There are three questions that seem to be missing from most discussions about Israel and Gaza. Below those questions are stated and historical reflections are used to provide possible answers.
Question #1 – Is Israel to blame for the death of innocent civilians in Gaza?
When the Syrian Civil War began, thousands of Syrians escaped death by crossing the border into Turkey and Jordan where they have lived safely in refugee camps. A million Ukrainians, fleeing Russian attacks, crossed the border into Poland where they remain safely. Gaza borders Egypt and the Gazan civilians should have been able to seek safety in Egypt since it is doubtful that Israel would bomb targets on Egyptian soil, yet Egypt refuses to allow residents of Gaza to seek refuge there. It is Egypt rather than Israel who must be blamed for the deaths of innocents by refusing their entrance to a safe haven.
Question #2 – has Israel committed war crimes by bombing Gaza?
Various organizations and nations have accused Israel of war crimes for bombing civilians. What should be membered is that in March 1945, hundreds of U.S. B-29s dropped tons of incendiary bombs on Tokyo, killing 100,000, mostly civilians, and injuring a million. The fires absolutely destroyed more than ten square miles of Tokyo, yet the U.S. was not accused of a war crime since Japan had declared war when they attacked Pearl Harbor, and civilians die in war. Recall the number of civilians who died due to bomb raids on London and Berlin. Hamas declared war on Israel on October 7, thus the Israeli bombing missions cannot be war crimes.
Question #3 – must Israel immediately return the occupied land to the Palestinians?
Some Americans declare that Israel should immediately return Palestinian land that was captured during the 1967 war. Those who find this action as proper must demand that America return the states of AZ, CA, CO, NV, NM and UT to Mexico since they were obtained through military victory in the Mexican-American War. Also, Puerto Rico and Guam must be returned to Spain since they were occupied due to our victory in the Spanish-American War.
These questions and the historical references seem not to come up when pundits or protesters assess Israel’s actions. Perhaps they are ignorant, and it must be asserted that ignorance is not bliss!