- Hanne Skartveit
Political editor. You can find the podcast “Skartveit” on PodMe and VG+
Photo: Roar Hagen / VG
Never have we needed the message of Christmas more. And it has never been felt further away. About hope. Reconciliation. And peace on earth.
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Especially not where it all began. The city where Jesus was born, Bethlehem, is marked by bewilderment, anger and grief.
Across the plains where Joseph and Mary walked with the newborn child, what is today the West Bank, there are violent clashes between Palestinians and radical and violent Jewish settlers.
And deadly clashes between Israeli soldiers and Palestinian youths.
The Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem will not be full during this year’s Christmas mass. On the contrary. All Christmas celebrations are muted, in solidarity with the people of Gaza. And the city is almost empty. Without tourists and pilgrims, who usually flock at Christmas. Photo: HAZEM BADER / AFP / NTB
A national trauma
According to the Hamas-led health authorities, over 20,000 people in Gaza have been killed so far. More than 8,000 of them are children. Far more children have lost parents, grandparents and siblings. What is happening is a man-made tragedy. A humanitarian disaster that seems without end.
While most of us hear most about the suffering in Gaza right now, the Israelis hear most about what is happening to their own. Mostly about the hostages. But also constantly new stories about the victims from 7 October.
The terrorist attack has reawakened the Holocaust as a national trauma. Never again – for Jews all over the world it has meant that they will never again find themselves in a situation where they are helpless in the face of mass murder. That they will never again be killed with their hands tied behind their backs, with no opportunity to defend themselves.
The memorial stone on Israel’s Square in Copenhagen, which honors the Danes who helped Jews during the Second World War, was vandalized last month. Photo: Emil Nicolai Helms / Ritzau Scanpix / NTB
Jews have experienced, throughout history, that they become the scapegoat when the world gets difficult. Whether it’s about the plague or financial crises. Hatred of Jews has been dormant in many societies. Often it has come out, in the form of pogroms, persecution and mass murder.
The views of different generations
The view of Israel has changed over the years, also among Jews outside Israel. Those who came out of the Second World War alive saw the creation of Israel as a place where they could seek safety after six million Jews had been killed in an industrial genocide in Europe.
The generation after them saw Israel as a vulnerable and exposed country fighting for its survival – against attacks from far stronger neighboring Arab countries. But which Israel won over both in the Six Day War in 1967 and in the Yom Kippur War in 1973. Against all odds.
While today’s young people have grown up with an Israel that is militarily superior, that has occupied large parts of the West Bank in violation of international law, blockaded Gaza, and caused great suffering to the Palestinians. An Israel that has moved further and further to the right politically, and which now has the most extreme and far-reaching government in the country’s history.
Disconnected from Israel
Israel has emerged as the strong party. As the oppressor. As someone who does not want to contribute to a peaceful solution to a deadlocked conflict.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu leads the most far-reaching government in Israel’s history. Many believe he should have resigned immediately after the terrorist attack by Hamas on 7 October. Photo: Menahem Kahana / AP / NTB
New York Times journalist Ezra Klein recently had a guest on his podcast from Sharon Brous, rabbi of a Jewish congregation in Los Angeles. The two talked about how many American Jews, especially young people, have long chosen not to relate to Israel. They have felt discomfort with the political developments, and have cultivated their Jewish identity, disconnected from Israel.
With Hamas’s terrorist attack on 7 October, this came to an abrupt end. Now they too feel that Israel concerns them. That the Jews’ last safe haven is in danger. And that the atrocities in Gaza concern them in a way they cannot distance themselves from.
Both Hamas and the Israelis understood that the terrorist attack, which claimed the lives of 1,200 people, would lead to war. Hamas put up with it. In Israel, the experience was that they had no choice.
Fears that the war will spread
The Israelis knew that the international condemnation would be massive. That sympathy after the terror would quickly give way to anger and despair over the Palestinians’ situation in Gaza.
Nevertheless, most Israelis are united in the war against Hamas. Many outside Israel believe it is about revenge. But for most Israelis, it is mostly about security. About making sure something like this never happens again.
They see it as obvious that Israel cannot live with the terrorist threat posed by Hamas, just across the border. They also fear that the war will spread, and become a major war on several fronts. With Iran as the central actor.
Should have gone off
The scale of Israel’s warfare in Gaza is outrageous. The civilian suffering is intolerable. The world is united in the demand for a ceasefire. Israel’s most important supporter, the United States, led by President Joe Biden, is asking Israel to pay more attention to civilians in its warfare. But Netanyahu doesn’t seem to be listening to anyone. Nor to Israel’s main supporter, the United States.
The Dhair family, killed in Gaza, surrounded by grieving Palestinians. Photo: Hatem Ali / AP / NTB
Biden has been absolutely clear: The war cannot end with Israel occupying Gaza. While Netanyahu says that neither Fatah, which rules the West Bank, nor Hamas can take over the management of Gaza. It is difficult to read this other than that he envisions Israel taking full control of Gaza, also in the future.
Netanyahu is a dangerous man, both for the Israelis and for the Palestinians. He is most concerned with saving his own skin. Many, both inside and outside Israel, believe that he should have taken responsibility and resigned the day after the terrorist attack by Hamas.
Now the fear is that he and his government will pull Israel in an even more extreme direction. That under his leadership it will be impossible, even in the long term, to find solutions that can ensure a safer future for both Israelis and Palestinians.
Fear greater than hope
Some sort of solution is in any case far in the future. Today, no one has a good answer to what might happen on the day the war is over. Both the Israelis and the Palestinians have become even more irreconcilable in their view of each other. The abyss is unbridgeable. The distrust is total.
For many people, fear is greater than hope at the entrance to this Christmas. In Ukraine. In the Middle East. In Sudan. And other places in the world we hardly talk about.
Nevertheless, many of us will also sing “Deilig er jorden” this year. With a prayer for “Peace on earth”. Let’s stick with it. Because right now there is not much else to hold on to. Other than the hope for peace.
Published:
Published: 23.12.23 at 09:26
Updated: 23.12.23 at 09:41
2023-12-23 08:26:55
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