Stop Trying to Tell The World How Moral Israel Is

Israel recently allocated $150,000,000 for pro-Israel advocacy efforts abroad – otherwise known as Hasbara – to try and prove how ethical they are.

And now, major Jewish organizations are sending money to Gaza aid, screaming “Look! Israel isn’t ethical, but we are!”

They are both wrong. And sadly, more people in Gaza are going to die because of this attitude.

I get it. It always feels good to be validated as moral. To have our deepest beliefs echoed back to us by the wider world, wrapped in flattering language: “Justice.” “Compassion.” “Humane.” Sometimes, they even call these ideals “Judeo-Christian values.” And when they do, we kvell. Look! The world is appreciating how we behave! It’s the same source of pride we’ve felt for years as we explain on every TV station how the IDF is “The Most Ethical Army In The World.”

But here’s the real question: Since when is “people need to see that we are ethical” a Jewish value, especially when it’s defined by someone else’s standards?

Real Jewish values – Torah values – are eternal. They are usually unpopular and are certainly not determined by news anchors, Twitter activists, or the editorial board of The New York Times. Judaism doesn’t adapt to trends; it literally invented ethics long before UN resolutions were even a thing. The word ‘Hebrew’ – ‘Ivri’ comes from the root word ‘avar’ which means ‘across’.- Abraham is the first described as a ‘Hebrew’ because he was the one ethical man standing across from the rest of civilization at the time.

Let’s take a step back. What is the Jewish way to fight a war?

The Torah explicitly says: “And G-d said, ‘Let us make man in our image.’” Every human life is of infinite value. And the same Torah tells us that because life is sacred, threats to life must be met with decisive force. The Talmud is equally clear: “If someone comes to kill you, rise up to kill him first.”

Striking preemptively is a moral obligation, not a moral choice. And it saves lives. The 1967 war lasted six days. It was decisive. The preemptive strike against Egypt neutralized a catastrophic threat, shortening the conflict and preventing mass casualties on BOTH sides. The recent 12 day war in Iran is a current expression of this principle. The “Beeper Campaign” is another example. 

Contrast that with the 1973 Yom Kippur War, when Israel hesitated. It did not strike first. It absorbed the first blow. The result? A longer war, more casualties, more suffering—on both sides.

War must also be fought to its conclusion. The Torah commands: “And you shall besiege the city that makes war with you, until its submission.” The message is clear: half-measures prolong suffering. When Israel fights, it cannot afford to stop until all of the military objectives are met. A ceasefire that allows an enemy to rearm is not a moral good – it is an invitation to future bloodshed on BOTH sides.

When these values are lived and enforced, they actually save more lives. Your enemy learns that you carry a big stick and you don’t hesitate to use it. Once that message is clear, they lose any incentive to initiate conflict – saving so many of their lives- because nothing deters war like the certainty of defeat.

When we fear the ethical obligation to preemptively strike first and finish the job, we settle for a basic “mowing the grass” instead of uprooting threats. It is then that they use our weakness (which we naively proclaim as our morality) against us. 

The Armistice agreement of World War I gave us even more death with World War II. As opposed to the intense “Unconditional Surrender” in 1945 gave us 2 new allies: Japan and Germany. You see the difference?

What comes to mind is if G-d forbid you are notified of the shocking news that you have a cancerous tumor in your stomach. It is advanced and your life is threatened. You are referred to the top surgeon of the hospital and he’s introduced to you as “the most compassionate and loving doctor.” 

At first that title might sound noble, even comforting, but then you check out some reviews and you see that it means that he actually hesitates in the operating room and second-guesses the incision because he doesn’t want to hurt the patients. He flinches when the scalpel cuts skin, and faints at the sight of blood.

You quickly realize that he doesn’t belong in the operating room.

You’re looking for a confident surgeon who takes an aggressive approach on the cancer cells, acting decisively without pity. The tumor must be cut out, entirely, roots and all. It should be done as quickly and cleanly as possible, even if that means removing some healthy cells, and even if it means more blood on the floor. 

And that’s the only way to save your life.

You know who else you don’t want in the operating room? An emotional family member, the CEO of the hospital, the marketing director, or the insurance guy. They all are distractions whose opinions are not based exclusively on whether it will save the patient’s life. 

The Land of Israel, our Homeland and our People, has been under the knife in that operating room for too long. The reason is because the surgeon has been trying to remove the threat to our lives in the most compassionate way. 1948, 1956, 1967, 1973, 1981, and more.

