It is both possible and necessary to make clear that Hamas leaders have a lot to lose - by Yair Farjoun

We can't simply dismiss this with, "Oh well, the fires can't annihilate us, can they?"

Yair Farjoun..
Israel Hayom..
21 June '18..
Link: http://www.israelhayom.com/opinions/hamas-needs-to-know-it-has-a-lot-to-lose/

"Humans are the trees of the field; a man seeks to grow upwards like a tree, and it also burns, like a field," so wrote Natan Zach in his famous poem.

These days, the words of Zach carry an extra meaning in light of the ongoing attacks by means of incendiary kites along the Gaza border.

The fields along the Gaza border would normally be yellow at this time of year. But this summer, all one's eyes can see is the color of black soot created by the fires.

When fires are used as terrorism, when Hamas terrorists publicly state that they want to destroy Israel, we cannot just accept this with resignation. We can't simply dismiss this with, "Oh well, the fires can't annihilate us, can they?"

I treat the threat the fires pose with total seriousness. Fires start outside the field and gradually destroy everything in their path. They underscore the fact that Gaza's terrorism has the potential to spread uncontrollably.


The conflict in Gaza is complex and involves many more psychological elements, on both sides, and this means that having real peace would be nothing short of a miracle.

But the twisted relationship between the Israeli government and the terror government of Hamas is just surreal. Until a month ago, some 2,000 trucks would enter the Gaza Strip from Israel each day to deliver various goods to Gazans, voiding any claim that there is a brewing humanitarian disaster.

But now there is a shortage of food because of the actions of Hamas, as well as those of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. It turns out that in the current reality, the Palestinians cannot run their own affairs, and Hamas, with the help of anti-Israeli European elements, has been successfully leveraging the dire situation to its own benefit.

In light of this surreal reality, we must ensure the state continues to function and that our communities along the Gaza border carry on with the undefined term "a crisis routine."

In this reality, our politicians must make a courageous decision, and I know the government can make levelheaded, responsible decisions that can hit the enemy where it hurts. Just look at the successful results to the recent "marches of return," when Israel issued a clear-cut warning that it would not tolerate any attempt to breach the border fence. This policy resulted in 150 terrorists being killed and the marches all but ceased.

We must create a new equation against this ongoing fire threat, making it clear that Hamas leaders have a lot to lose.

Yair Farjoun is head of the Hof Ashkelon Regional Council.

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