DILIMAN WAY (HOMOBONO A. ADAZA): Israel-Hamas war — one man’s perspective

“In the world’s broad field of battle

In the bivouac of life

Be not like dumb driven cattle

Be a hero in the strife.”

– From A PSALM OF LIFE

by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

We see the best and the worst in the human condition in war. This is well demonstrated in the daily coverage by international media of the war fronts in Gaza Strip and Israel. A propaganda war is also waged in international media between Israel and allied forces as against Hamas and the demonic and inhuman forces in the Islamic world.

Whether it is armed war or electoral war, there are always villains and heroes and we see those in the current war between Israel and Hamas. There are also winners and losers, though in the ultimate analysis, everyone is a loser in war – in terms of lives lost, properties destroyed and money spent for military equipment and ammunitions, not to speak of continuing propaganda and diplomatic maneuvering.

Start: The war started in a surprising raid by Hamas forces in some kibbutz in Israel bordering Gaza. The raids were done with demonic and inhuman savagery by Hamas – indiscriminate killing and beheading of Israeli civilians, including women and children; raping and kidnapping of women and keeping them hostages; keeping civilians and military personnel as hostages as human shields and bargaining chips.

The scale of savagery of Hamas in the well-planned and well-executed demonic raid could only be compared to Adolf Hitler’s treatment of the Jews in Germany and the rest of Europe prior to and during the Second World War. The victims are the same – Jews

Response: On the ground level, the response was not immediate, Israel’s military was caught flatfooted – especially on the intelligence level, There was total failure of Israeli intelligence network. A lot of heads will roll after the war – and rightly so.

But on the political and leadership level, the response was immediate – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu immediately mobilized the Israeli military machine into action – by calling 350,000 reservists into active duty, readied the Iron Dome to prevent the Iranian financed thousands of Hamas rockets from exploding and doing damage to Israeli lives and properties. PM Netanyahu also conducted immediate diplomatic and propaganda offensive flooding the world with pictures and videos on the savagery of Hamas.

Notably, the enlightened world supported Netanyahu’s response, including the determined effort to dismantle Hamas, down to the last Hamas terrorist.

Netanyahu’s words and actions in uniting the Israeli people to wage the war against Hamas and all forms of savagery and inhumanity are not only excellent – it is outstandingly brilliant. He deserves emulation from world leaders.

US support: President Joe Biden and the US should be commended for giving unlimited support to Israel. Indeed, he has demonstrated that America is a beacon of democracy in the world, As the great American leaders have it – America is the light on the hill.

Some want the bombing of the Hamas enclaves in the Gaza Strip stopped – for supposedly humanitarian reason. These guys must be blind and active practitioners of selective justice. Did they not see the barbarism and savagery of the Hamas terrorists indiscriminately killing, beheading and kidnapping civilians numbering hundreds? This is Hamas and these bleeding hearts have sympathy for them?

Civilians are the unfortunate victims of war – bombings and killings. Everybody who has lived through war, seen it or read about war should know the effects of war hit civilians. That is known as collateral damage. This kind of damage are deeply avoided but they always happen.

The Palestinians: Most of the residents in the Gaza Strip are Palestinians. It is reasonable to suppose that most of them are either Hamas sympathizers or supporters. As the footages from international media show, you could see hundreds, if not thousands, were in streets of Gaza celebrating – dancing and shouting with approval and admiration for the Hamas demonic savagery in the raid on Israeli soil. As they say, a picture tells a thousand words,

Now that Hamas enclaves are hit by Israeli bombs and they are collateral damage – they are crying genocide and stop the bombings. Did these people shout to stop the savage and demonic gassing of the Jews by Adolf Hitler and the Nazis before and during the Second War? Were they not happy and celebrating at what the Nazis did to the Jews?

Before the bombings, Prime Netanyahu warned them and asked all residents of Northern Gaza to go to Southern Gaza. While hundreds headed the warning and advice, thousands stayed. Those who stayed are the victims. The bombings were expertly done by the Israeli military by hitting the desired targets. It is natural for civilians to be hit either because they are in the same buildings with Hamas terrorists or they lived or stayed in nearby areas of the targets.

This is not a case of genocide but stupid acts of suicide knowing that Israel is out to exterminate Hamas to the last terrorist as Netanyahu publicly announced. So why stay in a place where they surely will be hit by bombs directly or indirectly? Is that not suicide?

Demonstrators: Palestinians of various nationalities are rallying all over the world supporting Hamas – crying and shouting genocide and stop the war. Did not Hamas start the war by indiscriminatingly killing Israelis and destroying properties in an effort to erase Israel and its citizens from the face of the Earth? Are their cries not a case of selective justice?

These Palestinians should not take the world as fools? Enough of pretenses! Enough of selective justice! These Palestinians should not be creating problems in the US, France, UK, Australia and in many other countries by waging wars – propaganda or massive rallies. They should go to Iran, Iraq, Syria, Yemen and join Hamas, Hezbolla, ISIS, Islamic Jihad and other Islamic terrorists as Hamas is on the run.

Hegemonic ambition: The Hama-triggered war has nothing to do with building a nation or occupying territory – that is the open Palestinian pretense. It has something to do with the hegemonic ambition of Islamic extremists like HAMAS, ISIS, HEZBOLLA, ISLAMIC JIHAD and countries like Iran, Iraq, Syria that want to establish a Muslim Caliphate where Islam is the only religion and the Caliphate rules the world.

Is this possible? Yes, as anything is possible in this planet as it conceptually possible to fly to the moon riding on a broom. Is it probable? Of course not! Why? The reason is simple – Hamas and the other Islamic terrorists failed to read Sun Tzu’s ART OF WAR, thus failing to learn that the number rule to win a war is – Know yourself, know your enemy. A hundred battles, a hundred victories!