The Hebrew Bible on several occasions describes altars as having “horns”—generally understood to be rectangular protrusions on the four corners of the altar’s surface. In the ruins of the ancient city of Shiloh, where the Bible states the Tabernacle was located for some time prior to the construction of the First Temple, archaeologists have recently discovered what seems to be the corner of a biblical-era altar, complete with horn. Maayan Jaffe-Hoffman writes:

The find, said Scott Stripling, director of excavations at Shiloh, is consistent with what he expected to find in the fields of the ancient city. . . . The group also discovered a koba’at, a goblet or ritual chalice, which could be linked to religious use.

A most exciting find at the end of summer 2018 . . . was a ceramic pomegranate. “The pomegranate is a sacred motif,” [Stripling] said. “The only sites in Israel where we have found pomegranates like this one have been Levitical sites.” The pomegranate measures between two-and-a-half and three inches and has hooks by which it could be hung. . . . Stripling said a similar pomegranate was found nearly 100 years earlier by another excavation team. The Bible describes pomegranates hanging from the bottom of the robe of the High Priest, who served in Shiloh for more than three centuries.

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.