Israelis must learn the value of diversity - opinion

In mathematics, two lines are orthogonal if they intersect at right angles. More generally, two concepts or situations are orthogonal if they do not substantially overlap. In Israel today, many worlds seem to be orthogonal, either existing separately from each other or having cross purposes. This is true of the relationship between much of the media and the government, the attempt of Israelis to maintain normality in daily life, and the view of Israelis and most of the world about the hostages and Hamas.

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. After being freed from a life sentence by Israel in exchange for Gilad Schalit, Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar planned and executed the murder of more than 1,200 Israelis on October 7, 2023, and remains determined to cleanse Israel of Jews. Just this past weekend, other senior Hamas commanders, also among the 1,027 murderers released in exchange for Schalit and responsible for the October  7 atrocities, were eliminated in Shifa Hospital.

Apparently, rehabilitation of the Hamas butchers is impossible. If history has taught us anything, it is that appeasement does not quench the bloodlust of evil demagogues. Rather than forcing Israel to stop its quest to destroy Hamas and kill Sinwar, the leaders of the free world should be pressuring Hamas to free the hostages and surrender their weapons to receive justice for their abominable crimes.

The people of Israel must understand what Hamas epitomizes 

The challenge for the people in Israel – Jews, Muslims, Druze, and Christians alike - is to comprehend what Hamas epitomizes. The fundamentalism represented by this band of criminals doesn’t recognize humanitarian values. Hamas routinely steals food meant for the Palestinians in Gaza, uses its own people as human shields, hides terrorists in schools, hospitals and mosques, and kills anyone who opposes its rule.

Hamas is expert at bending the “truth” to suit its needs and at enlisting an eager and gullible media to tell an often-fabricated story. Against this evil enemy, the free world must be united and determined to achieve Hamas’s elimination. This unity is necessary both within Israel and among those allies who support a democratic Israel as the Jewish homeland. Vacillation and a lack of conviction only play into the hands of Hamas and Iran. These heinous foes seek absolute power and, ultimately, world dominance. Any and all opponents are ruthlessly murdered. The free world is deluding itself if it believes that there are two sides to this story.

In contrast to the orthogonality discussed above, the camaraderie manifested in the IDF is encouraging. Jews, Druze, and Israeli Arabs who live in parallel and often non-intersecting worlds have banded together to fight a common enemy. The Hamas massacre has led young Israelis, who previously had little contact with contemporaries from different backgrounds, to gain an appreciation for those fighting at their side. One can hope that this mutual respect will continue to grow and culminate in an improved social order in the streets, cities, farms, kibbutzim, moshavim, and villages throughout Israel. Despite orthogonal religious and ethnic backgrounds, we as a nation must learn the value of diversity and to respect disparate lifestyles. This is the answer to the inhuman bigotry and savagery of our enemies.

The writer is a distinguished emeritus professor of biochemistry and chemistry at the City University of New York. He lives in Rehovot and has two grandsons serving in the IDF. The opinions in this article are his own.