It was a black Saturday, during the Jewish celebration of ‘Shemini Atzeret‘, which marks the end of the festival of tabernacles. At dawn of that day, Thousands of Hamas terrorists crossed the Gaza borderbreaking the separation fence. They reached the surrounding towns and massacred everyone they encountered. Entire families murdered in their homes, numerous women victims of rape, more than three hundred young people, participants in a music festival, were murdered, and 255 people were kidnapped to Gaza, of which 100 still remain in captivity. In total 1,200 dead, the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust.
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A day later, before Israel could regain control of its territory, and without any provocation, Hezbollah began daily rocket and drone attacks against Israel from Lebanon territory. These attacks persist to this day and have forced Israel to evacuate 80,000 northern residents.
Simultaneously, from Yemen, a gang of “rebels”, called Houties after the name of their leader, began to attack shipping through the Red Sea and launch missiles at Israel from two thousand kilometers away. A country mired in misery, prey to famine and epidemics, which has the most sophisticated Iranian ballistic missiles only to attack Israel.
The war in Gaza is a tragedy, both for Israel and for the 2 million Palestinians in Gaza, who are used by Hamas as human shields. Israel, which did not start this war, has a duty to protect its citizens from rocket attacks and to prevent another massacre like that of October 7. The millions of dollars that Hamas, the illegitimate government of Gaza after expelling the Palestinian Authority in 2007, has invested in the construction of tunnels. purchase and manufacture of rockets. Hamas has turned mosques, hospitals, schools and residential neighborhoods into their hideouts from which they attack Israel. For this organization, civilian victims are part of its propaganda; the more numerous, the better. Accusations of genocide against Israel are unfounded and distort reality. Israel has no intention of exterminating the Palestinians; It has allowed the entry of thousands of tons of aid and food and has facilitated polio vaccination days.
The war expanded to Lebanon, as Hezbollah continued its attacks on Israel and refused to comply with Security Council Resolution 1701, which required it to station itself north of the Litani River. Hezbollah has received devastating blows from Israel, including the death of its chief, Hasan Nasrallah, and several of its commanders. It is time for Hezbollah to accept the terms of a ceasefire to prevent further suffering, destruction and death in Lebanon, for which the organization is solely responsible.
October 7, 2023 marks a before and after in the history of the Jewish people. For Israel, it is clear that it faces a war for its survival, just as in 1948, just as in 1967, this time orchestrated by the Islamic Republic of Iran. The same Iranians attacked Israel from a distance with two volleys of missiles in April and October, a cowardly attack on the Jewish State.
Israel is the only state in the world whose existence is constantly threatened by a member state of the United Nations: Iran. It also faces the threat of genocidal organizations such as Hamas and Hezbollah, whose objective, they have reiterated time and time again, is to ‘extirpate the Zionist entity’ from the region. In these unique circumstances, Israel has the right to self-defense, enshrined in Article 51 of the United Nations Charter.
Since that same 7/10, anti-Semitism in the world has grown
exponential, generating unrest if it does not capsize in Jewish communities around the planet. Added to the multiple celebrations for the massacre were slogans calling for the annihilation of the Jewish State.
Israel, the only Jewish state on the planet, is waging a war on several fronts against enemies seeking to wipe it off the map. With our history as a guide and our resilience as character, the Jewish people, united and determined, will prevail.
MARCOS PECKEL
*Academic, Director Confederation of Jewish Communities of Colombia
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