On stains – Jack Khoury in Haaretz:

‘The complex that was attacked will undoubtedly be rebuilt. Within Hamas' leadership – whether or not senior officials were killed – new names will always emerge, or old names will return to the stage, such as Khaled Meshal or Musa Abu Marzouk. There is a constant market for jobs in Hamas. Negotiations will also eventually resume, and a new mediator or envoy will be found to deliver a draft agreement.’

(…)

‘Gaza City isn't seen as just a city, but rather as "the capital of resistance." It is regarded as a symbol, alongside other cities infused with historic meaning, such as Beirut in the 1980s or Baghdad during both Gulf Wars. Now, the city's symbolic standing is collapsing.’

(…)

‘The picture is entirely different 32 years after the signing of the Oslo Accords. Gaza City is no longer seen as the starting point from which a Palestinian state will grow, but rather a city condemned to be emptied. Its residents are being told to evacuate. Some are expected to stay, either believing they can manage on their own or out of despair and thoughts that there is nowhere else to go. For the first time in history, the city itself is designated for destruction and leveling.’

(…)

‘Israel's goal is to extinguish, once and for all, the Palestinians' dream of self-determination. Israel may perhaps check off a box on its military operations calendar, dictate to the Palestinians in Gaza how they will live for the next generation or two, or carry out plans to annex the West Bank. But the expulsion of Gaza City will be remembered as a moral stain in the Arab world and in the eyes of much of the international community.’

Read the article here.

The futility of extra-judicial killings must be clear by now. The moral aspects of this habit, well, well, we move into an era where the maxim of Machiavelli, I will paraphrase, kill all the weaklings before they’ll kill you, have been taken too seriously.

The destruction of Gaza, the belief that you can commit war crimes without any consequences, it will hunt Israel and the Jewish people for decades, maybe centuries.

In the end by the way, the Israelis and the Arabs will find common enemies, the merger between the Palestinians and the Israelis appears to me inevitable. The wish to remain pure is a symptom of the death drive.