No More Hope

Six murdered hostages. Israel mourns and stands divided.

IDF forces where within one kilometre of reaching Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Eden Yerushalmi, Ori Danino, Alex Lobanov, Carmel Gat and Almog Sarusi. They were all in tunnels some twenty metres below surface level near Rafah in the Western Gaza strip. All six had been hostage for eleven months, been abused and tortured. Hersh Goldberg-Polin’s lower left arm was blown off by a hand grenade when Hamas captured him last October. But they had survived against incredible odds only to be executed point blank by Hamas with bullets only two/three days ago.

With all the attention that has gone to Hersh Goldberg-Polin whose family waged an unending international campaign, the one thought that comes to mind is that he - and the others - had become high value assets. Hamas could have leveraged that in the now infamous hostage and ceasefire deal to their benefit, the whole world was at some level involved in it. But they didn’t and they probably never were serious about it. I really doubt that there ever was a ‘deal’ to be made with Hamas, the endless back-and-forth, the many Cairo and Doha meetings were all destined to end in blood. Not because of Israel, but because we are dealing with a millennial death cult of savages who relish the infliction of extreme pain and death on anyone in their way, including many of their own people. That was true on October 7th and it is true today which is why there is no other option than to eliminate this group once and for all.

The news of the murders was released only hours after a hostage protest that turned violent in central Tel-Aviv (where they are held every Saturday evening near IDF headquarters across from hostage square). Natalie Zangauker, sister of hostage Matan Zangauker, who is still alive, was run over by an Israeli police officer on horse and ended up in the hospital. A doctor trying to help was arrested.

The anger at the way the police is handling protests is increasing all across Israel. The ‘mishtara’ is now seen by many as national security minister Ben-Gvir’s personal army, no longer the good cops of the past. And Ben-Gvrir is targeted as one of the hardline ministers who have been frustrating a hostage deal since day one. Their position, the argument goes, is to focus on destroying Hamas and any casualties in the process are to be taken as a given, the price of getting a hostage deal is simply too high and not in the national interest. And Nethanyahu cannot challenge these cabinet ministers as that would tear the coalition apart and cost him his job.

And that brings the attention back to the prime minster. Is Bibi Nethanyahu to blame, did he bungle the negotiations, intentionally? Is he more concerned about himself personally given the plethora of court cases pending against him and which all will be activated once he is out of office? It is hard to say and you got to have some real strong arguments and evidence to make that point. Bibi’s own brother was murdered by terrorists don’t forget, and up an until a few years ago his record as a solid prime minister with Israel’s best interests in mind stood solid as a rock.

The core issue facing Israel and its relationship with Nethanyahu is ultimately a lack of trust. Ever since the emergence of corruption allegations in the 2015-16 years it has begun to fray and through sheer politicking and cleverly building coalitions Bibi has managed to stay in office. But at the cost of losing a significant portion of the Israeli public including many in his own family. They simply don’t recognize the man he once was. So Israelis probably could have accepted the murdered hostages as a cost of war and not put the blame on Nethanyahu if they had believed he had conducted the war in the best way he possibly could. That there were no nefarious political and personal considerations. But as it stands a large chunk of Israelis, possibly a majority, simply does not believe that any longer and has lost all confidence in Bibi and his coalition. Any piece of war or hostage news is therefore treated with extreme scepticism.

And this now is doing exactly the one thing that Hamas and Israel’s enemies so relish: a divided nation becoming ever more polarized on how to fight a war that is already under intense global scrutiny. A war that is also far from easy to win. Just now Israel’s largest labor union has called for a national strike for tomorrow, shutting down Ben-Gurion airport and all other key utilities, schools, whatever, one desperate move to try and turn the political tide and force Nethanyahu out of office. Yes, that is what it amounts to, an attempt to remove a duly elected and sitting prime minister by shutting down the economy.

It is dangerous and it is nowhere clear how this could help Israelis. It will not force Nethanyahu out and it will not change the hostage dynamic. It will strengthen Hamas, Hezbollah and all of the others that can’t wait to see the destruction of Israel. It will also not help the remaining hostages. A divided Jewish nation - and by that I mean all Jews wherever they are on the planet - is the last thing we need right now.

From day one, October 7th 2023, it was clear that the hostages would present the most diabolical dilemma ever presented to Israel. When I look at the photos of the six dead hostages there is a feeling of not only sadness but of shattered hope. And with it come the real concerns over Israel’s divisions, a longer war that consumes more lives and an ever larger part of the Middle East. We will see what tomorrow brings, but for now let’s remember and reflect on the lives of these beautiful souls who never had a chance and whose names we will never forget.