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Israel-Gaza war
OpinionComment
Slavoj Žižek
Slavoj Žižek

Opinion | We should not have to choose between Hamas terrorists and Israeli hardliners

  • Our choice should be between fundamentalists and all who believe in peaceful coexistence
  • The way forward is to fight Hamas while also reaching out to negotiate with Palestinians who are not anti-Semites

Reading Time:3 minutes
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Palestinians react at the site of Israeli strikes on houses in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, on October 17. Photo: Reuters
Slavoj Žižek
The barbarism unleashed on Israel should be condemned unconditionally. The massacres, rapes and abductions of civilians from villages, kibbutzim and a music festival were a pogrom, confirming Hamas’ goal to destroy the state of Israel and all Israelis. That said, the situation demands historical context – not as any kind of justification, but for the sake of clarity about the way forward.
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A first consideration is the despair that characterises the lives of most Palestinians. Recall the spate of suicidal attacks on the streets of Jerusalem around a decade ago. An ordinary Palestinian would approach a Jew, pull out a knife, and stab the victim, knowing full well he or she would be immediately killed. There was no message in these “terrorist” acts, no shouts of “Free Palestine!” Nor was there any larger organisation behind them. They were individual acts of violent despair.

Things took a turn for the worse when Benjamin Netanyahu formed a new government by allying with far-right, pro-settler parties that advocate annexation of Palestinian territories in the West Bank.
The new minister of national security, Itamar Ben-Gvir, believes: “My right, my wife’s right, my kids’ right to move around freely [in the West Bank] is more important than that of the Arabs.” This is a man previously barred from army service, owing to his affiliations with extremist anti-Arab parties designated as terrorist organisations following the 1994 massacre of Arabs in Hebron.

After long boasting of its status as the only democracy in the Middle East, Israel is morphing into a theocratic state. The government’s list of “basic principles” states: “The Jewish people have an exclusive and inalienable right to all parts of the Land of Israel.” It is absurd to reproach Palestinians for refusing to negotiate with Israel. The government’s official programme takes negotiations off the table.

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It is not hard to see that both sides – Hamas and Israel’s ultranationalist government – are against any peace option. Each is committed to a struggle to the death.
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