Saving Israel’s soul – we need a hostage deal now

Israel is not Hamas, and our considerations are fundamentally opposite; recognition of this basic, fundamental reality must inform all other considerations when assessing Israel’s current strategy vis-a-vis Israel’s war aims. Israel is diametrically opposed to Hamas in terms of culture, ethos, and aspirations. While Hamas glorifies death and killing, Israel affirms life and the defense of life. Hamas’s overarching goal is the destruction of Israel and the death and misery of its populace: Israel’s overarching goal is to create a flourishing society living in peace with its neighbors. Hamas willfully sacrifices its populace, oblivious to the suffering of civilians, building its bases under civilian infrastructure and exploiting civilians as human shields at every opportunity. Israeli soldiers risk their lives to protect Israeli civilians and seek to avoid harming Palestinian civilians. 

Considering these essential differences in light of the current situation has led me to the conclusion that  Israel’s decision-makers must reexamine the stated goals of the war:  the destruction of Hamas as a political/military force, and the return of Israel’s hostages, asking whether these goals are not, in fact, mutually exclusive. If they are mutually exclusive, then we must favor the one whose importance is primary. 

There are two main arguments for this point of view: the moral argument and the strategic argument, and they are, of course, interconnected. Morally speaking, since Judaism’s highest value is life and its defense, we must put the lives of our hostages over the deaths of terrorists: the redemption of our captives is the highest value. As Jews, we are bound by the belief that we are responsible for all other Jews. We must view each hostage as our own son, daughter, father, mother, brother, sister, grandparent. 

From a strategic perspective, it appears that killing more terrorists and destroying more terrorist infrastructure is only minimally improving Israel’s security situation while prolonging our hostages’ captivity (with the public perception that this is related to our government’s intransigence) is profoundly damaging the public morale that underlies the very foundation of national security. This will have grave consequences for the nation’s future.

Were it possible to rescue all the hostages militarily, hostage-rescue operations would be a viable course. Complaints would certainly be voiced regarding harm to Palestinian civilians, but these operations are justified: Israel is acting to rescue its people from Hamas dungeons. Hamas, which began this war with the most brutal attack in modern history and which has prosecuted it on the backs of Palestinian civilians, bears all responsibility for the deaths of its citizens, in addition to the Israelis it has murdered. However, the military operations that returned seven Israeli hostages were not only heroic, they were miraculous. There currently remain some 115 hostages in Gaza, up to 76 of them still alive, and it is inconceivable that so many hostages could be rescued militarily. Thus, no choice remains but to seek another solution – namely, a deal with Hamas.

Yes, this is “a deal with the devil”, since Hamas’s sole desire is to cause harm to Israel. Its citizens’ lives are valueless in its eyes, – they are not approaching the table on their behalf. Thus, any concession Israel makes in the context of a ceasefire agreement means, directly or indirectly, “assisting” this nefarious goal. Even still, Israel has no choice but to pursue an agreement. In the present situation, security compromises must be made in the name of the greater good. Just as our soldiers risk their lives to safeguard our well-being, Israel, as a nation, must accept risks due to the moral imperative to redeem our hostages from Hell.

Here, the moral imperative supersedes the imperative of physical survival. Certainly, the righteous gentiles who sheltered Jews during the Holocaust knew they were putting their lives and the lives of their loved ones at risk. And yet, for them, there was no alternative. This, then, is the dilemma facing Israel: every concession Israel makes is liable to lead to Israelis’ deaths – and yet, if concessions are required to redeem our hostages, they must be made. We are Jews and our highest value is life, but we must not cling to life at the cost of forsaking our soul, our God, or His commandments.

Israel is the protector of world Jewry, the sword between the Jewish people and its would-be destroyers. Israeli Jews and Diaspora Jews are one people. The young soldiers defending the civilian population are our sons, the victims of terror attacks are our family members, the evacuees from the North are our evacuees, and the hostages currently languishing in the hell of captivity are our sons, daughters, brothers, sisters, fathers, mothers and grandparents. This is the core truth of the Jewish people: we are our brothers’ keepers.

Thus, while Judaism strictly forbids suicide – whether individual or collective – and while the preemptive annihilation of a terrorist organization hellbent on Israel’s destruction is a legitimate goal, the imperative of rescuing hostages trumps all other considerations. Failure to act would be a stain on our moral fabric for generations to come, a stain on our very soul. Even if the final verdict on the hostages’ fate lies not in the hands of man, but in the hands of God, we must act in the manner in which we perceive God would have us act, and, for Jews, that way is clear. Short of collective suicide, Israeli society and its leaders must be courageous enough to take on the risks inherent in such a deal, a deal, as stated before, to be made “with the devil”, but in the name of everything we believe in. Our highest value must remain the survival of the Jewish soul, for that is our essence. We must not betray our deepest truths and beliefs. We must not betray our hostages.