War diary. Second weekend. The State of Israel has stagnated. The arguments froze. The wind must not freeze. It is needed, now more than ever. But before that, leadership.
My most important insight in the minutes before bed amidst the endless noise of cannons is the responsibility that comes with leadership. There is no leadership without a person accepting responsibility. And whoever does not accept responsibility is not a leader.
Thus are hundreds of Israeli soldiers and civilians who took up arms or themselves and came to fight in the area surrounding the Gaza Strip. Some of them were buried this week in a minute's silence and in the sounds of their families crying. The number is so large that there is no public attention to these heroes.
No one called them. They didn't have to, but whoever came here felt responsible. He led. Sometimes himself, sometimes led others. He led. And yes, the price of leadership is heavy. Sometimes it's unbearable, but there's no other way. Thus the leaders who are in reserve service. I have no other way of describing them.
A huge part of who is here doesn't have to be here. No one is forcing him to risk his life for the homeland. They choose it, are committed, harnessed, feel responsible for what happens. to their country.
Fighters and tanks on the Gaza border. "Crazy brotherhood of fighters, no ranks and no profession in citizenship", photo: Shmuel Buchris
IDF soldiers on the Gaza border. "A sense of shared destiny", photo: AP
There's a crazy brotherhood of warriors here. Not ranks and not profession in citizenship, just a sense of shared destiny. The many citizens who come here and risk their lives are also leaders. I met restaurant owners from all over the country, barbers, cooks, drivers. Volunteers who come to hand out socks or rescue animals. Farmers tending fields under fire. It's crazy to me their ability to take responsibility, to insist.
Coordinators of destroyed kibbutzim and assure me that they are coming back and will flourish the place. It's exciting to me to have such a people. A few years in politics have already made me think that maybe the world is different. That there is no room for anything but cynicism, spin and ugly talkbacks. I hate this old world, where message is the only goal. There is nothing in it but irresponsibility.
Countless times I have told myself out loud that I want to return to Israel, where there is mutual responsibility and a desire for an exemplary society. Israel is tough and determined and fights without blinking, but also knows how to water fields and commit to flourishing, education and helping others. It sounded unserious, out of touch with reality.
Suddenly everything is in front of my eyes: good people, here in a place where there are such terrible scenes and such great pain of families. I didn't encounter anyone here who was interested in calling the other political side an enemy or a traitor. I have not encountered hatred towards our people here.
The enemy is so clear, and so is the mission to defeat the enemy so that never again. We are not required to establish a state after this war, but to change the state and on the way to destroy the enemy. That's the only message that works here. This is the only way to end this war: with more people in Bari, Kfar Gaza and Nahal Oz. Destruction versus blossom.
Whoever is looking for the horizon
This is not the time, but whoever is looking for the horizon will find it. This war will be over. Commission of Inquiry, Conclusions. I guess everything will be checked. I'm not interested now in writing remotely about politics and how and what. There will probably be those who will accept responsibility because they are leaders, there will be those who will run away from it. It doesn't matter.
, collecting donations and packing packages at Dizengoff Square for soldiers and families in the south. Photo: Yehoshua Yosef
What is happening now is important, what is being done and said at this very moment. I trust this people, the reservists, the volunteers, what is happening here. We will end this war and fight so that Israel will be different.
A good corner: Haredi society is changing before our eyes. Except for the dealers who stay in theirs. This war shakes them. I know that in today's Israel, the ultra-Orthodox will have to be part of bearing the burden. Not as an obligation but because they will want it. National or military service.
Don't expect the political leadership to change. This will happen because they accept responsibility. And one more request to conclude: To those who are reading, do a favor and embrace the bereaved families. This is so needed precisely for those at the front. Shabbat Shalom.
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