Final stronghold

I am writing to express my disgust at the mainly leftists, who are a minority in the country, who have chosen to take advantage of the war situation to try once again to get rid of Prime Minister Netanyahu by returning violence to our streets (“Thousands in J’lem rally for elections,” April 1). They put politics before the interests of the country. They should be punished at the next election.

I am sure that the accusation that Netanyahu is not doing his utmost to retrieve the hostages is utterly wrong. It would be a great feat for him if he could arrange a hostage deal. But he is not alone. Other members of the war cabinet, including Benny Gantz and Yoav Gallant, are involved in these decisions.

To say that the Israeli government is responsible for the lack of a release of the hostages is ridiculous. Hamas, and only Hamas, has taken these Israelis hostage and is holding them in southern Gaza.

I agree with Netanyahu that the only way to achieve victory in this war with Hamas is to expand the operation to Rafah, while taking humanitarian considerations into account. The only way to put pressure on Hamas to release the hostages is to threaten its final stronghold in Rafah.

Beersheba

I always advised my children to know their priorities when deciding on conflicting alternatives. That applies to our present situation as well.

Nothing that has been achieved by our brave IDF until now should have been different, but the single stated goal should have been, and should be now, to free all the hostages immediately. Combining this goal with the elimination of Hamas was unrealistic from the beginning because, as we see all too clearly, the two goals are unattainable simultaneously. At this point, our only goal should be to free the hostages in return for an unlimited ceasefire and without any other conditions, such as releasing any of the enemy’s prisoners.

We have lived with Hamas and been duped by them for so many years that we can postpone dealing with them properly only after the primary and imperative goal has been achieved. This is particularly true given the far better military situation and intelligence that we now have. This step conforms with Jewish ethics, makes strategic sense, and can be criticized by no one.

GEORGE MOSCHYTZ Jerusalem