Opinion | The War in Gaza Must Stop Immediately

This bloodbath must be stopped immediately, as nothing good will come of it. It is true that a massacre can be responded to with a massacre, but it is difficult for any massacre, even if it was as horrific as the one carried out by Hamas in the south of the country, to represent a reason that justifies doing everything after it, without restrictions. Perhaps a massacre can justify another massacre, provided that there is a goal behind the response, other than punishment and revenge, and if the goal is legitimate and achievable.

This is not the case in the ongoing war in Gaza, which is a war that has no clear and realistic goal, and certainly does not have any answers to the question of what should be done after the massacre. But, even if there is a clear goal for war, then there must be limits to the destruction. As for the bloodbath that we are witnessing now in Gaza, which is still in its infancy, it testifies that there are no limits to blood. It cannot be justified in absolute terms.

In the face of the horrific images coming from the Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza, the images of hundreds of piled-up bodies, many of them of mutilated and torn apart children, it is impossible to stand still, just as it was not possible to stand still when viewing our own images of death and destruction. Hundreds of desperate refugees were killed the day before yesterday, after they tried to find refuge for themselves under the dome of the sky, close to the hospital, mistakenly believing that that area would be safe, in light of this cursed war.

It is still not possible to determine who is responsible for the disaster, but this will not change anything for the victims. The identity of the guilty must also not change the way the battle continues: the battle must stop immediately. The hospital disaster must become a turning point in the war, just as the disaster that occurred in the village of Qana, in the "Grapes of Wrath" campaign in Lebanon, was the turning point that led to the end of the campaign.

Israel is moving now, driven by its justified and understandable storm of feelings, and encouraged by the spirit of support for it that is sweeping the world. But this wind will soon change, and turn into a demand for a ceasefire, in light of the disasters of war. The hospital tragedy has already changed the mood among the great chorus of encouragement for Israel.

Even before the disaster, reports from Gaza, most of which were not shown to Israelis, threatened to shake the world into action against the continuation of the war. About a thousand children were killed, and this number does not include the children who were killed in the hospital. This is a fact that cannot be ignored, and cannot be justified. The siege imposed on two million people, and the expulsion of a million people from their homes within one day, is also a reality that cannot be accepted under any circumstances.

This week, I visited the devastated Kibbutz Bari, and the words stuck in my throat; Difficult scenes I have never seen in my life. Scenes that cannot be seen and a return to the routine of daily life, without holding all those involved accountable. Not a single country accepts this to pass unnoticed. But there is a long way between silence and mass bloodshed, meaningless and aimless bloodshed. There is a big difference.

The images coming from Gaza are heart-wrenching, and should tear any heart: endless convoys of ambulances blaring their sirens, terrified fathers and mothers carrying their wounded children; Parents crying over the bodies of their children lying on hospital floors, in light of the shortage of beds. I saw five wounded children on one bed, and the wounded were groaning without receiving treatment.

Killing thousands of people, and rendering thousands more paralyzed and helpless, will do no favors to Israeli interests, even if we set aside questions of morality and law. Here hatred and a desire for revenge will sprout, and even Satan will resent it, whether there is “Hamas” or not.

While Gaza's children are being killed, the Israelis are complaining about their government's procrastination [on the ground invasion]. Israeli sentiments demand a ground invasion and an end to the presence of Hamas. This is a justified demand, but it is doubtful whether it is realistic. In any case, this demand cannot be achieved at any cost, even at the cost of the destruction of Gaza.

What happened on October 7 shook Israel in an unprecedented way, especially its center and left movements. The left and center, in the depths of anger and frustration, should not lose what remains of their consciences. It is forbidden for Israel, as a whole, to become like Hamas.

Source: Haaretz