The ceasefire between Israel and Hamas was a much-needed injection of hope and joy into a two-year conflict defined by cruelty and suffering. And while there are dismaying signs the truce is fraying, there is clear momentum toward reaching a permanent resolution. But if there is to be any hope for a lasting peace, it must be built on a foundation of mutual trust and respect.That requires truth and accountability for the atrocities the world has witnessed over the past two years and beyond.

It means recognizing Hamas’s decades of terror against Israelis and Palestinians alike, including the horrific attacks of Oct. 7 and the political violence Hamas is directing at this very moment against its own people. It means demanding accountability from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his right-wing government for the expansion of illegal settlements, for the imprisonment of Palestinians without due process, and for the killing of tens of thousands of innocent civilians in Gaza. And it means voting out United States officials who ignored or justified the slaughter of innocent Gazans.

One of those officials is Rep. Mike Lawler.

The two-term congressman has been one of Netanyahu’s loudest defenders for a brutal war that may be the worst humanitarian crisis of our time. Lawler has ignored the fact that at least one in 10........

© lohud.com