Who wants a state ruled by Hamas, dedicated to committing genocide against its neighbour and living in a permanent state of war? Judging from their joint statement this week, the governments of the United Kingdom, France, and Canada want to see that exact outcome.
Those three governments say they are in favor of “ending Hamas’ control of Gaza,” but by demanding Israel unilaterally end its military operation to defeat Hamas, they prove that is a lie.
Hamas will never agree to give up power without continued military pressure. The second Israel stops fighting, it will claim victory, crack down on all dissent, and begin preparing for its next attack on Israel. This is obvious to everyone, including the leaders who published that brain-dead statement attacking Israel. They know full-well they are saving Hamas and guaranteeing more violence in the future. They simply do not care.
Including a demand for the creation of a Palestinian state in their demand that Israel surrender to Hamas makes it clear that they have no concern at all for the creation of the inevitable Hamas-stan, another Iranian proxy failed-state dedicated to war and the worship of death.
The Trump Administration, according to uncorroborated leaks, is also pressuring Israel behind the scenes to end the war. The US, at least, is not seeking to make Hamas the victor by demanding it be given control of a state as a reward for its genocidal actions. They recognize the stupidity of pursuing a Palestinian Arab state now.
The UK, France, and Canada, in the most charitable of interpretations, are attempting to have their cake and eat it too, by demanding both the rescue of Hamas and the creation of Palestine despite the fact that the destruction of Hamas is a prerequisite for the existence of a Palestinian Arab state that is capable of being anything other than a genocidal terrorist base.
For the war to end in a way that does not guarantee more death in the not-too-distant future, Hamas must surrender, release all of the hostages, and be completely removed from power and disarmed. To demand that Israel just stop while Hamas still holds onto power is one thing. To claim that this will lead to peace and the Two-State Solution is to live in a fantasy. If they at least lived in the real world and acknowledged that ending the current violence will lead to more rounds of violence, there might be something to discuss. There is nothing to discuss with governments that are living in a fantasy.
Even if Hamas is defeated once and for all, that does not mean a Palestinian Arab state can be instantly created. The Palestinian Authority is weak, corrupt, and incapable of governing itself or living in peace with the existence of Jews. The payments to terrorist murderers must stop and the constant incitement to genocide that permeates every aspect of Palestinian Authority life must end before any talk can begin on giving them a state. The root cause of the conflict, the genocidal levels of antisemitism that cause Palestinian Arab culture to value slaughtering Jews above all else, must be addressed first if there is to be a chance at real peace. Creating a Palestinian Arab state without first addressing the antisemitism at the heart of the war against the existence of Israel will not solve any problems and will only exacerbate the conflict.
The UK, France, and Canada have chosen the worst possible route. They have chosen to rescue Hamas, give Hamas a state, and give Hamas another war from an even better position than it had when it invaded Israel on October 7, 2023. That is why Hamas was absolutely giddy at the joint statement and praised these governments to high heaven.
Don’t expect the praise of a genocidal terrorist organization to give pause to those who live in a fantasy world. If Hitler himself came back and agreed with them, as he would, it would make no difference. The UK, France, and Canada have removed themselves from the realm of intelligent conversation about the Middle East.
Their leaders and diplomats would be better off searching their closets for Narnia than trying to tell Israel what to do. At the very least, they’d cause less harm, and that task is far better suited to the level of intelligence they have demonstrated than trying the same formula for Middle East peace that has failed time and time again for decades.