Israelis must learn the value of diversity - opinion

• Published date: 02 April 2024
• Author: FRED NAIDER
• Publication title: Jerusalem Post, The: Web Edition Articles (Israel)

Post October 7, 2023, many in Israel remain in a traumatic trance. The Israeli media exaggerates every event related to the war with Hamas. Be it the "destruction" of Hamas, the freeing of the hostages, or the strategies and tactics of the IDF, commentators in mainstream newspapers and television outlets continually offer their analysis and punditry

One day, US President Biden and Secretary of State Blinken are Israel's best friends and support each other. The next day, they are turncoats who have betrayed our trust. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu is a villain hindering the return of those kidnapped to Gaza or a determined leader resisting external pressure to save Israel from Iran-catalyzed annihilation. With the plethora of news reports and the conflicting analyses that appear in the media, many of us are confused and angered. How should we react under the stress of a war that, to Israel, seems endless and all-encompassing?

Ironically, in much of Israel, life seems normal. A trip to the ubiquitous shopping malls reveals crowds of people sipping coffee, munching on croissants, or busy with end-of-winter sales. The rocket attacks that kept us scurrying in the early days of the war have mostly abated, and the major danger is in the North, where Hezbollah rains down rockets, RPGs, and antitank missiles against civilian centers. Nearly 100,000 mifunim (displaced persons) who have evacuated their homes in the North are struggling with the reality of a long-term perturbation in their lives.

The government has dealt with this displacement by mobilizing the hotel industry to fill the vacuum. Many of these hotels are now at capacity. However, except for the mifunim themselves, the average Israeli is not cognizant of this cohort's struggles and does not encounter those affected daily.

The hostages, kidnapped and brutalized by Hamas since October 7, 2023, have weighed on the psyche of Israel. There is near-unanimity that the government and the IDF must do everything to free our brethren. Understandably, the families of the hostages would agree to nearly anything to bring their loved ones to safety. However, the demands of the leaders of Hamas and the fact that they constantly lie and deceive the mediators make a negotiated agreement unlikely.

THE WILLINGNESS of the leaders of the free world to negotiate with these butchers and acquiesce to their demands to release terrorists who have killed innocent Israelis in the past has angered and frustrated many Israelis...