After Yahya Sinwar’s death on October 16, many hoped the war in the Gaza would soon wind down. Instead, it intensified, although there have been reports of Hamas fighters surrendering to the IDF more frequently and in larger numbers. Gabi Siboni explains how the battered terrorist group holds on to control in much of the Strip, and what must be done to oust it definitively:

One may ask why Hamas is still able to rebuild despite ongoing, effective IDF operations targeting its leadership and military power. The answer is simple: Hamas controls the distribution of humanitarian aid in Gaza. It seizes and redirects incoming aid trucks to areas under its control, then allocates the aid in two ways. First, it sells part of the aid to Gaza residents at exorbitant prices to replenish its cash reserves, depleted by IDF actions targeting its finances and blocking money inflows. Second, Hamas uses humanitarian aid as a tool to recruit new members, promising a steady food supply to them and their families.

Through these actions, Hamas sends a clear message to the population about its intention to stay in power, signaling that cooperation with the organization is in their best interest. Control of food distribution solidifies Hamas’s rule over the population and allows it to replenish its ranks. This reality prolongs the war and hinders Israel’s ability to achieve its war objectives in Gaza.

Ensuring humanitarian aid reaches Gaza’s population without interference from Hamas requires Israeli control over the territory, signaling to the population that Hamas’s era in Gaza is over with no return. . . . Removing Hamas’s governance necessitates that the IDF directly oversee humanitarian aid distribution, essentially establishing a temporary military administration in areas under Israeli security control.

In October, a young Mauritanian national murdered an Orthodox Jewish man on his way to synagogue in Chicago. This alone should be sufficient sign of the rising dangers of anti-Semitism. Nathan Diament explains how the Anti-Semitism Awareness Act (AAA) can, if passed, make American Jews safer:

We were off to a promising start when the AAA sailed through the House of Representatives in the spring by a generous vote of 320 to 91, and 30 senators from both sides of the aisle jumped to sponsor the Senate version. Then the bill ground to a halt.

Fearful of antagonizing their left-wing activist base and putting vulnerable senators on the record, especially right before the November election, Democrats delayed bringing the AAA to the Senate floor for a vote. Now, the election is over, but the political games continue.

You can’t combat anti-Semitism if you can’t—or won’t—define it. Modern anti-Semites hide their hate behind virulent anti-Zionism. . . . The Anti-Semitism Awareness Act targets this loophole by codifying that the Department of Education must use the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of anti-Semitism in its application of Title VI.