I understand why they are so set on destroying Hamas

[FebruaryOnMyMind]

Having seen the stories of the women and girls raped at the festival (reportedly over their dead friends bodies) and the people taken off as hostage; I understand why Israel want to destroy Hamas. They have said that Hamas militants are dead men. They have said that they will go after them. The worst killing of Jewish people since the Holocaust and their 9/11 with death toll of over 1300 people.

The story of the women at the Music and Peace festival is here -

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12623023/Israeli-girls-raped-friends-bodies-Hamas-terrorists-carried-second-Holocaust-British-relatives-reveal-condemn-celebrated-atrocities-Gaza-Iran-London.html

Yet some people celebrated when the killings of Jewish people (they were from many different countries) at the festival was announced.

I feel sadness for everything going on in the middle east and for all the people who are innocent are are dying. Terrorists need to be stopped.

Thank goodness that no-one died in the school and only damage to the building.

There are lots of UNRWA schools providing shelter in the Gaza strip and these should not be a target.

You've just copied and pasted that from the internet. At least think for yourself.

Yes Israel want peace, but only on their conditions and no compromise such as keeping the occupied territories and for Palestine state to be demilitarised. What country would agreed to that! It's the same as what Putin has done to Ukraine.

@Coffeerum Hamas don’t give one jot for the Arabs in the Gaza Strip. Their actions are not motivated by retaliation, their avowed aim is to eradicate the Jewish people, they have much in common with the Nazis in this respect. They hide out and place supplies in places that put the most vulnerable in the Gaza Strip in mortal danger. The death of Arab children suits their propaganda agenda. They use Arab children to provoke the Israelis, it suits them when those children are shot by Israeli forces. They are misogynistic, homophobic, tyrannical terrorists. The Arab population of Gaza deserve better.
For balance Isreal has not always covered itself in glory but at least they are open to a two state solution and a resolution to this conflict which the Arabs do not appear to be.

Most of the stories on here are copied and pasted from the internet. I agree with the sentiment written by others. I am not going to invent a reason as to why Hamas launched an attack now. I could speculate and would come up with the same reasons as others have already given. It's a reason given by others and makes sense. Hamas doesn't want peace. Do you think they want peace? They clearly state they wish to completely destroy Israel.

So why do you think Hamas launched the attack just as Israel were getting closer with Saudi Arabia.

I understand why Israel wants to irradicate Hamas who aren't actually helping the Palestinians and slaughtering Jewish people.

I don't support Hamas. They are a ruthless, corrupt, terrorist organisation. They torment and murder Israeli civilians whilst diverting much-needed humanitarian aid from Palestine. If they have achieved anything for Palestine, the ends haven't justified the means.

Nevertheless, further brutality toward Palestinian civilians, is not the answer to Hamas. Firstly, because it is morally wrong. Secondly, because brutality toward Palestinian civilians has failed to resolve the Israeli/Palestinian conflict in many decades, and so it will continue to fail. If anything the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Palestine is a major contributing factor to Hamas' existence. The Israeli authorities are taking a course of action which not only shames the nation of Israel but ultimately further endangers Israeli civilians. I agree with others' that Israel has never offered Palestine a reasonable, peaceful resolution - only complete capitulation. It will be hard or impossible to change the political position in Palestine, whilst there is a perpetual horrific humanitarian crisis and the people there are so powerless and without hope. I believe Israel has the greater power to resolve this conflict.

https://english.elpais.com/international/2023-10-11/lina-khatib-the-hamas-attack-has-wide-support-among-palestinians.html
It seems that the majority of Palestinians support Hamas so obliterating (were that possible) Hamas wouldn’t actually solve anything.
I think it’s a hopeless situation, I can’t see any lasting peace in that area for many years to come.

Wow! Just wow!

Couldn't agree more.

Hamas were not retaliating for Israeli actions in Palestine. They were carrying out their stated aim to kill as many Jews as possible wherever and whenever they get the chance. Whether or not the past actions of the Israeli government to try to present them from carrying out those actions were moral or effective is entirely irrelevant to that aim.

450 children and at least 250 women have been killed by Israel's air strikes since the weekend.

Nobody should be minimising nevermind celebrating Hamas but don't pretend that Israel are not responsible for the deaths of Palestinian children.

