On May 18, New York City hosted more than 50,000 enthusiastic, peaceful supporters of Israel at the 2025 Israel Day Parade. For the second year in a row, marchers wore yellow ribbons and held signs calling for the return of the hostages from Gaza.

Those whom Hamas and other terrorist groups are still holding were top of mind for all, especially as former hostages recounted the abuse and torture they suffered in Hamas’ terror tunnels. While celebrating the release of American Edan Alexander, who was the last living American hostage, the bodies of four dead Americans, Itay Chen, Omer Neutra, Gadi Haggai, and Judi Weinstein Haggai, are as of this writing still being held by Hamas, presumably as bargaining chips. [Israeli forces recovered the remains of Judy Weinstein and Gad Haggai on June 5.–Ed.]

I mention these names because we’re seeing a resurgence of nonsense and falsity from “pro-Palestinian” groups, who want us to believe that this war comes from Israeli aggression or “colonialism.” They tell us that peace is possible if only Israel would disarm, which would spell an end to Israel at the hands of an irrationally hostile and antisemitic Arab world.

It’s worth remembering that on October 6, 2023, Israel wasn’t at war. The aggressor and catalyst on October 7 was Hamas, not Israel. That aside, the “pro-Palestinian” position shows a complete ignorance of history. To ask Israel to do anything less in the protection of its citizens is easy if you aren’t the one whose brother is being tortured in a tunnel, if it isn’t your mother’s remains being held by terrorists and if Hamas were not sworn and committed by its Charter and its actions to the murder of all Jewish people.

War is terrible and never prosecuted perfectly, but Hamas and its proxies and allies are not properly in a position to call the shots or make demands. It will take very talented negotiators to find a path to peace, if peace is even possible in the face of the Palestinian Authority’s ongoing bounties to terrorists who kill Jews and Hamas’ foundational raison d’être of eliminating Israel as the world’s only Jewish state, which is the meaning of the chant “Free, free Palestine.” This is a harsh reality that is hard for us as Americans to appreciate.

For everything we know about October 7, it was worse. Most Americans haven’t yet been told or have come to terms with the fact it wasn’t just Hamas who attacked, but it was also Palestinian supporters, who came over the border and committed vile and brutal atrocities.

Palestinian civilians, who had elected Hamas,  looted and burned entire neighborhoods, kidnapped infants and senior citizens, and raped and murdered their way through Israel’s south. Much like the Nazis, Hamas documented their atrocities. Survivors have given testimony, and the world has seen evidence of the complicity of teachers, doctors, journalists, and others – including some U.N. staff! – in the planning and the attack. 

There is no justification. There is no excuse. No accusation of an “open air prison” or “colonialism” will work here. No Jews have resided in Gaza since 2005. The world has generously supported Gaza through UNRWA for 75 years. Collectively, we’ve spent billions to create a fully functional and economically independent region for Gazans. Even Hamas’ most effective talking point, the death toll figures, are starting to unravel. The deep dive by the Henry Jackson Society is worth reading to get the facts straight.

As is true in all wars, there are innocent victims in Gaza. Gazan children have had their futures sacrificed by the very adults who should be protecting them. Hamas didn’t make any provision for evacuating them from what they knew would be a war zone, never brought families into the shelter of tunnel networks and underground cities which they had built with foreign aid, and steals humanitarian aid meant to feed and care for the populace.

But Hamas’ influence over news media reporting from Gaza results in highly skewed reporting, as they ensure that the people’s anguished faces appear with every news article while they at the same time are willingly sacrificing those people. It’s abhorrent. Where are the “pro-Palestinian” groups on this? If they were really pro-Palestinian, they would condemn Hamas and terrorism, recognize Israel’s right to exist, and chart an honest path forward for the next generation. However, these radical groups have a very different agenda from supporting Palestinian people.

Mark Trencher lives in West Hartford.