A bittersweet moment for Israel as hostages come home

The ceasefire in Gaza is to be welcomed by all. However, in Israel this is a bittersweet moment. Relief that three hostages have been released and returned to their families, alive; anticipation of more hostages to return home in coming weeks; frustration that this is a necessary surrender to extortion. Meanwhile in Gaza, Hamas is celebrating its victory with the return of so many terrorists who can continue with the group’s goal of eliminating the state of Israel.

Sharri Markson in The Weekend Australian (“PM, this violence and racism can’t go on any longer”, 18-19/1) highlighted the escalation of virulent anti-Semitism in Australia. Her commentary made the point well that talk is cheap and decisive action by governments is long overdue. Among our political leaders only NSW Premier Chris Minns and Peter Dutton can hold their heads high. The failure of the federal government to support the bipartisan stance on Israel, in place since 1949, is misplaced and shameful.

This temporary ceasefire cannot become a pathway to a two-state solution and a more enduring peace while a terrorist regime is the effective government of Gaza. Moreover, the task of rebuilding Gaza will require massive global financial assistance. It is to be hoped that any Australian support will not be made directly to or via any agency that funnels money to Hamas. Ignoring this principle risks funding another military build-up, more bloodshed and misery for civilians.

History shows that appeasement of aggression is not a recipe for peace. Terrorists and dictators respect only strength. It is to be hoped that with the lead from a strong US President, Australia and other democracies will develop the necessary moral clarity and strength of conviction to support Israel’s right to exist in the traditional Jewish home, dating back thousands of years. Only with such resolve can this temporary ceasefire become a lasting peace, and hopefully lead to a more stable Middle East.

Charles Macek, Melbourne

As the ceasefire in Gaza began, photographs showed Hamas fighters out in an unmistakeable show of force. On Sunday, dozens of uniformed, gun-toting Hamas militants were pictured in Saraya Square in Gaza City next to a car holding the three Israeli hostages. Hamas was keen to project that it still controls Gaza.

Hamas’s founding manifesto emphasises the “obliteration” of Israel and its people as its paramount objective. In its updated charter this was expressed as: “There shall be no recognition of the legitimacy of the Zionist entity … Hamas rejects any alternative to the full and complete liberation of Palestine, from the river to the sea”. Such aims are held in common with Iran and other Iranian-backed groups. Thus Hamas’s continued rule is dangerous for Israel’s security. Until Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis are totally defeated or, with Iran, cease attacking Israel and seeking its demise there can be no prolonged peace in the region.

George Greenberg, Malvern, Vic

The anti-Semitism in Australia is unique in my lifetime. When I analyse what bothers me the most, it isn’t the burning and defacing of cars and buildings as much as the emergence of the blood libel.

During tsarist times, when the Russian Empire had the largest Jewish population, Jews were maligned as killers of Christian children who were said to be using their blood in Passover ceremonies. Ludicrous as it now seems, this was the rallying cry for many pogroms.

Today’s much worse blood libels are those that equate Zionists with Nazis, claim that Israel is on stolen land and that Israelis commit genocide and practise apartheid. They are obscene claims but they have been embraced by the left and the Albanese government’s even-handed approach is effectively green-lighting them.

Roger Mendelson, Toorak, Vic

There is no justification for Australian taxpayers to fund reconstruction of Gaza following the horrific murders, rapes, mutilations and abductions of October 7, 2023. Iran was primarily responsible for those atrocities and should prove the sincerity of its professed support for Gazans by funding any reconstruction with funds diverted from its illegal nuclear program. Hamas claims to have recruited replacements for the now deceased terrorists responsible for the atrocities, which demonstrates that Israel will inevitably be forced to take similar protective measures again. The cycle will resume.

RW Gray, Sydney