17 Oct WHAT SHOULD ISRAEL DO? WHAT DO I TELL MY FRIENDS WHO ARE CONFUSED ABOUT THE HAMAS-ISRAELI WAR?

Q: Rabbi YY
Jacobson, some of my
friends protested this
week, blaming Israel
for the atrocities of
Hamas. Can you
answer some of the
questions posed?
A: Absolutely. I wish every one of us would
familiarize ourselves with the facts, not the
myths, so we can each become ambassadors
for truth and peace.
Q: Why can’t Israel show restraint, and
not bomb Gaza?
Imagine you were sitting in your home with
your children, and someone would begin
shooting bullets into your home, killing one
of your children, tying up another one and
burning him alive, and then kidnapping and
torturing another one. Do you think the
correct thing is to show restraint and allow all
your children to die? Or should you stop the
killers?
Before last Saturday, Hamas sent more than
20,000 rockets raining down on Israeli cities,
with the singular intention of murdering as
many Jews as possible. Should Israel just
say: Send some more; we are fine if Jews die;
or should Israel try to crush the terrorists?
Even before last week, if not for the Iron
Dome, Israel would have been reduced to
rubble, and thousands would have been
killed. Even with the Iron Dome, there are
gruesome casualties and millions of Israelis
are living in dread. When a siren goes off in
the middle of the night, they have ten seconds
to rush all the children into a shelter. Should
Israel just accept this?
Then came the massacre of last Saturday
morning. Hamas breached the fence between
Gaza and Southern Israel, entered into dozens
of Jewish towns, and tortured and murdered
more than 1300 Jews, among them many
babies and the elderly. They mowed down
Jewish youths like they were blades of grass.
More than 3000 were wounded, many of
them critical. More than 100 Jews were
kidnapped and taken as hostages to Gaza.
Should Israel remain silent?
Q: Instead of firing back at Hamas, why
does Israel not concede to Hamas’ demands
so they would stop killing Jews and stop
firing rockets?
A: Hamas openly calls and aims for the death
of every Jew in Israel, as clearly stated in
their charter, written in 1987 (which you can
read online). Should Israel concede to this
demand? Should we murder every Jew in
Israel and then there will be no more terror
and no more rockets?

Hamas is a genocidal terrorist organization
that wants to wipe Israel, a country the size of
New Jersey with 6.6 million Jewish residents,
off the map. They would be happy to burn 6
million Jews alive, as they did to the children
in Southern Israel, last Shabbos. Hamas
would be more than happy to murder 10,000
Jews daily, or as many as they can. What they
did last Shabbos, they would gleefully do
every single day, if they had a chance. Should
we allow them?
Q: Why do you say it is about genocide?
Maybe it is just about occupation? Israel is
occupying Gaza and has created a siege
around it, so in desperation, the Gazans
need to kill Jews and shoot rockets to fight
the injustice.
A: I believe Hamas. They state clearly in
their charter and all their messages that the
goal here is the eradication of the Jewish
people.
If someone just hates Jews and Israel with no
rationale, there is little to be said in defense
of truth. But if someone is looking for some
truth, here it is:
In August of 2005, Israel expelled ten
thousand Jews from their homes in Gaza,
their communities demolished by the Israel
Defense Forces. Not a single Jew or Israeli
soldier was left in Gaza. Israel gave its Arab
neighbors the opportunity to create an
independent Palestinian State in Gaza with a
flourishing society, the “Singapore of the
Middle East.”
Alas, the day following the forced Jewish
expulsion, rockets came pouring down on
Israeli cities, targeting civilians in homes and
in the streets. Instead of waking up to the
deadly consequences of the Gaza withdrawal
and re-entering Gaza, Israel showed restraint.
The results? Hamas built a terror state. Since
then, tens of thousands of rockets have been
sent from Gaza to murder as many civilian
Jews as possible. Thousands of Jews were
murdered.
The siege Israel created was not to block any
essentials, but only to stop (unsuccessfully)
weaponry from being smuggled into Gaza to
be used against Jews in Israel. Had Gaza
been a neighbor to Israel like Canada is to the
US, Israel would not even look at what goes
into Gaza. But when you have a neighbor
who wants all your children to die, should
you not inspect what goes into his country?
The siege is not the reason for the rockets; the
rockets are the reason for the siege.
Q: Why not just withdraw to the pre-1967
lines, and create a Palestinian State, and
all will be fine?
A: Israel did just that with Gaza! Gaza was
the first Palestinian State, created back in

