After Sinwar’s death, is war really over?
National Chairman of Americans For a Safe Israel responds to author’s thoughts
Benny Gantz (L) speaks to the son of hostage Oded Lifschitz (R) at the Kibbutz Nir Oz memorial service to mark the first anniversary since Hamas attacked one year ago on October 07, 2024 at Kibbutz Nir Oz, Israel. Photo by Alexi J. Rosenfeld/Getty Images
Re “Sinwar, Sukkot and what Netanyahu needs to do now” by Jodi Rudoren
To the editor:
Jodi Rudoren (Oct. 18) urges Israel to “take the win.” But declaring victory is not the same as actual victory. The brilliant but sometimes naive Phil Ochs made that mistake in his immortal song, “The War Is Over,” in which he sang, “I declare the war is over.” No matter what you think of the U.S role in the Vietnam War, declaring that the war was over did not stop the North Vietnamese from invading and conquering South Vietnam. Israeli government spokesmen—including when the government incorporated Benny Gantz’s party—have said again and again that to prevent Hamas from continuing to murder Israelis, it will be necessary to defeat Hamas’s entire terrorist army—just as the U.S. continued to pursue Islamist terrorists in Afghanistan and elsewhere even after eliminating Osama bin Laden in 2011.
— Moshe Phillips
National Chairman, Americans For a Safe Israel
