John Spencer
100% this is the "Israeli standard" in war I often talk about. More than a double standard. It is an attempt to use some form of authority to convince others that there are standards or laws that do not exist but only for Israel and Israel is not meeting them, violating
ד״ר עינת וילף Dr. Einat Wilf
Hi Jasmine, I have never accepted the "Hamas holding the Palestinian hostages" myth - it is too convenient, and simply lacks evidence, especially given the Euphoria across the strip on Oct 7. I have yet to hear voices from Gaza challenging the fundamental Palestinian ideology of "From the River to the Sea", of perpetual refugeehood and "return" in the name of which October 7th was conducted. When you have 70% of Gaza's inhabitants, who were born there, registered as "Palestine Refugees", and no-one challenges the notion that they are refugees while living in Gaza and possess a "right of return" into a sovereign state in which they never lived, then it is clear that this is a wide-spread ideology. The situation is simply war, not collective punishment . The notion that Israel is responsible to supply Gaza when it has invaded Israel and is at war with it, is the odd one, and then the notion that if Israeli fails to comply with this made up rule for Israel it is somehow committing a grave crime, is even more odd. (Apropro the ease with which some words are used against Israel - attaching this excellent piece by my colleague Dr. Shany Mor @ShMMorHere - here is a quote for his piece on "collective punishment": "When it comes to Israel this term has assumed a new definition, roughly a military action that affects anyone not directly involved in the action that the army is reacting to. The impulse here is that armed action against Israel is a form of criminal activity, not military activity, and that Israel must therefore react with some kind of criminal justice—locating the perpetrator, arresting him, putting him on trial. To state the obvious: this is not how any army prosecutes a war." https://mosaicmagazine.com/observation/israel-zionism/2024/01/a-special-dictionary-for-israel/) We also know by now that hostages have been hidden throughout Gaza with the support and participation of many Gazans, none of whom have come forth trying to help any of them escape. Gaza also has a border with Egypt, which has served to supply its army to attack Israel. All supplies can enter from Egypt and of-course, certainly for women and children, Egypt is responsible under its treaties, to allow them to leave an area of conflict. And of-course there is always the option of releasing the hostages, not to say surrender.