman, that the menorah door was reused as the base of a mosque, which was built on an earlier mosque. . . . [I]t is clear that the use of this door by the Muslims in building a mosque was highly intentional. The mosque, she said, also contained reused pagan and Christian pillars, which were put on display as corner pieces.

These materials taken for intentional secondary use are called “spolia.” . . . They are trophies, a way of clearly stating, “We’re building our structure on the backs of those who came before us,” [Silverman] said. “There is an expression of victory and inheritance” in their use, she said.

Interestingly . . . there was a church located next to the mosque which used the spolia. According to an inscription found at the church’s nave, it was still in use until at least the 10th century.

The mosque that was built upon the menorah was destroyed in an earthquake in 1068. Subsequently, its building materials were reused by the Crusaders and so the menorah became the decoration for a staircase in a room in a sugar factory.

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.