Hamas strike on Israel - mod warning in OP updated 19/10/23

So you can understand why Hamas did what they did?

They were pushed into it defending their people.

My question is, what do these attacks do? Do they weaken Hamas? Do they ensure that these attacks cannot happen again?

If that was the case, then there’s an argument for it. But I personally think it’s more likely to radicalise more Palestinians and keep the circle of violence going.

Absolutely Israel should be looking to stop these terrorists where possible - I just don’t think that the recent attacks within Gaza are an effective way of doing it.

Think you better wait till the military action actually starts before declaring it won't harm Hamas.

It's easy to say from the comfort of your keyboard that Israel should just forget about what happened and improve their iron dome but in the real world they need to try and destroy as much of Hamas as possible as their attacks seem to be becoming more lethal and brutal.

Well, what I would say here is that Hamas' incursion here was unprecedented. It was their "big one" and there is no genuine prospect that they can actually launch a proper invasion of Israel. They were caught sleeping on this one, that's for sure, but the Israelis are perfectly capable and equipped to defend their territory at this point and, realistically, the most Hamas will be able to offer at this point are rockets that the Israelis have the means of mitigating. Hezbollah in the north present a different scenario, but Gaza's capability of going on the offence against Israel now that the Israelis have fully mobilised is very limited.

I think that the Israeli response needs to be assessed in that context — as well as what we consider to be a proportionate response. So whether they need to be absolutely flattening entire tower blocks, which footage shows they are doing, destroying homes and whatever guilty or innocent parties who happened to be flattened with them — well — I'm not sure that can be comfortably squared off as self defence.

So, tighten the blockade? I'm sure that policy will be well received in the usual quarters.

And Kosovo too. It's basically a time where if you want to make a move on a neighbour, the time is now.

Things really starting to get out of hand now at the Northern border with Lebanon. Both sides now firing rockets and missiles at each other. Al Jazeera seem to have the best coverage from what ive seen. Hezbollah are saying there are casualties among the Israeli forces from their missile attack.

Looks like I hit a nerve. Put my pearls for the massacred? Nice

Let’s be honest none of us have a clue how the Israelis Palestinians feel think or act they way they do.

Easy for us to think we know the answers and what is right and wrong from the comfort of our peaceful island.

I think it's likely after Israel's assault Hamas as we know it will be completed destroyed.

Then as you say the next generation will take their place.

But Hamas absolutely has to be destroyed any country would do the same after what happened.

Yes indeed, there are no 'good guys' between the Israeli government and Hamas.

It's the unfortunate civilians, both Israeli and Palestinian, who are paying the price.

I think the people that said nothing over the last 80 years of Palestinian suffering at the hands of israhell. Should stay quiet when Palestine says enough is enough and fights back.

It's horrifying see the pictures of what is going on and the situation looks destined to end in a lot more bloodshed . There is fault on both sides where neither will compromise and unless the powerful allies that Israel have could persuade them to find some accommodation and Hamas who are doing the people they claim to represent no good only harm can have some idea for compromise it will go on and on . It looks so hopeless at this time .

People seem to constantly mistake an ideology being impossible to defeat with an ability to defeat an actual organisation or severely diminish it.

Imagine the world took that opinion on ISIS as it rampaged through the middle east in utterly barbaric fashion.

Israel could deliver a hammer blow to Hamas here with a ground invasion. It remains to be seen if they do, and regardless in the attempt an awful lot of Palestinians would inevitably die which is an utterly terrible thing.

I also am still baffled by some people claiming that this could set off a wider scale war in the Middle East. Who would be involved in this war?

Eygpt has absolutely no interest in fighting Israel whatsoever, neither do Syria or Jordan, or the Lebanese state for that matter. Who's left to fight Israel? Hezbollah?

Hezbollah getting involved would also be a bad thing given it would, once again, lead to even more killing. But Hezbollah doesn't present any threat to the Israeli state nor does it have the ability to actually wage a conventional offensive war, it's a paramilitary force and I think some people fail to realise it's completely separate to the Lebanese Armed Forces which do have tanks/planes/weapons systems.