New Delhi, Oct. 12 -- Once again, the Levant is on the verge of peace. I know what to say about how long this peace would last, but I wish to be more hopeful than prescient, even though I am a columnist. By many measures, Israel won this war. The peace is a consequence of the decimation of Hamas and the end of a famous myth that Iran is a military equal of Israel.

The victor achieved this by being brutal. It appeared to consider Palestinian and even Iranian civilian casualties collateral damage. This removed Hamas's most effective shield, Palestinian civilians. Israel also rendered ineffective another Hamas shield-international opinion.

The country went ahead with its objective of finishing off Hamas with no regard for what the world ha...