We are living in a time of too much hate. Too much ignorance of facts. Too much divisiveness. It’s been brewing for too long.
The horror of the surprise Hamas cross-border October 7, 2023 attack on innocent Israelis was the most deadly day in Israel’s history. Over 1200 people were reportedly killed according to Israel and more than 240 were kidnapped and held hostage, including children, women and men. Of those original numbers, Israel says 97 people are still being held, a third of whom are believed to be dead.
Since October 7 of last year, Israel has responded by devasting attacks on Gaza which is home to the Hamas terrorist organization who operates in underground tunnels in Gaza and is hidden in civilian populations above ground. It has created a nightmare war for all involved.
While attempts at peace deals and cease fires seem to continually fall apart, the war has now expanded to Lebanon which borders on the north of Israel. Lebanon is home to Hezbollah, another terrorist organization, that has been sending rockets into Israel for a long time.
Here’s how I described things a year ago:
The state of Israel has always been largely surrounded by enemies. But this is different and more extreme because the enemies are extremists. Hamas is a militant Palestinian organization based in the Gaza strip and supported by Iran. Hezbollah is a militant Lebanese organization with a strong presence in Southern Lebanon to the north of Israel. It’s also by Iran. Neither terrorist organization recognizes Israel as a state and both are dedicated to destroying the country and its people. Why you ask? Because they are filled with hate.
map courtesy of npr.org
Hate has now multiplied and fed not only the middle east countries immediately involved, but Israeli and American politics as well. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appears to be using the war for his own political benefit allowing him to remain in power as long as possible. His slim political margin could be defeated when the war ends because many Israelis hold him responsible for what has been viewed as security failures that led to the October 7 attack.
Israel and the United States have forged a strong relationship over the many years since Israel’s founding in 1948. But the October 7th war is taking place during the 2024 U.S. election cycle. President Joe Biden has a long and complicated relationship with Netanyahu. Biden’s efforts to broker peace have repeatedly been thwarted by the Prime Minister, and Vice President Kamala Harris is now bearing part of the brunt of the lack of peace. Donald Trump on the other hand shares many of the same power hungry traits as Netanyahu, and is using lies and his own form of antisemitism to put himself in the middle of this foreign affair. Trump is all in it for himself.
While thousands of lives have been lost in this war, antisemitism has used the war to spread its own form of ugly hate here and abroad. According to the Anti Defamation League antisemitism has reached an all time high in the U.S. this year. In France and Germany, antisemitism has created a world of fear on the continent that knows well the devastation it can bring.
Last week, I called my 90 year old cousin in Israel to wish her a Happy New Year and make sure she was safe shortly before the Jewish New Year began. I couldn’t believe I was watching Lebanon’s rockets being intercepted in mid-air by Israel’s Iron Dome defense system while listening to my cousin tell me she was in her safe room. On my TV screen it looked like fireworks. The conversation ended abruptly when she told me the emergency alarm had gone off in Israel and she had to hang up.
The time for peace and sanity in our world has come. That includes a two-state peace agreement between Israel and Gaza, and electing Kamala Harris as President of the United States. The one state solution hasn’t worked and Donald Trump doesn’t about anything except getting elected and staying out of jail.
#October 7