I’ve bitten my tongue so hard these last few months it’s bleeding. This war is wrong.
1. This is no Longer About October 7th
What happened on October 7th was one of the most horrendous terrorist attacks in modern history. Hamas is solely responsible for the atrocities that took place on that day. On that day Hamas militants killed approximately 1200 Israelis. Bodies were mutilated, burned, violated, and tortured. Hamas captured and held hostage 253 people. Nothing justifies what Hamas committed on that day.
Of those 253 hostages it is unknown currently how many hostages are still being kept, or are still alive in captivity. A little over 100 have been rescued or freed since the start of this conflict. Netanyahu claims that his priority is on freeing the hostages, but the actions taken place in Gaza by the IDF has resulted in numerous cases where Israeli hostages have been killed either directly or indirectly. This war is no longer about freeing the hostages, if it were, Israel would not be indiscriminately bombing and destroying Gaza, with no regard of the casualties. If this war were truly about freeing hostages, Netanyahu would be doing everything in his power to negotiate a peaceful exchange, to guarantee the safety of those taken. No, Netanyahu’s true intention is this: to destroy Hamas, which he knows the only possible way to accomplish is to destroy Gaza itself.
2. Netanyahu Does Not Want Peace
Netanyahu does not want a two-state solution. He has said this clearly, consistently, and often. What does that mean? That means he does not see a world where there is a peaceful Palestinian state. It means his endpoint for this war, is not a rebuilt Gaza with a self-sufficient Palestinian government that can live alongside peacefully with Israel. His goal is to reoccupy Gaza: Netanyahu After Gaza War Plan.
We have seen this consistently in Netanyahu’s government since his time as Prime Minister with his incessant building and expansion of illegal settlements in the West Bank. Even before his time as Prime Minister, Netanyahu had made a name for himself opposing any form of negotiations with Palestinians. During the Oslo Peace Accords which would’ve given Palestinians control of the West Bank and Gaza in exchange for peace and recognition, Netanyahu railed against Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, who was soon assassinated by Israeli extremists.
Netanyahu does not seek a world with a Palestinian state. What Netanyahu seeks is complete control of all the land, and the people who reside in it. He has allied himself with the far-right of Israeli politics, who have used extremely dehumanizing rhetoric when describing the war and Gazans. What Netanyahu has not said out loud, has been shouted from the rooftops by his allies, Israeli Far-Right Rhetoric.
3. Hamas Cannot be Defeated Through War
A lesson the US learned after 9/11 and the launch on The War on Terror, is that terrorism cannot be defeated by war. Terrorism is a product of war, therefore war only breeds more terrorism. This was something President Joe Biden understood at the start of the war when he warned Israel to not make the same mistakes we did in response to terrorism, Joe Biden’s warning to Israel is a nod to US failures in the ‘war on terror’.
More than half of Gaza’s buildings and infrastructure have been either destroyed or damaged. More than 30,000 Palestinians have been killed and over 70,000 have been wounded so far in this conflict, with the true numbers likely much higher as remains are still found in the rubble of destroyed buildings. Gaza Death Toll.
How does any of this defeat Hamas? Hamas is a terrorist organization hell bent on the destruction of Israel, that is true, but what viable alternative is Israel leaving Palestinians in Gaza? In the US occupation of Iraq, with each bomb we dropped we radicalized more against us. The same is happening here in Gaza, but arguably on a much wider, even international scale.
The only way to defeat Hamas is to make them wholly unnecessary for the Palestinian people. If we create a Palestinian state in Gaza and the West Bank, if we create protections, create infrastructure, an economy, a stable system of government, we can make even the notion of armed conflict superfluous. Inversely, if we continue to displace millions, create famine, destroy cities, as well as expanding settlements in The West Bank, we will only continue creating more and more resentment, anger, and violence.
4. The Incentive of War
Truth is, Hamas does not want peace either. They know they can’t defeat Israel militarily, but that was never the point. The goal for Hamas is to discredit Israel, turn public opinion, raise money, and bolster recruitment. In this they are succeeding, in no small part from Netanyahu himself.
Netanyahu is also aware that without this war he will likely lose power. It is absolutely within his interest to keep this war going for as long as possible. Netanyahu Clings to Power.
The leadership for neither side truly desires an end to this war. War is profitable.
As with any serious problem the world faces, the onus falls on the people. It must be demanded by the people in Israel, in Gaza, in countries all over the world, to come to a peaceful solution and conclusion to this war. Only when leaders are pressured from their people, only when they fear that the profit no longer outweighs the risk, will real change be made.
5. It’s No Longer Enough to Just Condemn Netanyahu
Being Jewish right now is painful. It’s instinctual that I want to defend Israel against criticisms, but that is becoming harder and harder to stomach with each passing day of this war. As the body counts rise, as more and more pictures fill our feeds, the famine, the destruction, the horror stories. I can no longer defend this war.
It’s been a knee jerk response I hear from many friends who have defended Israel, “Yes, but that’s just Netanyahu, he’s awful, but…” That’s not enough anymore. Netanyahu is the one in charge, he’s the one making the decisions, where to invade, where to bomb, he is responsible for the damage to Israel and its reputation. He is responsible for much of the rise in Anti-Semitism in the last few months. He is responsible for the deaths of over 30,000 Palestinians, most of whom were innocent civilians.
Why do we enable someone whom we so readily condemn? Why do we hand over billions in military aid at the same time urging for restraint, despite never seeing any? Netanyahu acts as if he is entitled to every last cent and bomb and speaks as if the mere suggestion that there could be conditions is an affront to Israel’s sovereignty.
When we hand over blank checks to Netanyahu we sign thousands of death certificates with a stamp that reads: Made in America.
As Jews we believe in Tikkun Olam, repairing the world, we believe in creating a better world, we believe in human rights and dignity. We marched with Civil Rights leaders, we fought for equality and justice in every movement we’ve encountered. Time and again we have been on the side of progress, freedom, and equality.
We cannot afford to let the massacre in Gaza be our blindspot. We cannot walk away from every value we pursue just for political expediency, for fear of failure, for the real risks that come with actually trying to create a lasting peace, all for an idealized image of Israel that has been doctored beyond all recognition. If we truly want to make this world better, we must walk forward, take off our blinders, and see this war for what it is, and then we must demand more from our leaders.
It is not unpatriotic to wish for a just end to an unjust war. It is not Anti-Semitic to criticize the appalling acts of Netanyahu’s government. And it is not Anti-Israel to call for a ceasefire, and the establishment of a Palestinian state in Gaza and The West Bank.