On January 27, there will be a ceremony commemorating the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz at the site of the death camp, attended by survivors and such dignitaries as King Charles III. Benjamin Netanyahu, however, will not be attending, as the Polish government has announced that if he does it will arrest him, pursuant to a warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC). The editors of the New York Sun comment:

That threat came without Prime Minister Netanyahu even asking, amid a war Israel is fighting against, among others, Palestinian Arabs whose World War II-era leader sided with Hitler. . . . As Israel noted in a recent filing at the Hague, it is not a party to the Rome Statute that established the criminal court, so the ICC has no jurisdiction over its citizens. Why would Poland disagree on such a fundamental and commonsense rule?

The answer is rooted less in jurisprudence than in geopolitics. . . . Poland is eager to arrest President Putin of its rival Russia, who is wanted by the ICC. So to be consistent, it must also arrest the Israeli leader.

All of which underlines the capricious nature of what is called international jurisprudence. Kafkaesque rules allow a country that is fighting Iranian proxies who commit crimes against humanity to be accused of committing such crimes. . . . A gathering of leaders at Auschwitz will be meaningless without, in Benjamin Netanyahu, the one world leader with the clearest standing to speak there.

On Monday night, the IDF struck a group of Hamas operatives near the Nasser hospital in Khan Yunis, the main city in southern Gaza. The very fact of this attack was reassuring, as it suggested that the release of Edan Alexander didn’t come with restraints on Israeli military activity. Then, yesterday afternoon, Israeli jets carried out another, larger attack on Khan Yunis, hitting a site where it believed Mohammad Sinwar, the head of Hamas in Gaza, to be hiding. The IDF has not yet confirmed that he was present. There is some hope that the death of Sinwar—who replaced his older brother Yahya after he was killed last year—could have a debilitating effect on Hamas.

Meanwhile, Donald Trump is visiting the Persian Gulf, and it’s unclear how his diplomatic efforts there will affect Israel, its war with Hamas, and Iran. For its part, Jerusalem has committed to resume full-scale operations in Gaza after President Trump returns to the U.S. But, Gabi Simoni and Erez Winner explain, Israel does not have unlimited time to defeat Hamas:

Israel faces persistent security challenges across multiple fronts—Iran, the West Bank, Yemen, Syria, and Lebanon—all demanding significant military resources, especially during periods of escalation. . . . Failing to achieve a decisive victory not only prolongs the conflict but also drains national resources and threatens Israel’s ability to obtain its strategic goals.

Only a swift, forceful military campaign can achieve the war’s objectives: securing the hostages’ release, ensuring Israeli citizens’ safety, and preventing future kidnappings. Avoiding such action won’t just prolong the suffering of the hostages and deepen public uncertainty—it will also drain national resources and weaken Israel’s standing in the region and beyond.

We recommend launching an intense military operation in Gaza without delay, with clear, measurable objectives—crippling Hamas’s military and governance capabilities and securing the release of hostages. Such a campaign should combine military pressure with indirect negotiations, maximizing the chances of a successful outcome while minimizing risks.

Crucially, the operation must be closely coordinated with the United States and moderate Arab states to reduce international pressure and preserve the gains of regional alliances.