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To state the brutally obvious, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is complicated. It has been for generations, with a tragic human toll for all involved.
Some things are not complicated, however. What the Israeli people endured and the world witnessed over the weekend was shocking and horrific terrorism. It must be condemned by anyone who values human life and believes the world is to be shared, not splintered.
It is concerning and frankly outrageous to see how some have downplayed, excused and even tried to justify the slaughter of hundreds of Israeli civilians (and some U.S. nationals), with others injured and taken hostage, by Hamas. It is haunting to see people rally as if to celebrate this carnage, and even describe it as “inevitable.”
Terrorism must not be inevitable. Hatred must not be inevitable. Violence must not be inevitable.
In Georgia, college student Talia Segal bravely counter-protested at one of these rallies. Segal is Jewish and fears for her family in Israel, according to the Associated Press.
“Terrorism is never justified. Their target was Israeli civilians,” she said.
If you are on the side of peace and prosperity for everyone involved in a complex and devastating situation generations in the making, we feel strongly that you need to be against the brutal violence that Hamas unleashed this weekend. In a deep ocean of complexities, this simple truth sits on the surface.
It is possible, it must be possible, for people to deplore the actions of the Israeli government in Gaza without excusing the horrific terrorism that Israeli people have experienced in recent days. Targeting civilians is never the appropriate response. It is both detestable and counterproductive to peace.
We mourn the Israeli lives shockingly taken this weekend and hope for the safe return of those taken hostage, just as we mourn the Palestinian civilians killed and under siege in the sadly predictable Israeli response — so predictable that we have to assume it’s what Hamas wanted. There are no winners here, except those who want to further chaos and entrench hate — and who don’t care how many people die in the crossfire.
Of course, the unfolding violence doesn’t exist in a vacuum. We’re not asking people to forget the lives lost or actions taken on either side of this decades-long conflict — or to suddenly change their long-held perspectives. But we are asking people to agree with a few concepts: Terrorism is never justified, and lasting peace will not be achieved through the perpetuation of violence.
Durable peace, ultimately, must come from a negotiated solution. Fundamental denial from Hamas and others of Israel’s right to exist leaves little room for such needed negotiation, but it still is possible. Saudi Arabia’s hopeful move toward recognizing and normalizing relations with Israel has shown this. The world can’t let this weekend’s Hamas attack stop that progress. Diplomacy must win out over violence.
