Letter to Israelis and Palestinians

Open letter on the unfolding cruelty in the Middle East.

On December 31st, 2023, Nassim Nicholas Taleb, one of my favorite thinkers, shared a thought on Twitter: “In any conflict, try to be a judge, not an advocate.” I’ve tweaked it slightly and say: “In any conflict, try to show compassion.”

The following is a screenshot of a tweet that I can’t get out of my mind.

“You fasten all the triggers
For the others to fire
Then you sit back and watch
When the death count gets higher
You hide in your mansion
While the young people’s blood
Flows out of their bodies
And is buried in the mud”

— Master of War, Bob Dylan 1963

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To the mothers, fathers, siblings, and friends of the hundreds of Israelis murdered or kidnapped by the Hamas terrorists, I see your anxiety, and I can hear your pain. To the thousands of Palestinian children murdered by the Israeli army, I’m in pain; I’m sorry, as a human being, I did not do enough to stop the monsters, I failed you!

To the millions of Palestinians, who as you try to mourn your murdered children, mothers, fathers, siblings, and friends, yet find yourselves dodging incessant bullets and shells-some signed by ‘god-fearing’ politicians — amidst the freshly ruined homes, hospitals, and camps — I see your despair, and I can hear your shrieks of pain.

To Hamas, you have been killing, kidnapping, and unsettling Israelis for over thirty years, relying on terror to win justice, but I see your end goal is nothing but terror!

To the Zionist extremists like Dov Lior, Amiram Ben-Uliel, and Daniela Weiss, I see your greed and cruelty; I wish for you whatever you wish for the Palestinians!

To the leaders of Hamas and the US politicians advocating for more war and more killing from your cozy mansions in Qatar and Washington, D.C., I see your cowardice!

To the Islamic Jihadists, Zionist extremists, and Christian fundamentalists like US Senator Lindsay Graham and Pastor John Hagee, who have been trying hard to pit Jews and Christians against Muslims, I see your love for hatred! I can also imagine the horror in your eyes when reading the news of Jews and Arabs, marching hand in hand, calling for peace!

To the antisemites, who have been trying to hijack the commendable movement denouncing Israeli government cruelty, I see your glee when you casually suggested asking every Israeli academic to denounce the atrocities; I see you bloat at the picture of kidnapped Israeli women. I see your menace when the mob of you stormed the airport in Dagestan searching for Jewish refugees.

To the Islamophobes like the Dutch politician Geert Wilders and US TV presenter Bill Maher, I feel sorry for you! Middle Eastern food is great, and the Muslim population is growing! It is projected to increase fourfold in Europe and twofold in the US by 2050.

To the failed politicians like Benjamin Netanyahu, facing a bleak career future, I see you extending the war as a means to cling to power!

To the US warmongers and politicians like Nikki Hailey, who profits from selling weapons and are eager to send bullets and shells to the Israeli army, I see your business acumen! I hope one day you can learn to profit from peace, and thereby shift the US foreign policy of bombing places or supporting doing so.

To the western politicians like U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and European Commissioner Ursula von der Leyen, who rightfully condemned and proposed further sanctions on Russia for its inhuman act of cutting water and power with the potential of causing hunger, but the next day expressed unconditional support for Israel governments’ the same inhuman actions in Gaza. I see your hypocrisy!

To the dictators of utilitarian governments like Russia and China, I see your opportunism when you blip the word “human rights” and pretend to speak against oppression and occupation!

To the bored youth who was unable to handle the mundanity of everyday life at the basement of grandmother’s basement in Brooklyn, and the timid poachers fearful of screaming animal rights activists, who instead came to Israel under the guise of “solidarity,” I see you through your masks and your thirst for adrenaline and smell of blood!

To the Israeli teen, Tal Mitnick, who refused to be enlisted into the Israeli army and is now serving a 30-day prison sentence, I commend your courageous actions!

To the Palestinian journalist, Wael Al-Dahdouh, who is continuing to report from Gaza even when his wife, a seven-year-old daughter, and two sons were murdered, I praise your remarkable patience and perseverance! You are a real hero and with a vest!

To Professor Oded Na’aman of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, I applaud your bravery and humility in sharing your remorse for wrongdoing during your time in the Israeli army!

To the Punjabi Canadian poet Rupi Kaur, I praise you for showing compassion and the principled action of declining an invitation to a celebratory event in the White House, in protest of the ongoing collective punishment of Palestinians in Gaza!

To Paul Biggar, a Software Engineer who courageously questioned the silence of people in the tech industry, exposing double standards through powerful writing, and later being fired, you inspired me to speak up! I hope you can sleep a bit better now.

