Hamas lies run deep

On Saturday, just hours before it was announced that Lt. Hadar Goldin had died during an attempted kidnapping, family members spoke to the media. They hoped the appeal would prevent an early IDF withdrawal, which would leave their loved one behind enemy lines. Israelis, who wanted to see this operation draw to a close, stood still and shed a tear. The nation's collective heart went out to the family, all but temporarily halting the tanks.

The Goldins are exemplary Zionists. A national religious family, they epitomize all of what we hold dear, all the values we are determined to uphold as Jews in the Land of Israel. Their plight has generated tremendous sympathy. So forceful was their sense of pain, so emotional their hopeful concern, it seemed that the sheer force of their pleas could stop the withdrawing of tanks in their tracks.

The ongoing debate over whether Israel should take over the Gaza Strip or hold onto its unprecedented battlefield gains rages on.

On Friday, the news that Hamas deliberately violated a new cease-fire to stage a kidnapping operation put the spotlight on who we were dealing with. Once again, both Israel and the world were forced to grapple with the depressing realization that Hamas has not changed its spots; this was an eye-opener for everyone, a sentiment shared all over the world. That is, except among the villains in Iran and in our neighborhood.

Hamas is a terrorist organization; lying is part and parcel of its modus operandi. It cannot honor its own pledges; its promises are nothing but hollow rhetoric. Even President Barack Obama and U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon have sobered up. So has Europe, which usually tries to avoid definitive statements. This time there wasn't any doubt that Hamas breached the cease-fire (again). Israel now has to live with the realization that any form of engagement with that organization is akin to talking to a brick wall.

Having said that, it would still make sense to partake in talks under Egyptian auspices. The Cairo-led initiative could serve as an important dialogue with moderate Arab states, the Palestinian Authority and the rest of the enlightened world. If these negotiations produce a reasonable agreement, no harm will have been done. If they do not -- Israel's military will do the talking. On Saturday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon drove home the oft-repeated claim that the battle against Hamas was being waged on behalf of the entire world.

By Saturday, it had become clear that eradicating Hamas was not in the cards. It would require the active participation of Egypt, Jordan, the Palestinians, Saudi Arabia, the U.S., the U.N. and Europe. Israel cannot go it alone, in part because PA President Mahmoud Abbas said he would not assume control over the Gaza Strip.

A new reality has emerged. Israel will now focus on its pilots, less on tank crews. The enemy, not Israel, will have to suffer most. The tunnel-destruction operation will have to continue. But for this mission to succeed, the Israel Defense Forces must have tunnel vision; it must be allowed to do its job without any distractions -- lest we discover that Hamas had managed to rebuild the underground infrastructure faster than expected because some parts had remained in tact. To use military lingo, the IDF has received the following order when it comes to tunnels: "Fire at will."

Israel cannot afford to ignore the tunnels; it must provide air cover for this.

It must also drop flyers, on a daily basis, to appeal to Gazans. Israel must get the message across that they have been ill-served by a victimizing Hamas. As Operation Protective Edge continues, Israel must talk directly to Gazans, over the heads of Al Jazeera executives.

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