So basically most of Palestine supports Hamas and their actions and cheer them on. Others think that Israel wants to wipe Palestine off the map. Therefore this will not end quickly and more people will die. Iran will fund Hamas and Israel won't to show them what they think of their actions towards them. A long long battle then. Ground battle will commence soon.

Will any counties in the Middle East offer to mediate or don't they care?

@FebruaryOnMyMind Hamas cannot be destroyed, even if you did kill them all, they would just reappear under another name.... PLO, al Q, Isis et al what next?

All the death and destruction they are putting on Gaza, wont matter, Hamas are dug in, deep in tunnels, weapons stores protected.
Look at the carpet bombing the US did in Vietnam.... did it kill the Vietcong? no.

Hamas knew the response their terrorism and murder would cause.... they are prepared.

If the IDF go into Gaza.... the death toll on both sides will be horrendous OR they don't go in, keep the area under siege with no water, fuel, no escape through Egypt etc and 2m are at risk of all dying.

Fuck knows how this will be resolved in the short term.

It's an awful situation.

Where did you get that most of Palestine supports hamas from?

Nobody should be minimising never mind celebrating Hamas but don't pretend that Israel are not responsible for the deaths of Palestinian children

Rubbish, Hamas are responsible for their deaths, no one else.

Disgusting. Absolutely disgusting.

From the story another person posted earlier in the thread. Lina Khatib a Palestinian and Middle East expert said that 'The Hamas Attack has wide support amongst Palestinians'. She is a recognised expert on her homeland.

@kirinm

This was posted by another person

https://english.elpais.com/international/2023-10-11/lina-khatib-the-hamas-attack-has-wide-support-among-palestinians.html

How many do you seriously think are innocent??

I'm glad to finally see a thread where most people aren't completely deluded into thinking most gazans are innocent civilians

I'd like to know if people were similarly outraged by the response from targeted nations following 9/11.

Israel cannot stand idly by and take such barbarism. Hamas didn't just launch an attack on Israeli, they dreamt up the most brutal, sickening ways that could be imagined. I am genuinely struggling with the fact so many people are trying to excuse or minimise this. This was beyond terrorism.

A poster on another thread gave us some stats showing the incredibly high level of support the Palestinian people have for Hamas (prior to these attacks). This is the group who spent foreign aid on procuring weapons to attack as opposed to investing in infrastructure. The group who knew full well their disgusting acts would at best risk the safety of their own citizens. How can Israel negotiate with that?

It baffles me that some people expect Israel to show more duty of care to preserving the lives of innocent Palestinians than Hamas ultimately do. Hamas have made their position clear- they care more about inflicting attrocities on innocent Israelis than the lives of their own people.

OP the people of Gaza have had their land and homes taken away from them by force, they have very little international recognition, almost zero power, they do not have freedom of movement, freedom from violence. They do not have enough basic necessities for life. Israel doesn't want Gaza to exist. They want that land for themselves. The people there live in constant struggle, they are imprisoned in a cell that gets smaller by the year. This is the context of these attacks. Tell me that you, or anyone you know, would be happy to live in these conditions without feeling at the very least resentment and at the very most, well, willing to use extreme violence.

It says on that link that Lina Khatib is Lebanese, not Palestinian. So she is not talking about her homeland.

Her main point seems to be that the situation in Gaza has been desperate for many years, and that many Palestinians therefore feel that they don't have many options.

Perhaps many Palestinians do support Hamas. Perhaps many even support the abhorrent massacres over the weekend. That still doesn't change the fact that there are innocent children in Gaza who are suffering through no fault of their own. And I cannot support that.

The comments on this thread are so one sided it's unreal. Hamas are a terrorist organisation that have committed atrocities but that does not give the Israeli government any right to commit war crimes! Take a look at what they UN commission on Human Rights has to say;

Reports that armed groups from Gaza have gunned down hundreds of unarmed civilians are abhorrent and cannot be tolerated. Taking civilian hostages and using civilians as human shields are war crimes.
The Commission is gravely concerned with Israel’s latest attack on Gaza and Israel’s announcement of a complete siege on Gaza involving the withholding of water, food, electricity and fuel which will undoubtfully cost civilian lives and constitutes collective punishment.

Any support for either side shocks me!