Israelis might have thought they were watching a new episode of Fantasy Island on Tuesday night, as the Channel 12 evening news broadcast hundreds upon hundreds of Gazan male protesters, who took to what’s left of the streets, demanding the immediate release of Israeli hostages who are still alive in order to put an end to the war.
These angry and frustrated men, yelling that they’ve had enough, were most likely the same ones who supported Hamas, celebrated the success of its surprise massacre on October 7, and maybe even looted kibbutz communities.
But after 17 months of having to live out the effects of IDF retaliation, the reality of their folly has finally caught up with them.
Feeling that life was no longer worth living under their present intolerable conditions, there was no holding back as they screamed, “Hamas, get out.” Of course, they had to know that such a massive vocal protest could result in death, but what did they have to lose?
Their final act of desperation seemed to be a genuine attempt to change the trajectory of a destiny they made the mistake of outsourcing to evil men.
During the conversation on air between Israeli journalist Danny Kushmaro and Ohad Chemo, Kushmaro asked Chemo, “Should we be encouraged by this?” Chemo’s response was that this is the first time since October 7 that we’ve seen anything on a scale of this magnitude where Gazans themselves are demanding the release of Israeli hostages.
The fact that they are calling for the hostages to be freed and the war to end attests to the complete and utter despair they have experienced, culminating in their rage against Hamas – perhaps a bit late, but it’s certainly gratifying to see how their eyes have been opened to the rightful villains who have destroyed their lives and homes.
But while they are fed up with everything that has happened to them, they might also want to remember the first victims of the hell on earth that was unleashed by the leaders they supported.
Expressing true remorse and contrition for their misplaced trust and blind loyalty toward monsters who never had any intention of protecting Gazans, but rather using them as human shields, would go a long way with the type of sympathy they hope to gain.
IN TRUTH, Gazans hold more cards than they think. As those who have lived this nightmare for a year and a half, they are first-hand witnesses to the cruelty, corruption, and vicious lies that have been disseminated throughout social media in order to paint Hamas as heroic freedom fighters.
They know, better than all others, that Hamas was not fighting for their freedom. To the contrary, the goal was to use this population in whatever way would serve its warped agenda, and if that meant piles of dead bodies, pinning their demise on the Israeli military, then all the better.
Children were used as convenient props, tugging at the heartstrings of a world already primed to look upon Jews negatively. Rumors of starvation, genocide, and unimaginable suffering went viral in record time, justifying the charges of war crimes by the International Criminal Court and heaping world condemnation upon the Jewish state for acting worse than the Nazis who had tried to eradicate them just 80 years ago.
These shocking accusations were responsible for an enormous uptick in antisemitic incidents worldwide, the campus protests and inner-city marches that took place throughout Europe, the US, and Australia, and bodily threats and social cancellation of Jews not even associated with Israel in any way.
A possibility for real change
Is it now possible that there will be an honest reckoning of what took place, who the real criminals are, what they have inflicted upon two different populations – Israelis and Gazans – and how the world has misjudged everything by viewing events through the lens of a victim/oppressor mentality?
It would be great to finally have justice meted out in a fair and honest way, exposing evil in its fullest measure, uncovering its sponsors and the perpetrators of murderous savage acts and barbarism.
Don’t Israelis deserve that? What about the hostage families who have lost all that was dear to them?
Add to that the parents, wives, siblings, and children of the dead Israeli soldiers whose young lives were extinguished in the service of their country. And what about Diaspora Jews who were harassed, threatened, and derided just for having been born into an ethnicity that, overnight, became synonymous with hated members of society?
Perhaps it’s premature, and Gazans can only feel the weight of their own pain at the moment, but we can hope that their demand for the release of Israeli hostages is not solely connected to their aspiration to stop a war that has embittered their lives – that they also finally understand the immorality and evil of what was done, all toward the goal of a Jew-free Middle East.
There is no question that each generation, especially the newest, will require a complete re-education to stop looking at Jews as the enemy that must be destroyed.
But they will also have to look within, to process the hatred they have allowed to be systematically deposited into their hearts and minds for too many years – a poison that, although meant to kill us, ended up injuring their own souls as well as turning them into a displaced people who are now at the mercy of others.
To the extent that they can acknowledge the authors of their suffering, there is hope that they are finally on the right track – able to free themselves from cruel men who see them as pawns in a deadly game of conquest and power.
Wouldn’t it be an amazing turn of events if their awakening ends up being responsible for the release of our remaining hostages and the end to a bitter war that at least opened their eyes, once and for all, to the real enemy in their midst?
The writer is a former Jerusalem elementary and middle school principal. She is also the author of Mistake-Proof Parenting, available on Amazon, based on the time-tested wisdom found in the Book of Proverbs.