On the situation in Israel 🇮🇱
About this weekend's tragic events in Israel
“When peace comes we will perhaps in time be able to forgive the Arabs for killing our sons, but it will be harder for us to forgive them for having forced us to kill their sons. Peace will come when the Arabs will love their children more than they hate us.”
― Golda Meir, A Land of Our Own: An Oral Autobiography
I usually don’t talk about politics in this newsletter.
However, the events over the weekend in Israel have impacted me personally (and will continue to in the coming months). It would be completely dishonest for me to pretend like nothing happened and just keep writing.
My relationship w/ Israel
I grew up in Israel from age 6-14, and still have my dad, grandma, sister, brother in law and 3 nieces and nephew living there. Also, a large extended family and many childhood friends.
I'm a dual citizen of both the US and Israel and consider Israel my second home. I was just there over the summer and spent all of last week with my sister's family in FL (they returned to Israel just days before the attacks).
What happened this weekend
On Saturday, Hamas militants infiltrated Israel from Gaza by air, sea and land and murdered 700+ people in a surprise series of planned terrorist attacks targeting civilians and soldiers without discrimination. An estimated 1.5k extra are injured, 300-400 of which are in critical condition.
From a population loss perspective (Israel's population is 9 million), the death toll is equivalent to several 9/11s.
Babies, children, women and elderly were among those killed and kidnapped back to the Gaza strip. It's estimated that 150 people have been kidnapped from Israel to Gaza.
It’s an unprecedented nightmare and the situation is far from over - it's increasingly looking like it'll get worse before it gets better.
How I'm doing
I'm in a bit of a state of shock, fluctuating continuously between sadness, anger, anxiety, confusion, and worst of all - helplessness. I'm heart broken.
And I keep remembering it's not over. There are still Hamas military forces in Israel, in unknown locations and rockets targeting populated areas including those where my family lives.
I'm checking in with my family throughout the day, each time with a worry that I'll get the worst kinds of news. There's just no end in sight.
Hamas and the Palestinian people
You might assume from this post that I’m anti-Palestinian in some way. I’m not.
I believe that 99% of Palestinians are honest, hard-working, decent people who just want to live happy, peaceful lives. They’re just like me.
The other 1% is the problem.
I feel love and sorrow for the Palestinian people because they’re led by a corrupt, murderous, barbaric terrorist government called Hamas. What we saw this weekend is Hamas doing exactly what it’s designed to accomplish.
The Palestinian people have no reliable infrastructure, economy, or education system. It isn’t for lack of funding. It’s because the Hamas government is primarily funded by Iran with clear expectations that it would then be invested into terrorism against Israel.
The tragedy is that Hamas cares more about killing Israelis than it does improving the lives of Palestinians. That’s the genius of Golda Meir’s quote at the top of the post.
Closing thoughts
My thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families.
I’m also thinking of the Israeli soldiers getting ready for a ground operation in Gaza. By kidnapping so many people, Hamas has unfortunately forced Israel’s hand to enter Gaza by ground (Israel does everything it can to save its people). Gaza is a hornet’s nest where terrorists hide in densely populated civilian centers so the death toll on both sides is bound to spike.
I’m an eternal optimist and believe there’s a path to peace in our lifetime.
I don’t think we’re going to find it soon but we must never give up trying to find it.