TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israel’s decision to take over Gaza City was met with resignation and defiance by Palestinians who have survived two years of war and repeated raids. Many Israelis responded with fear and anger, worried it could be a death sentence for hostages held in Gaza.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Friday that Israel would intensify its 22-month war with Hamas by taking over Gaza City, large parts of which have been destroyed by past bombardment and ground incursions.
A major ground operation is almost sure to cause more mass displacement and worsen an already catastrophic humanitarian crisis.
“What does (Israel) want from us? … There is nothing here to occupy,” said a woman in Gaza City who identified herself as Umm Youssef. “There is no life here. I have to walk every day for more than 15 minutes to get drinking water.”
Ruby Chen, a dual U.S.-Israeli citizen whose son, Itay, is a hostage held in Gaza, told The Associated Press that the decision puts the remaining hostages in danger.
“What is the plan now that is different from the last 22 months?” he said.
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamas#7_Oct_2023–present
Hamas’s goal has been a Palestinian state for years now. Also, Hamas had already agreed to give back the hostages and not rebuild its military capabilities in Trump’s January ceasefire; it was Israel who reneged on that like it has reneged on every other ceasefire agreement it has ever signed.
Pre-1967 borders include most of Jerusalem and the 4 holiest Jewish sites. Imagine if Israel said they would offer peace in exchange for Mecca and Medina.
Your attempt to derail the conversation because the facts aren’t on your side has been noticed, but I’ll bite.
There are about a hundred and one different ways one could solve this problem. For example, Israel could have custodianship over the relevant holy sites like Jordan does over the Temple Mount. For another, any kind of agreement could be worked out to let Israeli citizens visit these sites (as long as Palestinians are allowed to visit the Temple Mount). Alternatively, we could decide that this all makes no sense for a hundred different reasons and go for a one-state solution with no borders in historical Palestine. Point being: This is not and has never been a serious hurdle towards peace, only an excuse. In serious peace negotiations in the near future, Israel’s position would be so strong as to make getting such concessions from the Palestinian side trivial. I should point out, though, that it’s far from guaranteed that this will be the case in fifteen or twenty years; at that point Israel would be forced to make concessions that actually hurt.
You are still defending Hamas. They have never offered or agreed to any plausible peace deal. They have only made demands in order to keep the fighting going.
Israel has released 100s of prisoners, including violent terrorists who murdered peace activists. That’s dozens of times more individuals than Hamas has released or ever agreed to release.
Israel has offered safe passage to friendly countries for Hamas leadership to step down and release remaining hostages.
In the end I believe you are right that Israel will have to make even more painful concessions if they continue down this path. Hamas has demonstrated that they will fight to the last man no matter how many Palestinians have to suffer or die while they hide in their tunnels and continue to torture their hostages.
I see you’re desperate to derail the conversation again now that your first attempt has failed. It’s painfully obvious and does your monstrosity of a cause no good, so you should consider stopping. I won’t dignify this with a response since you and everyone else reading this knows exactly what I was going to say, but I’ll just note that in the comment you’re responding to, the word “Hamas” appears exactly zero times.
Maybe too many people have blocked you or something, so I’m not sure if you just can’t see that Hamas is the entire discussion of this thread from the first comments.
It’s no surprise to me that someone would fling accusations rather than responding with anything substantive, although that’s not me. I’ve made the point, and provided widely available and globally relied upon sources. You have replied with name calling and rhetoric, so I am okay with your decision not to respond. Probably better for both of us.
Internstional law say that all lands stolen by israel in 67 is palestinians. They csn visit thosr sites as forrigner or accept a one state solution
I guess you have no problems with Russia annexing Donbas and Crimea then.
Mecca and Medina aren’t in Palestine. It might include “most of Jerusalem” but it’s the border recognized by international laws. Fact don’t care about your feelings
Imagine a bunch of foreigners coming in, and deciding that the majority of your farmable land should belong to them.
Oh wait, I don’t have to. That’s how Israel was created.
I’d prefer pre-1947 borders but pre-1967 is better than nothing.
It’s the same fucking cult anyway, only different sects. They can share. Oh wait, religious people are immature children so they literally can’t.
If only it were about religion (hint: it’s never been about religion)
Religion is crucial to making people not question authority, to make them ignore what they hear and what they see, to make them feel not responsible for their actions. Submission is incredibly dangerous, and it’s what the whole cult of Yahweh is founded on.
