Well no I don't think it's all just been the force of Netanyahu's will driving this obviously-- he's still just one person who needs the support of others within government.

Did you read that Haaretz op-ed I posted though? Do you think that Hamas would be in power today without the actions of the Israeli right?

And Abbas and the PA did seem to want peace-- that's what the 1993 Olso accords were about, when they renounced terrorism and recognized Israel's right to exist. Israel's actions though have been to weaken Abbas and the PA and to strengthen Hamas. It doesn't mean that the Palestinians are without agency but sometimes people do get played and manipulated.

How in the world could I read one op-ed and come to such a strong conclusion on such a complicated issue? None of us know for sure how history could have played out differently. I do know that in addition to what Israel was doing, things happened on the Palestinian side to derail the theoretical peace process too, and declaring it was all Israel's fault and giving the Palestinians no agency isn't historically accurate or productive.

For example, from 1993 onward, to the best of my knoweledge Palestinians did nothing to stop the virulent anti-Jewish hatred and propaganda that is pumped into them by their civil authorities, religious leaders and media from the day they are born until the day they die. IMO this would be step 1 in a good faith effort to work towards an actual peace, and I see no evidence this happened at all, before or after Oslo.

Also, wasn't Arafat in charge during Oslo? Abbas came along years later. What is the evidence Abbas was actually working in good faith towards a peace, and Netanyahu derailed it?

I am not claiming to be an expert on the 1990s-2000s peace process (which you seem fixated on) and what went right or wrong during this time period. But I am pretty sure you know as little as me, probably less; but you have pretty strong convictions Israel was playing some 4D chess to sabotage the whole thing while the Palestinians were good faith actors. And I am pretty sure this is not how things went down.

Also, I do know that the Oslo Accords were supposed to be just a beginning of working towards a real peace. And it didn't address most of the main issues, and nothing happened after to move things along like it was hoped (maybe naively) would happen.

I do know IF the Palestinians dropped their guns and threw out their terrorists today, and demonstrated they were ready to give a genuine good faith effort for peace, the entire world couldn't throw money and resources at them fast enough to make it happen.

And I think Israel would go along willingly, and even if they didn't the world would force them. But the Palestinians bigotry and belligerence is, and always has been, the main obstacle towards making this happen.

That is unless you believe Allah really did promise that land (from the river to the sea) to the people, and further promise there would be an accounting where the Yahood would be punished for their wickedness, in which case there really is no choice. They have to fight a perpetual Holy War with the wicked Yahood to get it all back at all costs.

Israel agrees to extending ceasefire 2 more days

Excellent

I wonder how this fits into arguments about the definition on genocide.

The almost sounds like you're glad there's a ceasefire.

This seems to be because Hamas are offering to release 20 hostages and Israel is offering one day's ceasefire for every 10 hostages released.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/worl...-east-67539313

It's looking as though the Americans, whose opinion the Israelis are bound to respect, would prefer the ceasefire to be permanent. The Israelis are still threatening to resume operations, but that may be a negotiating position and, politically, they can't take it off the table till they've got all the hostages back.

My understanding is that after these 2 days it can be extended 2 days 1 more time

Israel will resume after that

How is it even possible for an ethnically inferior (by numbers/amount) group commit Genocide on an VASTLY superior (by number/amount) group?

Palestinian... is a Nationality not a race.

Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge was much better and more efficient at it.

Bio weapons would be the best bet. Not that I believe Hamas has any capability

If there is no functional way to make progress with Hamas then the ceasefire makes sense as hostages are being released.

If the US is putting pressure on Israel because it is in our best interest for fighting to stop AND more ground can be made against hamas then this whole thing sucks.

I support fighting to handle long term problems in a direct fashion over ignoring the problem so that people in the future can handle it. I guess that's impossible to know.

I see that Elon made it out to Israel , ad dollars cutoff must be real.

also , why do people keep insisting this is a war of someone cites all the Palestinian civilian life lost when its obviously one sided right now. its more like a demolition.

That's why hamas should just surrender

Israel created too much blowback for that to ever happen


People who had their parents and uncles killed aren’t just gonna forget and forgive.

Lol have you ever met a Palestinian ? That attitude was the case well before 10/7 or even this century

I wonder why they felt that way before hand

its because they hated Israel for their freedoms

Have you?

Just wondering. I don't know what any of them would answer to "will you forgive and forget the killings of Palestinian people", but I've known a few Palestinians (a looong time ago) and my daughter's roommate now is Palestinian and no one has tried to blow anyone else up.

The Palestinians I knew a long time ago were working for a very small Israeli owned Engineering Company and I can't something like "I know they had no problems with Israelis" - the working environment there was fine.

I'm not sure how any of them would answer that question in a poll, but I'm sure peace would be possible with any of them....of course it's not going to be up to them any more than it will be up to me.

The hardliners are in charge of both sides now and have been for a while and they both like it that way.

I wonder if there's any equivalent of Netanyahu supporting Hamas from the other direction. Have Palestinian warhawks intentionally helped Netanyahu or hindered less war loving opposition in Israel?

If they don't, how many Palestinians deaths are you willing to stomach? 10k? 100k? All 2 million of them?

Its not up to me. But i still believe that the Arab nations have a duty to give them temporary refugee status if they actually care about their lives

If this whole war is about statehood, and hamas surrendering leads to statehood, then they may decide to accept that

Has there been any advancements or discussion about surrounding countries bringing them in lately?

If a million are displaced does everyone really just turn their head?

There are over a million displaced. They have been pawns for 75 years. As soon as Jordan took away citizenship to many Palestinians they gave it to in the West bank, they made it clear that they cared more about "the cause " than the people

Egypt admits that if any come into a Egypt, they likely never return, so they won't give any refugee status

Israel is not going to for obvious reasons

So who?

Do you care about their lives?

Does the USA have an obligation to give them temporary refugee status?

Do you think all countries should be divided up on racial/ethic lines and people have special obligations to their race?