Israel’s real power isn’t in arms or its military might but in its people. Terrorists and those who imagine a world without Israel often make that mistake. The sometimes raucous and seemingly insensitive interplay of the varied, opinionated, colorful, pushy, diverse, caring – and now damaged – people of Israel often masks the country’s real superpower. Now, though, it is apparent for everyone to see.
I had almost forgotten that this superpower existed.
Years ago, I was doing my university thesis on the development of Palestinian national identity. A large part of my research was interviewing Palestinian civil society leaders among various groups and movements, some more or less official, and many of whom were involved in “peace” negotiations or other political or protest efforts.
I remember on one trip to Gaza City, facilitated by UNRWA, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East), I met with the head of the Red Crescent Society in Gaza and the leader of the Palestinian delegation to the 1991 Madrid Peace Conference, Haidar Abdel Shafi.
While waiting for the appointment I was chatting with his assistant, a gentleman by the name of Kamel Shaath. He said something troubling at the time which, unfortunately, has been on my mind these past several months… until the Hamas attack and atrocities on October 7.
Would Israel end up destroying itself?
Shaath said that he lived with the Jews and knows them. He went on to say the Palestinians didn’t need to press for the destruction of the state of Israel; they just needed to be patient and wait. For, you see, the Ashkenazi Jews hate the Mizrachi Jews, who hate the Ethiopians, who hate the Russians, etc.
Within 50 years, he said, there would be infighting in Israel and in less than 100 years there would no longer be a Jewish state.
At the time I thought that this Kamel Shaath didn’t know what he was talking about, that the ties that bound Israel together were stronger than any petty conflict or political or religious or ethnic differences. I believed then 100% in Israel’s strength and its superpower.
However, this conversation kept coming to mind throughout much of this past year. With the increasing volume of protests prompted by the push for judicial reform, which reflected many underlying gaps and disagreements in Israeli society; with the current Israeli government more inclined to “divide and conquer” by playing people against each other rather than building bridges or finding common ground; and with many committed people threatening to walk away from Israel in frustration, I started to wonder whether Kamel Shaath was right and I was wrong.
I was concerned, along with many others, that unless people focused on their common values and purpose that unite them in this diverse country, the whole enterprise might be at risk. While that may seem melodramatic, the bombastic and even apocalyptic language used by people on either side – which itself wasn’t helpful – only underscored this risk.
THEN CAME October 7 and a real apocalypse.
While much has been written about what happened, and what will be, or what needs to happen, there are no words to describe the ache in the hearts of all of Israel and the holes in the families of those who were captured or killed.
Yet, what happened afterwards has infused some sense of hope for the future and shown that Kamel Shaath and much of the rest of the world have misunderstood and underestimated the people of Israel.
The outpouring of love for those who were directly impacted by the Hamas attacks has been overwhelming. It started from the moment of the attacks – with Yair Golan, who rescued the son of a father who called for help, and Youssef Ziadna, the Bedouin driver who braved bullets and terrorists to pick up his charges from the Supernova Festival dance party. These are but two examples of people who risked their lives to help others.
It continued with the call-up of reservists that saw many more reporting for duty than were expected. And from there, efforts to reach out and help other Israelis metastasized. Existing networks started to be clearinghouses for information about where people could help. Coordinating centers (hamal in Hebrew), sprang up in cities across the country. New Whatsapp groups were created to share and promote needs, with thousands upon thousands of Israelis signing up so they could have the opportunity to make a difference – and adding to the impressive number of groups that broadcast needs and ways to help, often 24/7.
Reservists called up who don’t have hot food or toiletries: check. People to make sandwiches or cook for soldiers: Check. Clothes for evacuees from the South: Check. Even money and flights to bring in bulletproof ceramic vests so that more soldiers could be protected: Check.
The groups that organized the judicial protests pivoted within days to help ensure volunteers could be matched with needs on a massive scale, and more efficiently than just by word of mouth. We have all heard stories about people waiting on line for hours to donate blood and how just about every need presented in these Whatsapp groups, no matter how big or small, was addressed within minutes – often from multiple sources. We have also seen haredim signing up in large numbers to join the IDF. This grass roots coming together across boundaries, affiliations, and labels has been truly extraordinary – and all absent government support or guidance.
That is what I think sets this varied, opinionated, colorful, pushy, diverse, caring, and damaged people apart. The seeming free-for-all of conflicting voices and points of view in Israel masks the underlying commitment and unity that defines Israeli society.
It’s not just because, as has often been said, we have no place else to go.
We are where we want to be and where we belong.
What we can see now, much clearer than before, is that we are all family, to one degree of closeness or another. We are all tied to each other. And, together, it is up to us to make this place the best it can be.
In the history of superheroes, we see that one’s inherent power most often reveals itself in a crisis, spontaneously, and often as a surprise.
Kamel Shaath would certainly be surprised to see how Israel revealed its superpower as, I’m sure, were many others – Palestinian and Israeli alike.
The writer has served as a Jewish Federation executive in New Jersey for many years and currently manages the Jewish Federation of Ocean County.