Letters to the Editor, December 20, 2023: Seinfeld solidarity

Seinfeld solidarity

A big and sincere thank you should be relayed to Jerry Seinfeld for his support and solidarity with Israel through these most troubling of times (“Jerry Seinfeld arrives for solidarity visit,” December 19). He is truly welcome, especially when so many have shown indifference or outright hostility.

No doubt he and his family will rightly receive and feel the people’s deep appreciation. May their stay be insightful and fulfilling.

Only two ways 

After reading Herb Keinon’s excellent analysis “Reaction to mistaken killings shows trauma of drawn-out war” (December 18), I concluded that Israel must end this war as quickly as possible, not because the US is telling us we must, but rather due to the horrible toll the war is taking on our population, psychologically and economically.

After reading Yonah Jeremy Bob’s equally excellent analysis “IDF gains territory, but Hamas remains in control of hostage crisis” (December 18), I concluded that Israel has only two ways to accomplish this goal of ending this war as quickly as possible.

The preferred way is to offer the Gazan leaders – Yahya Sinwar, Mohammed Deif, and perhaps a few more of the top echelon – to leave Gaza alive in exchange for the hostages only – absolutely no release of prisoners from Israel’s jails. If this offer is rejected, we then go to Plan B: The IDF makes an all-out effort to locate and assassinate the Hamas leaders regardless of hostages getting killed.

It grieves me immensely to say this and I can certainly empathize with the families of the hostages. Yes, Judaism teaches us that the loss of any hostage’s life is like destroying a universe. However, we cannot put the only Jewish state, Israel – for which the Jewish nation has been yearning for 2,000 years – in existential danger in order to save the hostages.

Hunt down and assassinate

Regarding “When we’ll know it’s the ‘day after’” (December 19): First of all, let’s stop deluding ourselves with the “day after” and start calling it as it really is, the “day in between.” The  so-called plans for Gaza will at best increase the interval to the next war.

Here is my plan for the “day in between.” Israel should establish a 500-strong, elite force of Mossad agents/warriors whose only role will be to hunt down and assassinate Hamas leaders, military and civilian, one-by-one, slowly and relentlessly. The force will act with unlimited budgets and all borders will be ignored.

The eradication will be carried out in Europe, the Americas, and Muslim countries. Hamas leaders and supporters will feel unsafe, no matter where they are hiding, underground or above – until none remain. Israel must regain the respect and fear of our enemies as a ferocious and fighting force. Otherwise there will be no peace; ever.

Offering to share land

Regarding “Netanyahu lied when he spoke of backing two states, former US envoy says” (December 18): I have heard it said many times that Israel really wasn’t offering to share land with the Palestinians when the Oslo Accords were signed. In fact, though, it was the Palestinians who weren’t willing to share.

The 1964 founding charter of the Palestine Liberation Organization denied any claim to lands then held by Egypt and Jordan. The goal of the PLO was to liberate Israel from the Jews. The cries of “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” indicate that this is still the goal of the Palestinian leadership.

Former US ambassador to Israel Martin Indyk has fallen for the Palestinians’ victimization narrative. If Palestinian leaders really wanted to build a state in which the people living under their administration could become productive citizens, they should have exhibited good governance – building the infrastructure needed by a viable state, and using the monies donated for their people’s benefit to develop the areas put under their control by the Oslo Accords, instead of enriching themselves and diverting humanitarian aid to efforts to destroy the Jewish state.

The leaders should have prepared their people for coexistence with their Jewish neighbors instead of teaching them to hate Jews, inciting them to kill Jews, and rewarding murderers (and/or their families) for answering the call for violent resistance to the “occupation.”

Still languishing

Regarding “Global perceptions of the Jewish people” (December 13): While recognizing the impressive CV of Ifat Ovadia-Luski, a dedicated servant of both Israeli and Diaspora Jewry, I am deeply disturbed by her following words: “The objectives of the campaign in Gaza are dual: safeguarding Israel’s security and ensuring the well-being of Jews globally in their respective countries.”

She has hopefully, only temporarily, completely lost sight of the agonized feelings of the families and friends whose loved ones, the hostages, are still languishing in already 75 days of captivity. They are still in the inhumane clutches of those monstrous Islamic jihadist Hamas barbarians who, together with Palestinian civilians, reveled in the unimaginable horror of the October 7 Simchat Torah massacre that befell the southern communities lining the border with Gaza.

The Israeli prime minister has unequivocally stated a third and main objective, namely that “we will fight until victory, until we achieve all of our goals – returning all of the hostages, eliminating Hamas, and ensuring that Gaza never again constitutes a threat to Israel.”

Push back hard

With US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan urging Israel to transition to “lower intensity operations,” the effect of this advice has already been seen (“US to Israel: Start transitioning to low-intensity Gaza war,” December 15).

Israel, dependent on US rearmaments, has already made some of this change in its conduct of the war. We used to get almost daily announcements of IAF sorties that also disclosed how many targets were hit. 

We heard for example of 250 or 450 sorties on a daily basis. The precision operations were never indiscriminate and always based on reliable intelligence.

These announcements have almost totally disappeared from the reports of the military spokesmen. Instead we hear and see infantry hand-to-hand combat reports with the casualty counts mounting at a gut-wrenching rate. This is all because of a world outcry at the questionable Gaza Health Ministry counts of Palestinian casualties.

There is no question that air softening up operations had saved many of our troops’ lives. The life of one brave Israeli soldier is not worth giving up because of this policy change. 

Israel has done more than any other army in warning civilians to leave areas of combat and move to safe areas. 

This is despite the fact that the people of Gaza had overwhelmingly voted in favor of Hamas, and supported and cheered the thousands of rocket attacks and approved of the October 7 massacre.

Israel’s leadership must push back hard against its American ally and explain that IDF soldiers are never to be seen as fodder of RPG, IED, or booby trap attacks carried out by the tunnel rats. 

Whatever it takes to reduce casualties must be a prime component of our military policy.