The Israelis like to justify the civilian deaths and destruction in Gaza with an analogy to Nazi Germany. After all, the Allies devastated Germany and killed millions during the last two years of the war. Holding Israel to a higher standard is unfair, right?
Leaving aside the fact that the standards of civilized behavior have improved with time, the analogy doesn’t work. Nazi Germany was Europe’s preeminent military power; it controlled most of the continent in 1942. Its entire population was mobilized for the war effort. Hamas, on the other hand, is a military pygmy–a terrorist group–that hides in the civilian population instead of mobilizing it. Its signal accomplishment was occupying parts of Israel for a few hours.
Not the same thing at all.