In the letter “Gravest threat to Israelis” (Oct. 7), the writer implies that the gravest threat is the willingness of the current Israeli government to turn away from the core values of Judaism because the government values its citizens’ lives over the lives of its enemy. I strongly disagree. I submit the greatest threat to Israel is the extinction of the Jewish people.
It is hypocritical for diaspora Jews to question how a country under siege, fighting for its survival and that of its people, should conduct a war while we reside in our comfortable homes, thousands of miles from Jerusalem with no skin in the game.
We must remember that more than 1,200 Israelis were indiscriminately murdered, butchered, raped and burned and others brutally taken into captivity Oct 7, 2023. Hamas attacked Israel on a religious holiday supported by Hezbollah, the Houthis and other Iranian proxies. Victims included Christians, Muslims and Jews.
There are still 101 hostages being held captive. The youngest is a baby named Kfir. He was 10 months old that day. Seven American hostages are still being held by Hamas. Israeli officials believe more than a third of the remaining hostages are dead. Their bodies are being withheld from their families. Where is the moral outrage? Where is the condemnation of these heinous acts?
Jews in the diaspora who choose not to stand up for Israel do so at the expense of the lives stolen and blood spilled on Oct 7. Israel is fighting for the right to live in peace, for all her citizens: Christians, Arabs, Druze, Bedouins and, yes, Jews.
Free speech is a benefit of living in a democracy. The hostages don’t have that luxury. It is acceptable to criticize the current Israeli government; it has made mistakes. War is ugly. War is evil. War kills. One can be critical of Israel and still support her right to exist. Those positions are not mutually exclusive.
Yes, all life has value, and Judaism values life above all. In every generation, there is an Amalek who seeks to destroy the Jews. This fight is this generation’s Amalek. Too bad the terrorist organizations do not value human life as much as Jews do.
— Mary Ellen Bowers, Highland Park
What about ‘heal the world’?
Reading Ellen Schultz’s letter on Oct. 7, a horrible anniversary, really moved me. It is so well written. There is a lot of peer pressure on Jews to be fully supportive of Israel, just as there is similar pressure on political candidates. Why should we feel pressured to support the Israeli government and its actions when the constant demonstrations there show that many Israelis do not support it?
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his coalition have totally abandoned the commandment to heal the world and don’t seem to care at all about the hostages.
I am proud of the people protesting because they represent our Jewish values that we focus on at this holy time of year. They are the ones who really represent Israel and deserve our support. We need to stop giving millions of dollars to the Israeli government as long as it doesn’t focus just on self-defense but rather treats civilians the same way that it treats terrorists and seems to have no interest in achieving peace.
I pray that this coming year, Netanyahu will somehow resign and someone will come to power with humanity and the will to bring home the hostages and end the fighting.
— Joyce Porter, Oak Park
Pulling back not viable option
In her column “The dominoes have been unleashed in the Middle East” (Oct. 4), Elizabeth Shackelford suggests that Israel’s actions to deter and repel Hezbollah and Iran will leave no possible path to peace. Her position is that, notwithstanding years of failure, Israel should pull back (again) and give diplomacy yet another chance. This may be a plausible solution in some alternative reality, but given all that’s happened since Oct. 7 and based on years of diplomatic failure, I don’t see that as viable option.
Would Shackelford rather see the region continue with death by a thousand cuts? I think Israel’s actions could well lead us to the solution she seeks — through aggressive action designed to degrade Iran, Hezbollah, Hamas, the Houthis, etc. Peace will come only when Iran and its legions accept Israel’s right to exist, put down their arms and tone down their rhetoric. Israel would then need to respond in kind.
The citizens of Israel and their supporters in the U.S. and elsewhere want peace — but not at the risk of Israel’s continued existence. I don’t see how peace can be achieved by relying on the same old failed approach.
Iran and its proxies will continue to confront Israel until they are compelled to stop.
— Dean Gerber, Chicago
Instruments in Iran’s strategy
It should be obvious by now that the war in the Middle East is not about a free Palestine. The people of Gaza and the non-Hezbollah citizens of Lebanon have been and are being manipulated as instruments in Iran’s broader geopolitical strategy against Israel and the United States. Since Oct. 7, 2023, Iran has caused Hamas to use the Palestinians as an expendable resource to further Iran’s own agenda. The war in Gaza has been lost, but Iran will not allow Hamas to surrender nor will it allow for a better way forward between the people of Gaza and Israel. Similarly, Iran caused Hezbollah to attack Israel on Oct. 8, 2023. Now the people of Lebanon will be made to suffer a war in their country in order to further Iran’s agenda.
In contrast, despite the regional instability, the peace agreements Israel maintains with Egypt and Jordan remain intact. This enduring peace should be a clear signal to Palestinians that a diplomatic solution and even peace are achievable. However, this can occur only if the Palestinian people can walk away from outside agitators in Gaza and overcome the entrenched and ineffective leadership in the West Bank.
— Robert A. Weisman, Chicago
Bring a pause to the fighting
Against the backdrop of a seemingly endless cycle of mutual recrimination and retaliation between Israel and its enemies, may I share my deepest wish? I wish that Israel would now stand up for all the world to see and say the following for all the world to hear.
“Israel recognizes that it has been attacked by Iran and its proxies, unjustly attacked. But Israel also wants to end the death and destruction of the untold innocents involved in these ongoing wars. Therefore, Israel will not retaliate.”
Then let’s see how others respond. If any of them resume their attacks, Israel should respond by letting all fire and brimstone rain down upon them.
But, please, for once, can we not pause a while? In the words of a popular musician from years gone by, all I am saying is give peace a chance.
— Michael W. Drwiega, Wilmette
Israel can’t lay down arms
As I’ve said before, if the nations surrounding Israel would lay down their arms, there would be peace. If Israel laid down its arms, it would be annihilated. We should all want peace.
— Tom Beck, Glen Ellyn
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