Hamas definitely know what they are doing. They know that Gaza citizens will be killed in droves. You start a war, you will bring devastation on your own people. Thousands of Russians are going home in body bags. Tens of thousands of Americans died in Vietnam. I don't know what Hamas are trying to do, but we do know that an escalation will bring in other countries. The US is sending more weapons. Hezbollah are waiting in the wings and if they join in they'll get weapons from Iran, who are in cahoots with Putin. Hamas alone don't have the power to go alone, but dragging other countries in will be one of their aims, I'm sure. In the last couple of days, antisemitism has been on the rise in the west. In the next few months, as western countries side with Israel there will be terrorist attacks all over the place. We need to insist on restraint, make our assistance conditional on the withdrawal of aggression, and we need Hamas's allies to do the same. Sounds like a mountain to climb.