מה חושבים עלינו ידידינו בסין

It’s Time to Say No: Ethics Over Politics

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As a long-standing supporter of Israel, our support for Israel is strong and consistent, and the reasons for this are clear – answers to this can be found in all the articles we have published in the past. Although we have never received funding from Israeli entities, we have always supported and will continue to support the State of Israel and its people, but this does not mean that we support every action, idea or policy of its government, and its organizations or individuals. True support is not blindness and is not unconditional acceptance of any policy or action.

I completely agree with the open letter of the Association of Legal Experts in Israel, which opposes the “humanitarian cities” plan proposed by Defense Minister Katz. I know some of the names, these are people who care about Israel, they are not radical leftists against the state, and I also accidentally met Mr. Katz himself – he seemed to me a nice and sympathetic person, not someone who points his weapon at innocent civilians. But his plan does not stand up either on the legal level or in its moral validity. Forcing over two million Gazans to concentrate in a closed area, by whatever name they choose, is not an act of humanity in its essence. We support Israel to defend itself against Hamas terrorism and support determined strikes against this terrorist organization, but we do not agree with the extreme statement that “there is no one innocent in Gaza.”

The Jewish sage Hillel said over 2,000 years ago: “What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbor.” And almost at the same time, Confucius also said, “What is hateful to you, do not do to others.” The Jewish people have suffered greatly throughout history; precisely for this reason, we must not cast this suffering on the Palestinians.

The Palestinians do constitute the main obstacle to peace, and many of them do not value the lives of their children. But we have no basis for assuming that newborn children are not innocent; among the residents of Gaza there are certainly those who prefer peace and do not hate Israel. The Torah says that every person is created in the image of God, and the people of Gaza are not exception, they are not “animals in human form.” Even if most of them have supported Hamas in the past – and is it possible that there are not even ten righteous people in Gaza City?

I may not count for much; we do not believe that anyone in this world has the authority to rule Gaza as Sodom.

War must have a clear goal and moral boundaries. The IDF was once one of the most moral armies in the world – we hope it will maintain this status. The vast majority of the soldiers I met are friendly and peace-loving, and they too do not want to be stigmatized for a controversial war. The war in Gaza has already caused a major humanitarian disaster, and the loss of innocent civilians is painful for any person of conscience, including many Israelis. We call on the Israeli government to reexamine its military strategy and seek more precise and humane ways to achieve victory – and not to prolong the war indefinitely.

As friends of Israel, it is our duty to voice criticism when the government deviates from the right path. This is not even criticism but a constructive call. As those Israeli experts did, a true supporter should point out errors, not blindly applaud and push into dangerous abyss. We believe that only through honest self-assessment and timely correction can Israel maintain its security and continue to hold its moral status as a democratic and progressive state.

We will continue to support Israel, but this is Principled and rational support, never at the cost of sacrificing principles for political correctness. We expect to see a wiser, more humane Israel – an Israel that will gain international respect and lasting peace.

About the Author

The author is the founder of Israel Plan Organization, the non-profit organization supporting and promoting Israel in China. He lived in Israel for two years and studied MBA at IDC Herzliya/Reichman University.

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