From the Depths of Darkness to the Light of Life – A Week of Heartbreak and Hope

This week, our hearts swelled with emotion as we witnessed a miracle: Edan Alexander came home. After 584 days of unspeakable suffering, shackled, caged, and hooded like an animal by Hamas terrorists, Edan returned to his family, to his people, to life.

But just 48 hours later, the cruel contrast of our reality struck again.

Tze’ela Gez was murdered in cold blood. A 26-year-old mother-to-be, on her way to bring new life into this world, gunned down by terrorists who only know how to destroy it.

This is the stark divide.
We, as Jews and Israelis, choose life. We welcome it. We fight for it. We pray for it. We cry tears of joy when one of our own returns home. We mourn deeply when life is stolen from us.

They, Hamas and those who glorify them, choose death. They cage. They murder. They target innocence. They celebrate suffering.

This week, as we mark Lag BaOmer, we light fires to remind us of the eternal flame of our people. A flame that cannot be extinguished. A flame of hope, of courage, of resilience. Even in the face of terror, we kindle light. Even after centuries of hatred and loss, we remain unbroken.

There is no room for moral equivalence.
No justification. No excuse.
When we allow terrorists to rule, to remain, to fester, this is what happens.

This is why we fight.
Not out of hate, but out of love.
Not because we are angry, but because we cherish life too much to allow it to be trampled.

May the memory of Tze’ela Gez be a blessing.
May the return of Edan Alexander be a light in the darkness.
And may we never forget what we stand for. Am Yisrael Chai.