Brisket & Beyond Blog

We asked if anyone wanted to share their thoughts on the on-going war between Israel and Hamas.  Here is a response we received.:

Thoughts on the Israel-Hamas War

            When the radio woke me up on Shabbat morning on Oct. 7, the first thig I heard was the announcer playing Netanyahu saying “THIS IS WAR!”.  I thought I was still asleep or having a nightmare. I had skyped with my sister and brother-in-law on Friday to say Shabbat shalom.  They had fulfilled their lifelong dream of living in Jerusalem last December. Their son, my nephew Ami and his family have lived there for over 20 years.  On Thursday, I had spoken to Ami, and his son Yair (who had just finished his active service in the army and was now completing his associated Yeshiva studies) about how to facilitate their using my Amazon Prime account to order things.  All was well, I must have mis-heard!  Sadly, I had not!  

            I began to hear from friends and family asking if I had heard anything, was everyone okay? But of course, I had heard nothing – it was Shabbat and Shemini Atzeret; They were not going to call… Turning on the TV and looking at the Times of Israel site did not help.  The horror stories unfolding there just ramped up the fear and anxiety. And also ramped up my anger.  Here we go again, still fighting the same war after 75 years.  But this time it is worse because I have dearly loved relatives involved in the fighting.

            I finally heard from my sister on Sunday. They were all okay at that moment, but Yair, who is a medic, was recalled to active service immediately.  I believe, he is now patrolling somewhere along the northern border which I devoutly pray remains quiet. Now, every morning I get up afraid of what I may hear has happened overnight.  I am trying very hard not to wallow in the news broadcasts.

            I am grateful that at least for now, America and the EU have been greatly supportive of Israel’s need to respond and respond forcefully to this unbelievably heinous attack. But I fear that as the war rages on and the casualties continue to mount that pressure will come to bear on Israel to stop before the job is done.  I fear this war may escalate further. I continue to fear for the safety of my family and friends that live in Israel, for the lives of the hostages, for all the soldiers in the IDF, and for the entire State of Israel.

I am sad to say, that my sympathies for the “innocent” citizens of Gaza trapped in that hell-hole is limited. There could have been a Palestinian state many times in the last 75 years; Hamas which was always a terrorist entity bent on death and destruction did not have to be voted into power in Gaza. Generations of children did not have to be brought up to know only hate. The barbarism of this totally unnecessary war has pushed Israel (and me) into a position of needing to act with less concern than all of us want to feel for the terrible plight of those people. I am reminded of a quote I heard years ago from Golda Meir.

“When peace comes we will perhaps in time be able to forgive the Arabs for killing our sons, but it will be harder for us to forgive them for having forced us to kill their sons.” ― Golda Meir, A Land of Our Own: An Oral Autobiography

I stand with Israel; I pray for Israel; I donate my money to help Israel.  I fear, but I am also confident that Israel has the ability and the will to do what needs to be done and will win this war. And lastly, I plan to spend next Pesach with my family in Jerusalem.  Am Yisrael Chai!