False Accusations of Genocide against Israel

The people of Israel, mourning the victims of mass murder and abduction by Hamas on October 7, 2023, are falsely accused of committing genocide in Gaza. But this accusation is false because genocide is the systematic, planned annihilation of a racial, political, or cultural group. Israel does not plan to annihilate the civilians in Gaza. Israel is attempting to annihilate only the perpetrators of the massacre on October 7. On that date Hamas, the government of Gaza, perpetrated the largest mass murder of Jews since the Nazi Holocaust. About 1,200 people were massacred and 250 survivors were abducted. One year later about 100 abductees are thought remain in captivity, hidden from the outside world with no knowledge of their condition. Shocked by this disaster, the government of Israel belatedly realized that the nation had just been attacked by a ruthless enemy intent on destroying the Jewish state. The surprise attack by Hamas plunged Israel into a war of survival. To win this war and prevent future attacks, Israel must either eliminate Hamas or force Hamas to surrender, release all the hostages, disarm, and leave Gaza with safe passage to Qatar, the home of many Hamas officials.

To save Israeli lives from future attacks by Hamas which is committed to killing Israelis, Israel has chosen to destroy Hamas despite knowing that Hamas is embedded in and under civilian homes, commercial buildings, schools, hospitals, and mosques. Therefore, unintended civilian casualties cannot be avoided. To minimize civilian casualties before striking Hamas targets, the Israeli military warns people to evacuate a target area through humanitarian corridors to reach a safe location.

If Hamas wants to minimize civilian casualties during Israeli airstrikes, Hamas would allow civilians to protect themselves by entering its vast network of tunnels beneath Gaza. But Hamas denies civilians entry to these tunnels. The Hamas Health Ministry frequently announces unverified casualty figures in Gaza. Hamas wants to maximize civilian casualties to provoke accusations of genocide against Israel. Israel can challenge its accusers to identify any other nations which have acted differently under comparable circumstances.

About the Author
Ted Sheskin is a professor emeritus of industrial engineering at Cleveland State University, and the author of a textbook, Markov Chains and Decision Processes for Engineers and Managers. He has published peer-reviewed papers on engineering systems and mathematical algorithms. His letters to editors addressing politics, economic policy, and issues facing Israel and American Jews have appeared in the NY Times, NY Daily News, Cleveland Plain Dealer, Cleveland Jewish News, NY Jewish Week, the Forward, Queens Chronicle, Queens Courrier, and Jewish Voice.
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