Further reading:

1. Rabbi Lior: Jewish law permits destruction of Gaza to bring safety to Israel, published in the Jerusalem Post on July 23rd, 2014. https://www.jpost.com/Operation-Protective-Edge/Rabbi-Lior-Jewish-law-permits-destruction-of-Gaza-to-bring-safety-to-Israel-368605, last accessed on January 14th, 2024.
2. Jewish extremist convicted in arson that killed Arab toddler, published in apnews.com on May 18th, 2020. https://apnews.com/article/eabae17d2d8ec6571a199a7ebfdadb96, last accessed on January 14th, 2024.
3. Graveside party celebrates Hebron massacre, published in BBC News on March 21st, 2000. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/685792.stm, last accessed on January 14th, 2024.
4. Campaign to free Israeli killer of Palestinian family raises over NIS 1.2 million, published in the Times of Israel on September 21st, 2023. https://www.timesofisrael.com/campaign-to-free-israeli-killer-of-palestinian-family-raises-over-nis-1-2-million/, last accessed on January 14th, 2024.
5. Pastor Hagree: ‘There is no middle ground in this conflict. You’re either for the Jews or not”, published in the Times of Israel on November 14th, 2023. https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/pastor-hagee-there-is-no-middle-ground-in-this-conflict-youre-either-for-the-jews-or-not/, last accessed on January 13th 2024.
6. ‘Refuse to fight’: Jewish, Arab activists call for peace in Israel’s Haifa, published in Al Jazeera on January 20th, 2024, https://www.aljazeera.com/gallery/2024/1/20/refuse-to-fight-jewish-arab-activists-call-for-peace-in-israels-haifa, last accessed on January 20th, 2024.
7. Mob storms Dagestan airport in search of Jewish passengers from Israel, published in the Guardian on October 30th, 2023, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/oct/29/mob-storms-dagestan-airport-in-search-of-jewish-passengers-from-israel, last accessed on January 13th, 2024.
8. Europe’s Growing Muslim Population, Pew Research Center, November 29th2017.https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2017/11/29/europes-growing-muslim-population/, last accessed on January 13th, 2024.
9. New estimates show U.S. Muslim population continues to grow, Pew Research Center, January 3rd, 2018.https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2018/01/03/new-estimates-show-u-s-muslim-population-continues-to-grow/, last accessed on January 14th, 2024.
10. Protests against Israel’s judicial overhaul kick off at Supreme Court a day before crucial hearing, published in APNews on September 11th, 2023, https://apnews.com/article/israel-politics-justice-minister-judicial-overhaul-netanyahu-b93481650524a63c4e85199c0ea3fb4d, last accessed on January 14th2024.
11. How Nikki Haley Built an $8 Million Fortune (And Helped Bail Out Her Parents), published by Forbes on August 8th,2023. https://www.forbes.com/sites/kavyagupta/2023/08/08/how-nikki-haley-built-an-8-million-fortune-and-helped-bail-out-her-parents/?sh=40a008fd7b4c, last accessed on January 14th, 2024.
12. Nikki Haley’s Hubby Tied to Shadowy Defense Firm, published by Daily Beast on August 12th, 2023.https://www.thedailybeast.com/nikki-haleys-husband-major-michael-haley-tied-to-shadowy-defense-firm-allied-defense-llc, last accessed on January 14th, 2024.
13. Like Tal Mitnick, I refused to serve Israel as a soldier. It’s important to understand why, by Etan Nechin, published in the Guardian on December 29th,2023. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/dec/29/tal-mitnick-israel-soldier-military-service-society, last accessed on January 14th, 2024.
14. Attacks, arrests, threats, censorship: The high risks of reporting the Israel-Gaza war, published on January 13th, 2024 by the Committee to Protect Journalists. https://cpj.org/2024/01/attacks-arrests-threats-censorship-the-high-risks-of-reporting-the-israel-hamas-war/, last accessed on January 14th, 2024.
15. Having Done Wrong, by Oded Na’aman, published in the Raven Magazine. https://ravenmagazine.org/magazine/having-done-wrong/, Last accessed on January 14th, 2024.
16. Letter from Israel, by Oded Na’aman, published in Boston Review on October 23rd, 2023. https://www.bostonreview.net/articles/letter-from-israel/, Last accessed on January 14th, 2024.
17. Rupi Kaur’s tweet at 9:19 pm, on November 6th, 2023, https://twitter.com/rupikaur_/status/1721593045710405795,Last accessed on January 14th, 2024.
18. I can’t sleep, by Paul Biggar, published on December 14th, 2023. https://blog.paulbiggar.com/i-cant-sleep/, Last accessed on January 14th, 2024.