Following the doctrine that it is easier to beg forgiveness than to obtain permission, Israel is engaged in the ethnic cleansing of the Gaza Strip with a view toward annexing it. It’s not hard to imagine that sooner rather than later beach resorts will replace the 2.3 million Palestinians who have been killed or driven out of their homeland.
The Israeli government has declined to renew the visa of the top United Nations humanitarian aide for Palestine, saying that the UN, which has accepted Palestinian estimates that 40% of the roughly 15,000 civilian dead in Gaza were children, is biased against Israel.
American officials, including VP Harris, have begun speaking out publicly to urge an end to the attacks on civilians, and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin warns that “In this kind of a fight, the center of gravity is the civilian population. And if you drive them into the arms of the enemy, you replace a tactical victory with a strategic defeat.”
His point is a universal truth of asymmetric warfare. The support of Gazans for Hamas may not be overwhelming, just as the support of Iraqis for their guerrilla forces, the support of Afghans for the Taliban or the support of Irish Catholics for the IRA have all been dubious.
But their support for “our boys” is steadfast, and, in this case, seeing entire families killed is not going to make it easy, or perhaps even possible, to make peace in the region.
Ever.
Today’s @PhillyInquirer: AARP is — appropriately enough — sponsoring the upcoming Rolling Stones tour. Its website crashed this week when a throng of boomer fans tried to score tour tickets. #stonestour pic.twitter.com/EQ1n3MFICS
— John Cole (@ColeToon) December 3, 2023
