Kindgo
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http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satell...d=1027506446043
Aug. 4, 2002
EDITORIAL: Annihilate Hamas
Israel has a habit of complaining that the world does not treat the terrorists who attack us as terrorists. The truth is that Israel does not always do so either. While the leaders of al-Qaida are wanted men, the leaders of Hamas live out in the open, available to be interviewed by one and all.
In one of many interviews from his comfortable home in Gaza City, Hamas "spiritual" leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin was asked by the Italian newspaper Corriere Della Sera why Hamas targets civilians, such as university students, he explained, "They are considered by us to be enemy soldiers." Asked whether bombing at Hebrew University was in response to Israel's killing of its top terrorist mastermind, Salah Shehadeh, Yassin responded, "We don't operate that way. These are not acts of retribution. We do not struggle out of revenge, but rather to liberate our land." Finally, when asked whether Hamas would be satisfied with an Israeli withdrawal to its pre-June 1967 borders, Yassin stated, "Israel was born in violence and it will die in violence. The Jews have no right to the land of Palestine."
Behind the rhetoric of revolution and justice, there is a word for Hamas's stated goal: genocide. As our columnist Caroline Glick pointed out on Friday, Hamas's leaders are not only openly spouting the modern day equivalent of Mein Kampf and the Final Solution, they are carrying it out on a daily basis. They are murdering Jews as Jews, with the goal of annihilating the Jewish state.
Given its genocidal intentions and actions, distinguishing between the "political," "spiritual," and "military" leaders of Hamas is ludicrous and offensive. Would it have mattered if Nazi brown shirts also ran food kitchens? How does calling Yassin a "spiritual" leader show respect for religion in general and Islam in particular?
Earlier this year, Great Britain went farther than the European Union in that it outlawed 21 terrorist groups but even Britain was careful to ban only Hamas's "military" wing. Again, this distinction tends to drive Israelis batty, but it is a distinction that Israel has, at least until now, clearly followed.
Salah Shehadeh's replacement, Muhammad Deif, reportedly lives in hiding with the knowledge that Israel could attempt to eliminate him at any moment. Yassin, and a small steering committee of Hamas leaders, live in their homes surrounded by their families, advisers, and supporters.
On June 25, The New York Times reported on one such a group of "150 young men who gathered outside Sheikh Yassin's house to protect him."
Said, a 20-year-old member of this crowd, explained why they were there: "We want jihad." These terrorists, in other words, are surrounded by ready-made crowds of "civilians" who knowingly risk their lives as part of their fevered support for jihad read genocide against Israel.
Israel should obviously attempt to kill or capture these men as surgically as possible, without unduly risking the lives of our soldiers. But we should not be deterred by their deliberate use of civilians as human shields, contrary to the laws of war and the practice of any besieged democracy.
Some argue that it is a mistake to target "political" leaders, because it would open Israel to attacks against our political leadership. But Israel has already had one minister assassinated, and there is no reason to believe that our leaders are not already targets. More fundamentally, it is wrong for Israel to recognize any parallel between its elected leadership and terrorist chieftains.
Finally, there is the argument that "political leaders" are easily replaced. Perhaps. But anyone who not only calls for, but plays an active, decision-making, role in a genocidal campaign against the Jewish people should fear for their lives. The harsh truth is that, while Israel leads the roster of victims in the global war against terrorism, in fighting back we lag behind.
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God bless,
Kindgo
Inside the will of God there is no failure. Outside the will of God there is no success.
Posts: 4320 | From: Sunny Florida | Registered: Jun 2002
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