On October 7th we were sadly pulled into the 13th round of this same procedure. And after the first cease fire we started round 14, and then more recently, round 15. And at this rate, we know there will, G-d forbid, be a 16th, 17th and 18th round as well.

In 1982, the IDF was about to get rid of the PLO once and for all in Beirut. Due to international pressure, they were allowed to relocate and lived to tell the tale. At the time, the Lubavitcher Rebbe passionately cried how we are just moving the disease from one part of the body to another, and the patient will never become healthy if the surgeon is not allowed to finish the operation.

He begged the leadership of Israel and the IDF to pay attention only to the “best doctors” in the room. Only the military professionals who are acting in the immediate best interest of saving the patient should be involved in the decisions. The ones using political, emotional, even Diplomatic, or any other consideration must be removed from the operating room. 

And yet, in the name of being “ethical,” Israel’s marketing team – not the surgeons – is involved in making life and death decisions. So they drop leaflets, give warnings, evacuation recommendations, ceasefires—all noble gestures on paper. And what happens in the meantime? The enemy regroups, re-arms, hides behind civilians, and uses our supposed moral restraint as a weapon against us. They know we will ultimately give in. 

(To clarify: The soldiers in the IDF are the greatest fighting force in the world. We see that and know that again and again. They are giving life and limb for G-d, His children, and His country. The actual combat soldier is genuinely acting – within the limits of the commander’s allowance – according to the Torah’s ethics. The decision makers are the ones that need to be reminded of what Jewish values really are…)

Trying to be ethical according to the world’s view has ironically led to the most tragic results. Not less war, but more. Not fewer casualties, but an unending cycle of violence on both sides.

The way we’ve survived as a nation-  through exile and pogroms, through Auschwitz and the Intifada- was not by having good PR. It was by making decisions based on strong Judaic values. 

It’s time to stop begging the world to understand us and start understanding ourselves. To stop fighting for inclusion or acceptance and start standing up with our real identity. To stop quoting vague universalist mantras and start quoting Torah. 

And as per the whole ‘Hasbara’ movement (the conjoined twin of the fighting antisemitism movement), maybe the money would be better spent on educating proud Jews on real Jewish values who don’t need the validation of the world.

Because when you follow these true values, you save lives.

————-

Here are Judaism’s directives for fighting an ethical war:

1. The Land of Israel is the eternal property of the Jewish people as it was gifted to us by G-d. (Genesis 15:18, 17:8, Rashi on Genesis 1:1)

It is not based on a UN resolution or the Balfour declaration or the victory of a recent war. As described many times in the Bible, a book that sells 250,000 copies daily around the world, G-d gave it to the Jews. Full stop. 

2. Protecting life is the highest Torah value. (Leviticus 18:5)

Every human being is created in G-d’s image and therefore the protection of human life is of the highest value. In almost every situation, the preservation of life overrides another mitzvah.

3. If someone is coming to kill you, kill them first. (Talmud, Sanhedrin: 72a)

If someone is actively threatening your life, you must remove that threat. 

4. Once a war or military operation begins, do not stop until all the military and security objectives have been accomplished AND the enemy has surrendered. (Deuteronomy 20:20). 

Anything short of complete victory allows the enemy to regroup and fight another day. 

5. (When #3 and #4 are implemented, you will automatically) Establish meaningful deterrence. (Talmud, Sanhedrin: 72a)

When they realize you mean business, they won’t even bother starting a fight. 

6. Never give up anything — especially territory — that has strategic security value. (1 Samuel 23:1, 5. Code of Jewish Law 329:6)

Even if the issue isn’t life-threatening and even if the real impact would only be felt later, we cannot allow the enemy even the smallest foothold. We must also ensure they never believe they can score small wins in negotiations.

7. The quest for “legitimacy” can never supersede security considerations. (Code of Jewish Law 329:6)

Once you realize we are dealing with life and death, you don’t commit suicide to maintain a friendship. 

8. Only current military professionals should be asked security questions. And their answers must be limited to security concerns only. (Code of Jewish Law: Orach Chayim 328:2)

As with desecrating the Shabbat to save a life or it’s the medical professional that decides what is needed. And only in the context of what is the medical need. So too with the security of Israel, it is ONLY the current security professionals who should make decisions and only with the specific criteria of what is going to be maximum security for Israel. 

————-

Of course, as we say daily in our prayers, “Bless us our Father, for we are all together.“ May G-d grant us the blessing of true peace in honor of the unity and respect we all have for each other. Amen. 

For more depth on this topic watch JEM’s Enduring Peace playlist, and read the insightful book, Make Peace, by Elisha Pearl.