Israel is fighting Hamas to survive, not to conquer

The war against Hamas is a fight Israel can’t afford to lose because history has taught the cost of defeat

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European Jews endured centuries of antisemitic persecution before Hitler’s vow to exterminate them claimed more than six million lives in the Holocaust. When the Second World War ended, it was no surprise that survivors recoiled at the thought of returning to their former homelands that had betrayed them.

It was only logical to move to the Palestinian region where the Jewish people had lived for millennia and where many still lived. The British had ruled Palestine since 1918, during which time the Zionist movement pressed for an independent state. In 1947, the United Nations voted to partition the land into Jewish and Arab states, but Arab leaders rejected the plan. When the British withdrew on May 14, 1948, Israel declared independence.

Israel came under immediate attack from Egypt, Jordan, Syria and Iraq. A country of 800,000 people with only untested militias and limited weaponry facing well-equipped armies was given no chance of survival. Yet the enemy’s advantage in numbers and weaponry proved useless against soldiers prepared to die for their homeland. Faced with that fearless ferocity, the invading armies broke and ran. Miraculously, not only did Israel win, but it captured additional territory vital to its future defence. How could this be possible? I got an answer one evening in Tel Aviv.

In 2019, I was part of a private tour of Israel hosted by the government with security provided by the military. We met with a 35-year-old female army commander responsible for protecting the Lebanese and Golan Heights border from Hezbollah terrorists. Her answer to my question about Israel’s survival was both brief and profound: “Heart.”

Half an hour later, her pager buzzed. A Hezbollah alert had come in from the northern border near the Golan Heights. She ran to her waiting helicopter.

That single word—heart—put so much in perspective. The Oxford Dictionary defines courage as bravery or strength in the face of pain or grief. The Latin root for courage is “heart.” The Jews knew Israel was their last chance. There was nowhere else to go.

Driven by constant threat from surrounding enemies, Israel quickly built one of the world’s most capable defence forces. In 1967, during the Six-Day War, Israel captured the Sinai Peninsula, the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights after striking first against an imminent Arab assault. In 1973, on Yom Kippur, Egypt and Syria launched a surprise attack hoping to reverse those losses. Israel held the line, and Syria failed to retake the Golan Heights.

Out of these struggles, Israelis forged one of the world’s most resilient democracies. Minorities enjoy equal rights: 2.1 million Sunni Muslim citizens are full citizens, including one who serves on the Supreme Court. The small Druze community is protected by Israel from persecution in neighbouring countries.

Israel’s ingenuity extends far beyond the battlefield. Much of the digital world runs on technology developed there, from computer chips to cybersecurity. Nvidia, Apple and Intel all design chips in Israeli centres. Israel’s Iron Dome defence system intercepts missiles fired by Hezbollah, Houthis and Iran. Without it, the country would have faced devastation many times over.

But now the long-suffering Israelis have been attacked by people whose sole objective, as was Hitler’s, is to wipe them off the face of the Earth. Hamas, an acronym for Islamic Resistance Movement, is committed to “armed resistance to Israel and creation of a Palestinian state.” Israel’s Gaza invasion in response to the vicious Hamas throat-slitters, rapists and kidnappers has drawn intense criticism and fuelled long-standing antisemitism. We may find it hard to watch the death and destruction without reacting emotionally, but we need to put ourselves in Israel’s shoes.

Imagine if we were living on the other side of a security fence from a territory populated by Islamic terrorists whose sole avowed objective was to annihilate every Canadian. Imagine also that they continually fired lethal rockets, requiring every home to have a bomb-proof safe space. Then one night, as a large group of happy young people dance to music at a party, the terrorists drive bulldozers through the fence while hundreds of others arrive on hang gliders to carry out rapes, mutilations and murders—all proudly recorded.

Canadians may struggle to grasp what it means to live under the constant threat of annihilation. Yet Israel has done so for decades, relying on courage, ingenuity and resilience. To condemn Israelis for defending themselves is to forget that we would demand nothing less for our own families if faced with the same danger.

Gwyn Morgan is a retired business leader who has been a director of five global corporations.