Questions for those who label Israel as evil

Opinion editor’s note: Star Tribune Opinion publishes a mix of national and local commentaries online and in print each day. To contribute, click here.

•••

I am an American Jew and a Zionist. I believe there must be a Jewish state in our ancestral homeland. The Palestinians have an identical legitimate claim to the land. I have always hoped for a peaceful, two-state solution.

Oct. 7 shocked me. So did hearing people condone, excuse or minimize Hamas’ atrocities; pretend there was no evidence of rape; tear down posters of kidnapped Israeli children; libel Israel as uniquely evil, even among its neighbors like Syria, a “colonialist” state, and justifying violence against Israelis as “resistance.” How can we have a conversation about peace, withdrawal and coexistence when this is your starting point? The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is complex and has no easy answers. It is not some morality play with Israel always powerful and evil and Palestinians always helpless and innocent. Both Israelis and Palestinians deserve peaceful existence, but too often I hear ideas that simply don’t acknowledge that Israel is not where it is because it wants to be, but because terror has forced its hand.

You are appalled by the West Bank barrier. So am I. But do you acknowledge that Israel built it only in response to Palestinian terrorist bombers from the West Bank murdering Israelis in buses and cafes, and that this terror only stopped because the wall was in place?

You hate that Israeli Jews live on land you believe belonged to Palestinians before 1948. Whether the term “settler-colonial” applies is a historical debate. Regardless, 7 million Jews live there now, along with 2 million Arab Israeli citizens. Where should they go if Palestinians have their wish and the creation of the Jewish state is undone? Should they live under Hamas rule?

Or you don’t want to go back to 1948, but you want Israel to unilaterally withdraw to the 1967 boundaries? Would such a withdrawal satisfy Hamas and the Islamic Jihad? Would they keep a promise not to attack Israel if Israel withdrew — a promise they have never made? Or would such withdrawal make terror attacks more likely? Would Oct. 7 be merely a preview?

You decry the hardline Israeli government. So do I. But do you understand it rose to power because the Israeli public lost hope for peace due to constant terror?

The measures Israel has taken, and what it has become, hurts Palestinians and Israelis alike. It did not have to happen. It happened only because of real fear that softening Israel’s stance would invite more kidnappings and murder. You cannot compare Israel to apartheid South Africa or the Jim Crow South. The situation in Israel is unique because of the constant threat of murder.

I want a cease-fire, but how can Israel disarm while facing an enemy like Hamas?

You call Israel’s actions genocide, but can you acknowledge that Hamas would have killed far more Israelis on Oct. 7 if it could have, that it vows to do so? That Israel is in Gaza only because of the Oct. 7 attacks? That Hamas still holds more than 100 Israeli hostages it abducted? That Hamas still fires rockets at Israel from among Palestinian civilians?

I fear these things don’t matter to you. That you have absorbed the narrative of “settler-colonialism” that denies Israelis’ humanity, and Palestinians’ agency. That you don’t ask yourself the questions I put to you.