One might think that after the horrors faced by the Jewish people on Oct. 7, the entire Israeli public would have finally grasped the dire reality, learned from past diplomatic mistakes, internalized the barbaric enemies they are up against and demanded that the government finally put an end to them.
Yet the fact that a small fringe of Israelis is protesting against the Netanyahu government to capitulate to Hamas’s demands right after the terror group executed six Israeli captives in the Gaza Strip shows that some still haven’t learned the appropriate lessons. It seems that their disdain for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his right-wing religious coalition, which they label “extreme” and “messianic,” overshadows their concern for the captives and the future of Israel.
If the protesters truly cared about saving the captives still being held in the Gaza Strip 11 months later, they would demand that the government take decisive action against Hamas—cutting aid meant for civilians but seized by Hamas, holding territory in Gaza and resettling it with Israelis, and making it clear that every day they do not surrender and release of our captives costs them, more than it costs us.
Instead, the protesters and the Israeli-establishment media are placing the blame onto Netanyahu instead of holding Hamas accountable, which is unwittingly encouraging Hamas to retain and even harm our captives by pushing the government to concede to their demands.
The damage these demonstrations have caused has become so bad that Dan Senor, the author of Start-Up Nation, expressed his astonishment on his podcast “Call Me Back” with Israeli journalist Nadav Eyal. Senor was shocked to find himself in the position of defending Israel in the American media because they were quoting Israeli media sources, including Eyal himself, that blamed Netanyahu for the deaths of the six captives rather than holding Hamas responsible.
It’s high time for Israelis to abandon this dangerous path of acting out of hatred towards Netanyahu and stop calling for total appeasement to Hamas demands. Israelis need to face this brutal reality and address it.
Netanyahu has been unable to secure a deal to free the remaining captives because a core Hamas demand is for a ceasefire, allowing them to remain in power in Gaza. Any deal that includes ending the war would leave Israel in a perilous position and grant a significant victory to Hamas, Iran and Qatar. It would also bolster global Islamic jihadist agendas aiming to undermine democratic countries everywhere, not just Israel.
In the aftermath of the tragic events of Oct. 7, Israel must take a hard look at the lessons of the past to ensure that such a massacre never happens again. The failures of past policies have led us to this point, and it is critical that we do not repeat the same mistakes that have endangered our nation.
The Oslo Accords were a grievous mistake. The Palestinian Authority with whom those agreements were signed were never genuine peace partners; they have always harbored the intention to destroy the State of Israel, using terror as a justifiable means to their evil end. The accords resulted in a significant escalation in violence and terror, not peace. The belief that appeasement and concessions could lead to coexistence with those who deny our right to exist was a dream that revealed itself to be a delusion (as many of us warned) that has cost us dearly.
Similarly, the decision to pull the Israel Defense Forces out of the security zone in Southern Lebanon in 2000 was another catastrophic error. Israel trusted the United Nations to enforce its own resolutions, another dream/delusion. The Iranian proxy Hezbollah has built up a formidable military presence on our northern border, posing an ever-present threat to our security. The lesson we need to have learned (and should have known already) is that Israel cannot rely on anyone but itself for its defense.
The 2005 Gaza disengagement is yet another example of misguided policy. Destroying Jewish communities and expelling Jews from their homes in the hope (dream/delusion) that we could then live in peace was a disaster. Instead, we gifted our Islamo-nazi enemies with a territorial petri dish in which to cultivate and grow terror, resulting in an enclave that has launched thousands of rockets into Israel, consistently plaguing our civilian population. The Gaza disengagement was a betrayal of the Jewish people and a surrender to terror. The belief that any part of the Land of Israel can be handed over to those who seek our destruction is a dangerous fantasy.
We must also confront the fact that the Soviet Union fabricated the very concept of Palestinian national identity in the early 1960s as part of a strategy to destroy Israel. This identity was created to delegitimize the Jewish state and fuel the narrative of dispossession, which has been used as a weapon against us for decades. Understanding this historical truth is essential for recognizing the fundamental nature of the conflict and the impossibility of peace under current conditions.
It is astounding that those who championed these failed policies—security officials, left-wing politicians and journalists—have yet to take responsibility for their role in leading us to the Oct. 7 massacre. Instead of acknowledging their mistakes, they continue to protest against Netanyahu and his government. Netanyahu, in the meantime, is standing like a wall of China, unyielding in standing up against further dangerous concessions to our enemies.
One of the most egregious examples of this is the continued support for withdrawing IDF soldiers from Gaza, including the Philadelphi corridor. This corridor, which lies between Gaza and Egypt, has been used by Hamas for decades to smuggle in the weapons and rockets used in the war launched against Israel on Oct. 7. The idea that we could ever achieve security by retreating from these critical areas and once again relying on Egypt or any other foreign entity is not just naive but suicidal.
Former President Donald Trump has proposed deporting supporters of terrorism from the United States. This should be contemplated for Israel as well. We need to act decisively and effectively to protect our state and ensure the safety of our citizens. We can no longer continue ignoring the genuine threats and actual solutions that will protect us from those threats, no matter how uncomfortable they might make us feel.
The path forward is clear: Israel must take control of its destiny and stop relying on failed policies and false promises. We must be resolute in our defense of our land and our people. Only then can we ensure that the horrors of Oct. 7 are never repeated and that Israel remains a secure and thriving homeland for the Jewish people.
