Last week, heads of state and high-ranking diplomats gathered at the United Nations for its annual General Assembly. Invariably at these conclaves, many make speeches that garner headlines but signify little; many others make speeches that largely go unnoticed. The real work, writes Micah Halpern, happens in the corridors and backrooms, where statesmen have a chance to discuss serious matters away from the cameras. And although the General Assembly, like so many UN bodies, is obsessed with condemning Israel, these corridors and backrooms give Jerusalem opportunities. Halpern writes:

It’s a well-kept secret that Israel is very active in helping other countries solve problems—especially in Africa. Israelis are particularly adept in helping African nations improve their ability to grow crops and expand their food sources. They teach them how to get more milk from cows and more eggs from chickens. They assist in productive irrigation and efficient crop growth. Israelis assist other nations with health care, computer technology, and communication services. And, of course, Israel aids countries with their infrastructure development, security, and defense.

And most of the deals between Israel and these other nations—many of whom refuse to acknowledge Israel’s existence, let alone shake the hand of an Israeli in public, are initiated and inked behind closed doors at UN committees and during annual General Assembly gatherings. . . .

Many bodies within the UN are still anti-Israel and the United Nations is still a platform for an ugly, deplorable form of anti-Semitism. . . . [Nonetheless], Israel contributes greatly to the UN and, by extension, to the world. Those contributions . . . slowly move publicly antagonistic countries closer to recognizing Israel as a full-fledged member of the community of nations.

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.