Except Zionism was started by secular Jews and Zionists today are mostly Evangelical Christians. Israel and its creation has always been colonial and not religious. Religion is mostly a fig leaf/cover for it.
To paraphrase from Ilan Pappe, “Most Zionists don’t believe in God, but they believe God promised them Israel”
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Damn they really don’t give a shit about their own civilians, just fodder for western leftists
The worst thing for Israel is dead Palestinian children
The best thing for Hamas is dead Palestinian children
If this was really the worst, then they did a very sloppy job.
They want all palestinians gone
no they don’t lol
there’s 2.2 million of them in a space the size of Manhattan, if they wanted to genocide them they could have done it 1000x over by now
and they did it mainly with machettes
that is a genocide
Genocide isn’t about the number of deaths. It’s about the intent.
If you listen to what Israelis and Israeli leaders are saying, and the pattern of actions, it fits the definition of genocide.
In previous cases of genocide, explicit statements of intent wasn’t required to call it as such (and we have them this time), as the actions and patterns of behaviour were enough to ascribe intent.
Only one of the list needs to be fulfilled in order to be considered genocide. 1, 2, and 3 have been demonstrated. With intent.
Even if we put genocide aside, you cannot deny the ethnic cleansing aspect.
I don’t care for any legal definition tbh, if anything trying to check boxes (with the icj quoting tweets? how low will we go :\ ) it feels like the word has been completely watered down from meaning I’m going to go door to door, house to house and kill every single one of you, I’m going to cut you into pieces, rape your wife and children then cut them into pieces, I’m going to capture you, put you and everyone you know on trains, torture you, and then gas you until not one of your people are left…to whatever Gaza is…
There’s definitely war crimes in there from both sides, Israel is not doing itself any favours taking out an apartment building to take out 1 to 2 hamas members, that’s a bit cold, it’s why I’m surprised the palestinians haven’t risen up and killed every hamas member out there as surely they must recognise hamas are radioactive
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4g71lk09npo
But nothing really major since then?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2025_Gaza_Strip_anti-Hamas_protests
I just wish this shitshow was over so we can go back to focusing on Ukraine :(
You’re clearly blind, not because you can’t see the atrocities being committed but because you either don’t want to or don’t care to.
I’m done trying to convince you of anything.
ok? i didn’t realise you were trying so hard, why do you feel the need to convince me of anything? we’re chatting on a forum not fighting on the front line
im also more than capable of coming to my own opinions on things, i’ve never changed my mind after 80 left wing progressives hounded me into submission, just like 80 conservatives can’t hound me into saying that being gay is a bad thing no matter how many “science facts” they throw at me
while i can see israel doing bad things, i know exactly how jihadi’s act since i’ve been watching and reading about them in depth since 2001, they are by far the most evil fighters in the world, nobody straps tnt to a toddler like an islamic jihadi, and i have very little sympathy for any town/city/group that harbours them
if you watch for example
Mosul offensive: Fighting ISIS on the frontline in Iraq
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Zx6U3x2M3XA
even the iraqi army struggles to determine who is a civilian and who is an islamic jihadi, because (surprise surprise) the jihadis hide in plain clothes amongst women and children
they were even scared to let a woman with a child in worried she was a suicide bomber
i completely understand why israel would rather stay 100 yards away and bomb from the air rather than go into a snake pit
so my question is where is hamas and where are the palestinians?
Hamas is an idea. Even if every single Hamas fighter were magically killed instantly, Hamas 2 would pop up because of what Israel has done and continues to do. Hamas itself doesn’t really matter.
Also lumping together Iraqi jihadis (as you call them) with Palestinians and their liberation resistance movement is kinda racist. They’re not the same.
For the record I do not advocate for Hamas, nor do I support their actions but their existence is inevitable.
The real question you should be asking is why is there a fascist ethnostate in the first place? And why is it propped up by Western countries?
You don’t care about the legal definition because you are a savage who don’t believe in international laws and civilized societies
You claim to be against extremism while defending jewish extremism
Learn the definition of genocide first instead of embarassing your self. Why netenyahu call the west bank as judea when judea was destroyed thousands of year ago? Why they build settlements in palestinians lands, why they stsrve gazans, why did he compare all gazans to amalek? Why israel destroy all palestinians historical sites? Why does honest israelis ask palestinians to live in egypt?
Some people are on the eipstein list.
You’re on the denialist
That has literally nothing to do with what you said.