To: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
From: A Midwestern American Ashkenazi Jew, born in the ’50s
I’m not saying it is fair, but as antisemitism rises, so does an expectation that Israel could fight a more just war. We Jews like to think we are distinguished not by what we say, but by what we do. We seek to live peacefully with our neighbors. But Bibi, my heart breaks for Israel. Instead of executing precision tactics with strategic merit, Israeli movements into Gaza appear clumsy, indiscriminate, and cruel. Nothing of value appears to remain, just dirt.
Hatred cannot be defeated with weapons, only with better ideas. Peace and prosperity appear not motivation enough to temper blood lust and revenge. At this moment, in these circumstances, Israel resembles a furious toddler, thoughtless to what they break in their blind rage.
Here’s a truth offered from deep in the heart of America: Hamas is an idea. You can kill people, but not an idea. It will take generations, a hundred years, more, before closely held ideas can change. But we all must begin the work now.
There must, must, must be a Palestinian state, and Gaza will need the whole world to build a new country. Freedom for Israel is not free; Palestine is the price. The promise of Palestine — left unfinished in 1948 — must be kept by those alive now so that your great-grandchildren might live in peace.
History will not look kindly on your scorched-earth campaign since Oct. 7. We will remember these months as witnessing one of the greatest human tragedies of our lifetime. It will be the end of the current Israeli government, one that lost its innocence and moral compass long ago.
It is time, Bibi, to step back from the line you have drawn in the sand. If not, your actions will be remembered for their violence, disregard for Palestinian lives, and a discredit to Jewish people all over the world.
Karen Morris Muriello
Oak Park