Costly Mistakes with Devastating Results

More than 14 months have passed since October 7, 2023, and it is now widely acknowledged that a series of critical mistakes prevented Israel from halting—or even attempting to halt—the events that ultimately led to Hamas’s invasion of its territory. While the specifics of these errors are not the focus here, it is clear that many stemmed from poor decisions made by high-ranking intelligence and military officials, who dismissed or misinterpreted the facts and analyses presented to them both before and during the invasion.

The assassination of 1,139 individuals and the kidnapping of 254 others should alone justify life punishment for those whose negligence and failures enabled this tragedy. Tragically, the full extent of the damage is far greater.

I did not personally experience antisemitism before or during World War II, but many argue that the acts of antisemitism over the past 14 months are comparable to those of that era. While there is no doubt that the horrors of the Shoah are unparalleled, the pervasive and intense resurgence of antisemitism worldwide today instills fear in modern Jews about their survival.

In Dagestan, a mob of Russians stormed the airport, searching for Jewish passengers arriving from Israel with the intent to harm them. Meanwhile, hundreds of thousands of people across the globe protested against Israel, calling for its annihilation with chants like “From the river to the sea.” These protests occurred in countries including Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Tunisia, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Bahrain, Qatar, China, South Korea, the Philippines, India, Iran, Iraq, Indonesia, Japan, Jordan, Kyrgyzstan, Malaysia, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Turkey, Yemen, Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Mexico, Uruguay, Venezuela, Germany, Belgium, Bosnia, Denmark, Spain, Finland, France, Greece, Ireland, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Luxembourg, Norway, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, the Czech Republic, Russia, Romania, Sweden, Ukraine, Australia, New Zealand, numerous cities across the United States, and many renowned university campuses worldwide.

The media, academia, governments, institutions, corporations and financial institutions—along with the individuals leading and working within them—effectively declared Israel and the Jewish people persona non grata. Antisemites were astonished by the overwhelming support they received, the impunity with which they could act, antisemitism became politically correct, and how easily people were swayed to hate Israel, often without grasping the complexities of the situation. Thankfully, this wave of antisemitism did not result in the loss of another six million Jewish lives (thank God for that). However, it emboldened hundreds of millions to express aggressive hostility toward Israel and the Jewish people, teetering dangerously close to physical violence.

What unfolded was the result of years of groundwork laid to cultivate such hatred. Nevertheless, the critical mistakes mentioned at the beginning of this article served as a catalyst, setting the entire destructive mechanism into motion. Let us not forget that this momentum also emboldened Iran to further empower its proxies—Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and Islamic Jihad—to escalate their guerrilla and military attacks against Israel and its civilian population. This alone has been devastating to Israel.

The moral of the story is this: no matter how small or insignificant your actions may seem, always give your best effort and strive to do your utmost. The consequences down the road can be far greater than you imagine.