Hamas alone bears responsibility for the war

As the Israel-Hamas war drags on, the rhetoric from anti-Israel voices in Canada is becoming uglier and uglier. They put the blame for the fighting in the wrong place, blinded as they are by hatred for the Jewish state. Too many want to give terrorists a pass, but responsibility for the war lies solely with Hamas.

For three months, Israel has battled terrorist fighters in the urban corridors of Gaza. It isn’t pretty. Rubble is a common sight, and the Associated Press estimates that nearly two-thirds of the territory’s buildings have been destroyed. Thousands have been killed, but it is difficult to get accurate estimates, as the only numbers available come from the Hamas-controlled Gaza health ministry, which claims a death toll of 23,000.

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It can be tempting for government officials in Canada, cozy in their peaceful offices, to diffuse blame across both sides and call for a ceasefire — the wartime equivalent of a teacher giving a time-out to both the bully and the bullied for fear of appearing unfair. This couldn’t be more unwise. Hamas caused the carnage of Oct. 7, and it continues to be the reason for the destruction today.

It was Hamas that decided to lead a terror attack on Oct. 7. It was Hamas that based itself in hospitals and kept weapons in schools, making these places viable targets under the laws of war. It was Hamas that, in November, chose to violate the ceasefire agreement it so adamantly demanded and to reject the off-ramp offered by the Arab world. Finally, it’s Hamas that continues to fight a war in........

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