For Heaven's Sake

As Israel’s war with Hamas rages on, and the anxiety in Israel continues to grow, the Sword of Damocles hangs over the head of every Israeli. Each day brings the threat of losing another friend, relative, or community member to the violence. Israelis are struggling to reconcile divergent goals: the desire to eliminate Hamas versus a need to safely return the hostages to their families and keep our soldiers safe. In this episode, Donniel Hartman and Yossi Klein Halevi discuss the impact of this ever-present dread and the ways we steel ourselves for, and deal with, the massive onslaught of grief we are experiencing, which will only continue to increase.

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In the middle of the night on Saturday, Benjamin Netanyahu posted a tweet blaming the heads of Israel’s military intelligence and Shin Bet security service for failing to anticipate the October 7th attack by Hamas. Though he later apologized, the post reflected the Prime Minister’s continued avoidance of taking responsibility, prioritizing his own political advancement over the needs of the people.

In this episode, Donniel Hartman and Yossi Klein Halevi discuss Prime Minister Netanyahu’s leadership failure, the role of criticizing one’s society and leadership even during a moment of crisis, why leaders must take responsibility for what they didn’t prevent, and the power of Israeli civil society taking up the slack in this leadership vacuum.

Mentioned in this episode:

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On October 24th, United Nations Secretary-General Guterres delivered remarks on the war between Israel and Hamas. While he condemned the terror attacks, demanded immediate release of all hostages, and called for a ceasefire, he also contextualized the war within the broader history of the occupation and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This prompted Israel’s ambassador to call on Guterres to resign and signaled to many the all-too-familiar waning embrace of global support for Israel. Donniel Hartman and Yossi Klein Halevi discuss the nuances of context and justification, morality and war, and how language can engage or isolate allies.

Why Is Israel Being Blamed for the Hamas Massacre? By Yossi Klein Halevi

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On day 16 of the war with Hamas, the IDF is poised for a ground invasion into Gaza, marching into the unknown. What awaits the troops when they enter? Will this embroil Hezbollah, Iran, and perhaps the US, into a broader regional clash? Most importantly: what price are Israelis willing to pay to win this war?

Donniel Hartman and Yossi Klein Halevi discuss their anxieties about this moment and consider the unspoken and unprecedented willingness of the Israeli public to do whatever it takes in order to defeat the existential threat of Hamas to the State of Israel.

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On October 17, a blast at Al Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza killed many Palestinians. Israelis and Palestinians were quick to blame each other for the blast, which has now been confirmed as a misfired rocket from the Islamic Jihad.

Recorded on October 18, as conflicting reports continue to spread across both social media and international media outlets, Donniel Hartman and Yossi Klein Halevi explore the ramifications and ethics of warfare, consider how this incident brought the tragedy in Gaza into our consciousness, and grapple with the role of journalists in a time when reporting happens too quickly before facts are confirmed.

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As we enter into week two of this horrifying war, Donniel Hartman and Yossi Klein Halevi struggle with the question of if there are moral red lines when responding to absolute evil and if there are, how do we define them. Noting that Israelis are entering this discussion wounded, grieving, enraged, and scared, they acknowledge our need to fight the war fully while grappling with who we want to be not just who we are at this moment.

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The number of fatalities continues to rise. As Israel's new reality of unfathomable horror begins to set in, many took comfort in the latest speech by US President Biden, in which he called the Hamas attack "pure evil". From Jerusalem, Donniel Hartman and Yossi Klein Halevi explore what it means to confront evil. What happens when the behavior of others descends from wrongful to outright evil, and how do we cope with it?

This is day five of Israel at War.

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Israel is at War. This past Shabbat, Saturday morning, October 7, Israel faced an unprecedented, ruthless, and devastating attack by Hamas. Hundreds of Israelis have been killed, thousands injured, and many are in captivity. Israelis are fighting for their country, and Jews around the world are supporting these efforts from afar with prayers, messages, and resources. In an effort to keep our listeners connected and updated during this painful and difficult time, For Heaven's Sake will be releasing episodes every few days to address what's happening in Israel and unpack the complex and distressing events of this war. This is For Heaven's Sake: Israel at War.

Recorded on October 9, in this first episode of this series on our For Heaven's Sake feed, Donniel Hartman and Yossi Klein Halevi discuss their emotional response of sadness and outrage to the attack and to Israel's nascent war. They reflect on the burning question of how did this attack and the IDF's delayed response even happen given Israelis' confidence in their army.

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Historically the Arab world, and Saudi Arabia in particular, has acted as a force in encouraging Palestinian rejection of Israel. With recent and unprecedented shifts in the geopolitical landscape, could a formal alliance with Saudi Arabia be a reality for Israel? Donniel Hartman, Yossi Klein Halevi, and Elana Stein Hain explore the security implications of a deal with Saudi Arabia, how the Israeli public might respond, and whether Prime Minister Netanyahu, for whom peace with Arab neighbors was always a strategic goal, will consider forming a new coalition.

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The High Holidays are a time for reviewing our successes and failures, individually and collectively, but also a time for looking forward to future possibilities. In this episode, Donniel Hartman and Yossi Klein Halevi reflect on what they describe as one of the most traumatic years in Israeli history, the "pathologies" of Jewish theology and psyche that brought us here, and what it might take for 5784 to be a turning point in restoring a sense of cohesiveness and shared purpose to Israeli society.

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