1.
"We lost," declared the man who was once chief of staff: As far as he was concerned, it happened on October 7 with the opening blow before we even began the counteroffensive. Why on earth did this man ever lead our army? Since when is a single blow, however severe – and before the first shot has been fired in response – considered a defeat? Imagine that during the Yom Kippur War, a former chief of staff had declared, "We lost." During the first two years of World War II, the British suffered mainly losses (In his memoirs, Churchill wrote that it was only after the Battle of El Alamein, about three years into the war, that the tide turned and the march to victory began). Fortunately for the world, Britain was not led by a leader who declared, "We lost." Why make such irresponsible statements, when our soldiers are giving their lives in Gaza – statements like that can hurt their fighting spirit and engender doubts that their sacrifice is in vain. Such statements encourage the enemy to hold out and not surrender; after all, an Israeli general is saying that they are winning. Indeed, these words of defeat were quoted on enemy websites as an Israeli "admission" that the campaign against Hamas is destined to failure.
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From whence did the man who once led armies into battle draw the haughtiness to speak his defeatist words in the midst of a difficult campaign that is far from over? The answer to this disgrace can be found in further remarks made by this former chief of staff: "My victory image will be when this prime minister steps down. This can be the only image and there can be no victory without it." So there we have it: hatred of Netanyahu. The captive audience that watched him make these remarks applauded. The former chief of staff also called to "prepare for a tough campaign," not against Hamas in Gaza or Hezbollah in Lebanon, God forbid, but against his own people: "Blood may be spilled in the streets." How could he not fear speaking like this while our sons shed their blood for us? The words of Abraham, the founder of the nation come to mind: "Surely the fear of God is not in this place; and they will slay me…"
Video: Dozens surrender in Gaza / Social media
Look directly into the eyes of our soldiers, Lieutenant General (reserve), look at their sweaty, purposeful faces –do you think these lions of men will let us lose? Hear the heroism of the mothers on the graves of their sons, how they breathe courage and fortitude into our fighters to continue their mission and not give up until it is completed; listen to the fathers, who tearfully boast of their children's willingness to give their lives to defend the people and the land. These mothers are braver and more responsible than you. Maybe you should hand over your ranks to them.
2.
An army commander knows how to move divisions and battalions, but does not necessarily understand better than others the destiny of the people, the vision of generations for which we survived in the valley of the shadow of death, and by virtue of which we returned to Israel after a long exile. But this is war, and war is his profession. He understands the damage caused by his words; he understands that they can even endanger the lives of our soldiers. Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai taught in the second century that "hatred ruins the ranks;" it causes a person to act against himself and harm those close to him. Bar Yochai was mindful of the damage caused by hatred during war. Jerusalem was destroyed and the Temple burned down because of civil war. In his book, "The Jewish War" Josephus relates that Vespasian, the commander of the Roman army, told his astonished officers who wanted to storm rebellious Jerusalem (the Great Revolt broke out in 66 CE and ended with the destruction of Jerusalem in the summer of 70), to wait until Jerusalem fell as a ripe fruit: "While our enemies (the Jews) kill each other with their own hands, and when the worst of disasters, civil war, comes upon them, you must sit quietly... Let the Jews kill each other."
3.
The historical irony is that this former chief of staff was picked to carry out a particular mission in the summer of 2005: the expulsion of the Jews of the Katif Bloc from the Gaza Strip, the destruction of their communities, and the transfer of the area to the Palestinian Authority. We were promised that this would improve our security. The October 7 disaster did not occur in a vacuum; the disengagement (as well as the Oslo Accords) made a huge contribution to what has happened since then. The patronizing idea that Hamas would prefer economic welfare to the murder of Jews was also wishful thinking rather than a hard, long look at reality.
Former chief of staff Dan Halutz was once asked whether in retrospect he would have preferred to postpone the disengagement by one day in order to avoid the symbolic date of the destruction of Jerusalem on Tisha B'Av. His answer: "No. Quite simply no. That was the date. Nobody asked Titus to postpone the destruction of the Temple by a day so that it didn't fall on Tisha B'Av..." Not only did he make a despicable comparison between the destruction of Gush Katif and the destruction of Jerusalem; unwittingly, he compared himself to Titus, the Roman general who destroyed the Temple. As we said, being an illustrious commander does not guarantee a comprehensive understanding of the history of the people, its religious heritage, and its collective psychology; and such knowledge is imperative to be able to properly lead the Jewish people and its state.
4.
The former chief of staff was expressing a sentiment that is prevalent among a small fraction of Israel's veteran elite. If we look at this from an in-depth perspective, we see that this is a dominant premise prior to October 7; if you will, what has been called "the conception" that sought quiet now but with the cost to be paid in the future. A belief in the illusion of a safe haven, but without the vision that nurtured the Zionist movement. The belief that Zionism had achieved its goals and had therefore ended its role. Back during the War of Independence, David Ben-Gurion rejected the idea of "preserving what we have achieved." Although the Yishuv defended Jewish settlements, the war had a higher goal: "A war for the realization of Zionism, if not in full, at least for the historical conditions that will ensure its realization, and not only for the defense of the existence of the Yishuv." Elsewhere, Ben-Gurion stressed: "Security is only a pre-condition for our existence and independence. The State of Israel has a special mission. Every state must take care of the well-being, welfare, and advancement of its people; the State of Israel must do so as well, but that is not the most important thing. The supreme goal of the State of Israel is the redemption of Israel and the ingathering of the exiles."
Before World War I, Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook wrote to the 11th Zionist Congress (September 1913) that the nation could not be satisfied with the idea of a safe haven alone, which he called a "slice of cake." He wrote: "It is not the echo of a voice – that a people hated in the world seeks safe refuge from its persecutors – in and of itself it is worthy to restore this eternal movement to life; but (also) that a holy nation, the treasure of the nations, the lion cub of Judah, was awakened from its long slumber, and now it returns to its inheritance..."
5.
At this moment of crisis, which has boiled down to the events of October 7 in an astonishing sort of historical dialectic, our people's ancient spirit has resurfaced from the depths of our collective consciousness and it is felt in the speeches before battle of our commanders and in the prophetic words of the mothers who give fortitude to our soldiers and encouragement to the people. The spirit of Deborah the Prophetess who breathed courage into Barak Ben Avinoam, the commander of the army of the Israelites, after she instructed him to wage war on Yavin, King of Cnaan, and his military commander Sisera. The background to that war is described in Deborah's song of victory in the Book of Judges: "Deliverance ("Perazon") ceased, Ceased in Israel, (the open cities –"Perazot" in Hebrew – that did not have defensive walls were abandoned because of fears of the Canaanite battalions and their residents left for walled cities) Till you arose, O Deborah, Arose, O mother, in Israel!" The demoralized spirit of the people needed that ancient mother to rise up against the enemy and cause our soldiers to believe that it was possible to free distant settlements from the threat of the enemy. As it was then, it is today.