2005, and it
became a center
of terror. It
became instantly
clear that the
demand for a
Palestinian State
was not to live
side by side with
Israel but to
replace Israel.
One can only
shudder to think
what would
happen if a
Palestinian State
were created in the heart of Israeli society?
Do you think Israel should commit national
suicide? Would you give Hitler a Palestinian
State?
Following the Oslo Accords, when Israel
gave autonomy to Palestinians in the West
Bank, Israel saw the worst terror attacks
against its citizens. Conceding territory,
sadly, is an invitation for war, not peace.
Q: How can Israel justify killing civilians
if their intent is to destroy Hamas?
A: The death of every innocent human being
is horrific. But what is the reason for all these
tragic casualties? Because Hamas places its
fighters among the civilian population, using
them as human shields, and launches its
rockets from schools, hospitals, and homes.
The Palestinian people are being held hostage
by Hamas. A civilian who is killed while
being used by a terrorist as a human shield is
a victim of the terrorist, not the Israeli army,
who does not target innocent civilians.
Why does Hamas do this? Because it knows
that the world will blame Israel instead of
Hamas. Hamas knows that so many in the
West will buy into their sadistic and cynical
tactic of making sure that as many children as
possible are killed in Gaza. Israel does
everything to minimize casualties, not only
of its own people but of Gazans. Hamas does
everything to increase casualties, not only of
Israelis but of its own children—and the
world lets them get away with it.
If Hamas would not be sending murderers
and shooting rockets into Israel would even
one child in Gaza die? Never. So why are we
blaming Israel for deaths caused by Hamas?
Many German civilians died during World
War Two. Who do we blame for their deaths?
Hitler or Churchill? What Nazi Germany was
to England, Hamas is to Israel. Literally.
Q: But Israel is shooting rockets into Gaza
and killing these innocent people?
A: If someone declared war on your country,
and it is waging the war from amidst its

civilian population, do you try to defeat your
enemy or do you just allow your people to
die?
Still, there has never been an army in the
history of warfare that had tried so hard to
minimize civilization casualties the way
Israel does. Sadly, they are not always
successful due to the deliberate and criminal
aim of Hamas to ensure the greatest possible
deaths of their own children for which they
can blame Israel.
Consider the following facts. Before bombing
a residential building filled with Hamas
operators and used to launch rockets against
Israel, the Israeli military sends letters
warning them to leave, even though that
gives ample time for the terrorists to flee as
well. Does anyone even expect Hamas to
phone Israeli residents before sending a
rocket to their homes? What does this tell you
about the difference between Hamas and
Israel? One is trying to murder as many
innocent people as possible; the other is
trying to protect as many innocent people as
possible.
If you really care about the safety and future
of Palestinian children, you should embrace
Israel and combat Hamas. If only Hamas
would love their own children a little more
than they hate Israeli children, there would be
peace.
Q: Still, isn’t Israel’s response
disproportionate? Can’t they show more
restraint?
A: What would be your reaction if in 1945
politicians would urge the US and England to
show restraint? Hitler began a war, and the
Allies were trying to end it, by defeating the
enemy. Hamas declared war against Israel,
and Israel is trying to end it. When you are
trying to end a war, you try to end it as swiftly
as you can. Remember, if Hamas would not
murder and kidnap Jews, this war would have
never begun.
Israel’s moral duty today is to eliminate
Hamas completely and take full control over
Gaza, so that no more innocent people die.

Israel’s great mistake is
that they did not do this
the moment Hamas
fired the first rocket
after Israel gave them
their Palestinian State.
This is not about being
proportionate. This is about ensuring that 6
million Jews in Israel are not slain. During
the Second World War, there were millions of
more civilian deaths in Germany than in
Britain. Does this make England wrong, and
Nazi Germany right?
Q: Israel has an army and the Iron Dome
to protect it from Hamas soldiers and
rockets, while the Gazans are left without
protection from the Israeli rockets and
army?
A: The people of Gaza have something far
more effective than an Iron Dome: a neighbor
who would never shoot even a single rocket
at them and would not kill even one Gazan. If
Hamas ceases to terrorize Israel, all of Gaza
will be safe. Sadly, it is only Israel that needs
an army and Iron Dome because Hamas
seeks to destroy it.
If Hamas went on vacation for a month, no

