One thing to me is clear about Palestine:
The people in power on either side of this conflict (and I do not imply that the power balance is at all equal) do not want peace. If we could somehow get a typical Palestinian and a typical Israeli to be in charge of their respective peoples, my guess is we would have the beginnings of a lasting peace immediately.
Another thought:
The actions of one group, no matter how immoral or criminal or heinous, do not provide justification for the other side to act in the same way. The Israeli government's claim that Hamas' terrorist acts of October 2023 justify the slaughter and starvation of thousands of civilians is simply wrong, immoral, and heinous. Those who support that government's position are complicit in the same.
Allan R. Willms, 2024
A conclusion:
The Israeli government states that their intention in Gaza is to destroy Hamas and that they are exercising maximum effort to prevent civilian deaths. The result after three years is that Hamas still exists and almost 73,000 civilians have been killed including 20,000 children. From this I can only make one of two conclusions:
The Israeli forces are inept, or
The Israeli government is lying about its intentions in Gaza.
(and I have a hard time believing the first option is true).
Allan R. Willms, 2026