What the plight of hostages has taught me
With the reports swirling as to what’s going to happen in the coming days, particularly in regard to hostages, I’d like to share what the Gaza hostage crsis has taught me.
The Gaza hostage crisis has taught me that no one is safe, no matter how well-protected one appears to be. We can all be abducted even if we are hiding in a panic room, there’s no guarantee we’re going to survive the massacre or an abduction. Israel, with all its formidable security apparatus, was unable to stop the mass abductions of its citizens. As such, anyone, anywhere, can be targeted in a similar manner. The world must take note and learn from Israel how to handle such situations.
The Gaza hostage crisis has taught me that there are a lot of people all around us who are psychopaths or sociopaths. They don’t seem to be, but they are, because they cheer for terrorists while claiming to stand for justice and peace. They claim to oppose genocide in Gaza, yet what they are actually doing is revealing their true selves – that of gleeful supporters of death and torture. Their assertions that they are against genocide in Gaza are merely excuses to show their true, Nazi-esque, face of Jew hatred. They grin through gritted teeth when talking about the hostages coming back from Gaza with the Stockholm Syndrome.
The Gaza hostage crisis has taught me that even the best intelligence agencies in the world, and the best militaries in the world, can’t easily win against a terror group such as Hamas, a seemingly tiny military power by comparison. There are limits to what military power can do and diplomacy is then the only way – as disgusting and as uncertain as negotiating with terror groups is, as it gives them international legitimacy, sometimes, there’s no other way to secure one’s interests. Bunker-buster bombs just aren’t enough.
The Gaza hostage crisis has taught me that protesting is a must in matters of life-and-death – and protesting loudly. It doesn’t matter if someone is offended by such behavior. Sometimes, there’s no other way when people’s lives are at stake, any protest, no matter how loud and desperate, is acceptable. Offending someone in the process is irrelevant when lives are at stake.
The Gaza hostage crisis has taught me that, sometimes, accepting humiliation is the only way forward – as humiliating as the propaganda hostage handover ceremonies were, it was the only way to bring those hostages back to safety. We can only hope such spectacles aren’t going to be repeated – if they are, then it’s going to mean Hamas isn’t serious about accepting the ceasefire deal. We’re yet to see if Hamas is going to honor any deals.
The Gaza hostage crisis has taught me that we have an opportunity to learn from people who understand the mindset of terror much better than we ever will – their ordeal, as terrible as it is, can teach us a lot about preventing future massacres and mass abductions. They are, in a way, a tresure trove of information for all sorts of experts – from psychologists to military leaders. This understanding of the enemy mind can prevent another mass abduction scenario.
It’s my belief that the Gaza crisis can be resolved peacefully and lead to something beautiful – or quite the opposite, a total nightmare, a Pandora’s box scenario. Only time will tell which scenario is going to materialize. One thing is certain: there won’t be any half-measures this time.
