The primary objective of Israel’s war in Gaza is the destruction of Hamas. It appears that little thought has been given on how this should be achieved and what the next steps should be if Hamas leadership is removed.

Israel didn’t have much choice in its initial response to the events of Oct. 7, the largest killing of Jews since the Holocaust, other than with force. The way it is proceeding, however, may well fail to bring about the desired goal and kill many more innocent civilians in the process.

Hamas locates its weapons and fighters among the civilian population. This makes it nearly impossible to avoid killing civilians while attempting to take out military targets. The Israeli government should have coordinated with the U.N. and other countries to allow sufficient time for Palestinian civilians to evacuate and set up temporary facilities to house, feed and provide medical care for those fleeing before starting their retaliation in Gaza. Large numbers of civilian casualties could potentially have been avoided.

As our invasion of Iraq showed, you cannot effect regime change and expect a new functional government to spontaneously form. In fact, Colin Powell’s Pottery Barn rule, “if you break it, you fix it” came into play requiring the United States to maintain a years-long presence in Iraq. The same will hold true for the Israeli army.

In the end, I fear, all Israel has done is sow the seeds for the potential recruitment of a new and more radically virulent Hamas.

Samuel Rosenthal
Portland