one person in Gaza would be hurt. If Israel’s
Defense Forces went on vacation for a month,
not one Jew would be left alive.
Q: Doesn’t Israel understand that they are
creating more terrorists? The fury at
Israel as a result of bombing Gaza will
make more people want to join Hamas.
A: First of all, feelings of frustration and rage
do not make you into a terrorist. A culture of
death and education of hate does. Israel
doesn’t need to do anything to create
terrorists—Islamic extremism does that, but
Israel must act to destroy those who threaten
its people.
On the contrary, anyone who learns the facts
understands that the fury ought to be directed
toward Hamas, who does not care for its
people and has subjected them to this
suffering. Instead of blaming Israel, why
don’t we blame the true perpetrators?
But regardless, Israel needs to eliminate the
organization that keeps on murdering Jews.
Do you think England and America should
have not targeted Hitler and the Nazis so as
not to infuriate the German people?
Q: Israel, because of its power, must be

kept to a higher standard.
Even if Hamas is using
violence, Israel must not.
A: That is deeply misguided. If
someone is coming to burn your
children alive, do you stop them
with all your might, or do you
just welcome them?
If a woman is being attacked by
a thug who wants to violate her,
and she punches the attacker in
the face, is she to be lauded or
humiliated? If Israel would do
nothing and allow its children to
continue to die, would it be compassionate or
cruel?
Q: Many people maintain that Israel has
done many things over the years to
undermine peace?
A: Israel is far from a perfect country and has
made its share of mistakes. Yet, every single
war in modern history has been between a
Free State and a Police State, or between two
Police States. Hamas is a police state—if you
differ with them, they kill you. Israel, with all
its flaws, is a free country. Where in the
world, other than when it comes to Israel,
does anyone argue that the Free State
does not want peace and the Police State
wants peace?
Of the 193 countries members of the UN,
there is only one country targeted for
extinction. Yet, this country is the one
responsible for war?!
There is one great mistake Israel has
made: It allowed the terror organizations
and cells around it and inside of it to
flourish. Israel showed weakness for
years and the consequences we saw last
Shabbos.
Q: If all the above is true, why is there
such a double standard when it comes
to Israel?
A: Somehow the Jewish people still
trigger profound sentiments, in one
direction or another. Since the day
Abraham began his journey, the world
has been anything but indifferent to the
Jew. Some people love Jews, others
don’t, but nobody can ignore them.
Despite not numbering even one-quarter
of one percent of humanity, the world is
obsessed with Israel. Do you need better
proof that our role in history is as vibrant
as ever? That we are Divine ambassadors
to fill the world with truth, justice, and
love, and the world is longing to hear our
voice.
We must not duck into fear and insecurity.
We must speak the truth and fight every

expression of evil and hatred. The world
respects Jews who respect Judaism and
respect their history, heritage, and faith. The
world will respect Israel when Israel respects
Israel and will stop appeasing terrorists and
their supporters.
Israel must now do the most moral thing it
can do: Retake Gaze so that Jews are safe.
And by the way, this is good for the Arabs as
well, who will not suffer under the tyranny of
Hamas.
Q: What about the demographic problem
of a minority of Jews in a sea of Arabs?
How can Israel continue to “occupy”
Palestinian territory?
The great mistake of Israel has been to ask—
and answer—questions of peace in times of
war. Israel, for more than 25 years now, has
been in a state of war, though it never
acknowledged it as such. For 25 years, there
have been Arab attempts on almost a daily
basis to murder Jewish men, women, and
children throughout the country. Many have
succeeded; most have failed, only because of
the diligence of the IDF and the help of G-d.
In a time of war, you talk not about
demographics or occupation. You make sure
that your citizens are not being murdered and
kidnapped.
When Israel’s neighbors embrace the path of
peace and are truly ready to denounce all
terrorism and violence, then we all will have
the luxury to confront the demographic
problem, as well as any others. Peace will
then come in a single week. In the meantime,
Israel must eliminate the cancer of terror
completely, so that the cancer does not
eliminate it.
May G-d bless Israel. May G-d bless our
soldiers. May G-d protect every Jew living in
Israel, and may He protect all innocent
people, the world over. May G-d give our
leaders the wisdom and courage to do what
they need to do to protect our people and our
homeland. May they not surrender to fear and
insecurity and root out completely every
vestige of terror in their midst. May we all
have the moral clarity and courage to be
outraged by evil and intoxicated by good.