Avi Abelow
(Photo by Quickdrew – Own work, CC BY-SA 4)
For months, the Israeli public has been caught between two heartbreaking demands: the desperate plea to bring our hostages home, and the urgent need to eliminate the Hamas threat once and for all so that Israelis are never threatened again from Gaza.
Now, the government has finally moved forward approving the next step of the plan that can do both: a full military campaign to conquer and hold the Gaza Strip, even though humanitarian aid will still be given to Gazans, contrary to international law that does not require it, something that impedes our war effort.
Still, the good news is that this is not another round of tactical raids or temporary pressure. The IDF is finally moving to take control of all of Gaza, dismantle Hamas’ military and governing capabilities, cut Hamas off from humanitarian aid, and relocate Gazan civilians southward to keep them out of harm’s way. It’s a clear shift to finally implement the basic strategy of war 101 to defeat an enemy.
What is sad, is how some of the loudest voices claiming to “fight for the hostages” are now turning around and attacking the very government that has just approved the most serious, strategic plan to actually defeat Hamas—and with it, the best remaining chance to bring the hostages home.
For months, these same protestors accused Netanyahu of not doing enough to save the hostages. Now that the government has finally approved a plan to take control of Gaza and destroy Hamas’ governing power—the one thing keeping the hostages trapped—they’re suddenly saying it’s “too little, too late” or that soldiers will die “for nothing.”
This contradiction isn’t just frustrating—it’s dangerous.
No government in Israeli history has waited this long to launch a full-scale offensive, precisely because this government did care about saving the hostages.
It held back again and again, even under public pressure for total victory, in the hope that Qatar, Egypt, Trump/Witkoff could pressure Hamas to a deal. But Hamas rejected every offer. Hamas chose war over releasing the hostages.
This government didn’t give up on the hostages. It gave negotiations every chance. But at some point, reality has to matter. The longer Hamas survives, the fewer hostages we are likely to see alive. The longer this war goes on, the harder it is for Israeli society.
Now, with this new decision—endorsed unanimously by the security cabinet and aligned with the IDF Chief of Staff’s plan—we are finally doing what must be done: cutting off Hamas’ control over humanitarian aid, relocating civilians for their protection, and launching powerful strikes while holding all of Gaza.
That’s not a reckless rush to war. That’s a calculated move to win, and to bring as many hostages home as possible.
The protestor leaders and marketing strategists who claim to care about saving the hostages blame the government no matter what it does, when it delays, when it attacks, when it negotiates. It has never been honest concern. It’s always been political manipulation, hijacking the plight of the hostages to topple Netanyahu and his government. And it’s hurting our unity when we need it most.
If they truly cared about the hostages—and we all should—then they should have been the biggest supporters of Netanyahu in fighting this war slowly and always giving negotiations a chance. And now, as all the negotiations failed, they should be supporting the final course of action that finally gives us a real chance: total victory over Hamas.
Because without it, none of us are safe. Not our hostages. Not our soldiers. Not our people.
We must face a hard truth: the only thing keeping the hostages in Gaza is Hamas’ power to hold them.*
The moment that power is shattered is the moment hope for their return actually increases. Not false hope—real hope. Hope based on facts, not fantasies. Hamas understands only force. The more pressure we apply, the greater the chance they release hostages to try to save themselves.
This plan isn’t ignoring the hostages. It’s doing what’s necessary to bring as many of them home as possible—while also protecting the rest of Israel’s citizens from another October 7th, whether today or in 5 years, if they are allowed to remain in power and rebuild.
But there’s a deeper truth we can no longer ignore: even defeating Hamas militarily isn’t the final step.
After Trump’s emigration plan is implemented, Israel must remain in Gaza forever, not just as soldiers, but as a people.
Jewish communities in Gaza must rise again—not as revenge, but as rebirth.
This is our land. We were expelled from it in the name of peace, and all we got was massacre. Rebuilding Jewish life in Gaza sends the clearest message to the region and the world: You cannot defeat the Jewish people. We return stronger every time.
Let the world rage. Let the critics whine. But let us finally do what is right—for the hostages, for our soldiers, for our future.
Time to make Gaza Jewish again is the right, just, moral thing to do that is the only way for total victory in this war.
This is the moment to finish the mission. For total victory. For life. For all of us.
Gaza was NOT Jewish in the Tenach and in 1929 the British evacuated the small Jewish communities of Gaza, Nablus and Beer Sheba besides Hebron to save on policing costs and complications inclusive the partisanship of the police personnel.
The 1929 riots prove(d) the Arabs the initiators of any ethnic cleansing in Palestine. That in itself is a useful stick to take to them; but we should avoid any action that makes it more dfficult to achieve a peace and live quietly as neighbours after this campaign and the broader conflict ends one way or another.
Good article. Israel should ignore what the rest of the world says about Gaza, because that area was given to the Jews by the Lord and should never have been abandoned. After all, the Lord Himself made it clear what He thought about Sharon’s ignominious actions in 2005.