In case you missed it, Israel eliminated a senior Hamas leader in Gaza.

That sentence may sound like the opening line of a news bulletin. But it is really a reminder of something much larger: Israel has long understood that those who plan the murder of Jews cannot be allowed to hide behind ceasefires, foreign capitals, diplomatic formulas or the passage of time.

The Hamas figure reportedly killed, Izz al-Din al-Haddad, was no minor operative. He was described as a senior Hamas military commander and one of the remaining figures tied to the Oct. 7 massacre. Some commentators have treated his elimination as evidence of a “new” Israeli policy: that Hamas leaders will receive no immunity merely because there is a ceasefire.

But there is nothing new about that principle.

After the 1972 Munich massacre, when Palestinian terrorists murdered 11 Israeli athletes and coaches at the Olympic Games, Israel did not simply issue statements and move on. It pursued those responsible. The campaign became known as Operation Wrath of God. The point was not vengeance for its own sake. It was a declaration that murdering Israelis would carry........

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)