Letters to the Editor: Is Israel committing genocide? Most of these readers emphatically say no

To the editor: I’m glad Raz Segal filled me in on the definition of genocide. I always thought that it is what the murderous, savage terrorist group Hamas wants to do — eradicate not only Israel, but every Jew in the world. Now I am told that genocide is being carried out by Israel, the side that has finally decided to take action to eradicate Hamas, not the Palestinian people.

There is too much misleading information in Segal’s piece to fully rebut here, such as Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant calling Palestinians “human animals,” when he was clearly referring to Hamas. In fact, Segal substitutes Palestinians for Hamas throughout his article, thereby humanizing the terror group and excusing their barbaric attack on Israeli civilians on Oct. 7. He claims that no place in Gaza is safe from the Israeli military when, in fact, no Gazan is safe from the depravity of Hamas, which uses them as human shields.

While Segal puts the total blame for the misery in Gaza on Israel’s shoulders, no mention is made of expecting Egypt, Jordan or other Arab countries surrounding Israel to open up their doors and give temporary shelter to the beleaguered Gazans.

Pauline Regev, Santa Monica

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To the editor: Segal, a professor of Holocaust and genocide studies, notes that the number of Gazans who have died in Israel’s recent military actions is greater than the number of Israelis who were murdered in the Hamas massacres to which Israel is responding. The implication is that Israel is the bad guy since it has killed more people than Hamas.

But body counts do not define who is the aggressor and who is the victim. If they did, it would mean that the Germans were the victims in World War II, the North Koreans were the victims in the Korean War, and the Iraqis were the victims in their war with Kuwait.

Rafael Medoff, Washington

The writer is director of the David S. Wyman Institute for Holocaust Studies.

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To the editor: Thanks to The Times for printing Segal’s profound and revealing piece on the current situation in Israel and Gaza. The American people and our politicians need to learn from such a credible source the truth about the atrocities being committed in Gaza, and the attitudes in Israel that support them.

We have good coverage of the very real atrocities committed by Hamas, but my tax dollars are not supporting Hamas. That U.S. support is going to an Israeli military that, according to Segal, was producing shirts before Oct. 7 depicting Palestinian women and children as military targets, should be known by every taxpayer and legislator.

That prominent Jewish scholars of the Holocaust are calling out Israel’s actions as genocide should be known by everyone.

John La Grange, Solana Beach, Calif.

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To the editor: Segal says that Israel in 1948 was founded on the principle of Jewish “supremacy.”

After nearly 2,000 years of subservience and bigotry, Jews re-established their homeland as a nation where, as stated in Israel’s Declaration of Independence, all citizens, regardless of religion, ethnicity or gender, are free. Israeli Arabs are represented in the government, academia, medicine and all forms of professional and business life.

Despite social and political tensions, Israeli Jews do not have the hierarchical position of a “supreme” class.

Peter Brier, Altadena

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To the editor: The repellent American Nazi David Duke has accused the Jewish people of enacting “Jewish supremacism” in seeking to oppress, enslave and exploit the non-Jewish population. Segal uses a nearly identical term, “Jewish supremacy,” in his denunciation of Israel’s war of self-defense in Gaza.

Israel is not enacting supremacy or genocide in Gaza, as Segal falsely alleges, but is instead targeting Hamas, a terrorist organization that is every bit as awful as Islamic State.

Furthermore, the first responsibility of any country is to protect its citizens against external attacks. Israel is targeting the terrorists of Hamas who launched the Oct. 7 massacre, not the civilians of Gaza. Civilian casualties in Gaza are the result of the Hamas practice of hiding behind Gaza’s civilians while attacking Israeli civilians, a double war crime.

Segal’s unjust accusations are a form of Holocaust inversion. That tactic has rightly been identified as antisemitic by the Anti-Defamation League. To paraphrase former Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir, a large part of the world (including people like Segal) doesn’t like it when Jews defend themselves.

Daniel H. Trigoboff, Williamsville, N.Y.

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To the editor: Segal’s op-ed article warrants a response defending Israel’s mission to remove Hamas once and for all.

Calling Israel’s response to the brutal events of Oct. 7 a genocide is a controversial overreach, and the author’s credentials do not mean his position deserves uncritical acceptance. Please find an equally credentialed scholar to defend Israel’s mission.

Gloria Cowan, Culver City