Israel Seeks From Hamas Only What We Sought From Japan in WWII

(WND)—Despite the brutality of the Oct. 7 surprise attack into Israel, claiming the lives of 1,200 of its citizens, pro-Hamas groups in the U.S. clamor for Israel to end the war. As Americans, these protesters refuse to walk a mile in the shoes of the Israelis, embracing the emotions they have suffered by the loss of so many loved ones. These protesters ignore our own history and the emotions similarly triggered by the Dec. 7, 1941, surprise attack by Japan on Pearl Harbor. Claiming 2,403 American lives, that attack unified our country and embedded within us a resolve to totally defeat the Japanese.

Pearl Harbor claimed .002% of our 1941 population; the Oct. 7 Hamas raid claimed .01% of Israel’s. Comparatively speaking, this is the equivalent of a 500% greater impact upon Israel. Additionally, only 68 civilians lost their lives at Pearl Harbor – the consequence of Japanese pilots primarily targeting military assets; however, in Israel, the vast majority of losses were civilian as that was Hamas’ primary target.

America’s response to Japan’s surprise attack was not immediate as we had much to do before taking the war to the enemy. Comparatively, Israel’s response was much faster as it had the wherewithal to quickly respond and take the war to Hamas. But, by late 1945, Japan learned – as Japanese Adm. Isoroku Yamamoto who led the Pearl Harbor attack feared in attacking the U.S. – it had awoken a sleeping tiger.

In July 1945, at the Potsdam Conference, the U.S. and its allies demanded Japan surrender unconditionally. The demand came from a position of power, placing blame on Japan’s military advisers for bringing the country to the “threshold of annihilation.” Setting forth the terms of unconditional surrender, the demand hoped Japan’s leadership would now “follow the path of reason.” It ended with the warning of Japan’s “prompt and utter destruction” if it refused the Allies’ terms.

Interestingly, Japan’s leadership had been meeting to discuss a peace proposal. They were worried that after numerous battlefield defeats, starvation of the people and the firebombing of its cities, its citizenry was on the brink of revolution.

But, as a response was not forthcoming from Tokyo, the U.S. dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima (Aug. 6) and Nagasaki (Aug. 9). That did trigger an Aug. 10 response offering a conditional surrender. This was rejected by President Harry Truman who felt, based on the sacrifices Americans had made to claim victory, it had to be a total victory. On Sept. 2, 1945, Japan finally executed an unconditional surrender agreement.

It is interesting that pro-Hamas groups in the U.S. have failed to date to protest Hamas for making no effort to negotiate a total surrender. Hamas has been silent despite the fact that the Palestinian people and low-level Hamas recruits in Gaza have taken a beating.

Both the Israeli leadership and the Israeli people have made it clear nothing will derail them in their journey to destroy Hamas. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently stated, “Israel under my leadership will not compromise on less than total victory over Hamas” – a standard that was perfectly acceptable by the international community for Japan 79 years earlier.

A decision the Israeli leadership must make quickly is whether the top priority is to destroy Hamas or gain freedom for its hostages. In a recent poll, the vast majority of Israelis were opposed to withdrawing IDF forces from Gaza to obtain the release of the hostages. An amazing 70.5% responded in the negative about withdrawing first while 18.5% responded positively to doing so to get them back. This shows not only a warranted distrust of Hamas but a commitment to stay the course.

Nonetheless, Israel proposed a release of the remaining 136 hostages. The Israeli Cabinet approved a two-month ceasefire in exchange for a staged release (based on age, sex, medical need, etc.).

But the poll results underscore Netanyahu’s earlier vow that Israel will never repeat the mistake it did with the Oslo Accords. In that 1993 “peace” deal, Israel surrendered control of Gaza and portions of Judea and Samaria in exchange for nothing. Thus, any negotiation for a Palestinian terror state remaining is a non-starter.

Most recently, with reality setting in for Hamas, forcing it to drop its demand for a permanent ceasefire, it informed mediators it was open to releasing some hostages for a pause in the fighting.

Serious negotiations by Hamas to end the war may be due in large part because – unlike the Japanese leadership that saw firsthand the hardship their people were experiencing – its leadership lives a life of luxury in places like Qatar, counting the billions of dollars meant for Palestinian assistance with which they have absconded. They also gleefully continue counting Palestinian deaths, knowing it fuels the fires of global antisemitism.

There was a report the leader of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, keeping safe in Qatar, may be interested in serious peace negotiations. If so, this would not be due to increasing Palestinian deaths but, rather, due to mass surrenders by his fighters. He undoubtedly worries those who are supposed to sacrifice their lives for Allah may be undermining the terrorist group’s cause by surrendering (as if its leadership already was not doing enough by enjoying a lavish and safe lifestyle).

Israel knows what is needed to achieve total victory – and that it is not there yet. Reportedly, fewer than 30% of the Hamas fighting force has been eradicated. Some Israeli leaders noted that what Hamas needs to claim victory is a peace agreement allowing it to survive in any capacity to govern all or part of Gaza. But these Israeli leaders added, “The survival of Hamas in power would severely damage Israel’s deterrence and its regional standing, which could bring more military conflicts and thwart future normalization agreements. Therefore, it must be ensured that under any endgame scenario, Hamas will not have the ability to govern. …” This is why Netanyahu firmly rejected a recent Hamas proposal that would leave it intact.

In May of 2020, during his presidential campaign, Joe Biden told a black radio host that black voters who were torn between voting for him or President Donald Trump “ain’t black.” The comment ignited a firestorm of criticism, causing him to later apologize. While Biden’s comment was in poor taste, a much more palatable observation is that U.S. citizens supporting Hamas “ain’t American.”

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