Unbearable Burden Of Vengeance: Of Human Animals And Vacuum In The Israel-Hamas War

The October 7, 2023 surprise attack of Israel by the Palestinian militant organization Hamas in Gaza was the latest and most severe of the continuing war between the Israelis and the Palestinians over the last several decades. It resulted in 1,400 deaths and large scale destruction in Israel. In addition, about 200 hostages were taken by Hamas to Gaza. In response, Israel declared a total war to destroy Hamas, and started a relentless campaign of continuous aerial bombardment of the Gaza strip. This was followed by a massive invasion of Gaza by an overwhelming Israeli military force of several hundred thousand troops. Within just three weeks of the start of the war, civilian death toll in Gaza has surpassed 8,000, with vast tracks of Gaza and housing estates and entire neighborhoods flattened and devastated. As the war continued, terrible rhetoric was used to justify escalating the war, with words like "human animals", "monsters" used liberally. UN Chief's comment that the war did not happen in a "vacuum" was fiercely attacked. Is the burden of vengeance so unbearable that revenge by any means is acceptable? The fact is that both Israelis and Palestinians have claims to the land for historical, socioeconomic, and political reasons. Neither can deny the other of the rights of inhabitance. They should aim to live in peace with each other. Humanity can only survive if we live and let live, no matter how difficult it is.