In response to my last column, someone wrote me that they can get the news from numerous websites. What they want from me is what’s going on with Israelis on a personal level.

First of all, you can’t get the true news from numerous websites. Even I, in Israel, can’t the news from numerous websites, since most of them fit the events to their personal political bias. If I go to Haaretz, or Ynet, I’m only going to get the news about how much they hate Netanyahu, and how Israel is sure to lose and should surrender to Hamas and accept whatever pathetic hostage deal they are offering today, even if they offer to shoot the hostages and deliver the bodies. That’s the truth.

So when I convey news on this Diary, it’s as close to the honest truth as I can find. That’s not a small thing.

Secondly, I appreciate the sincere interest in “how Israelis are doing.” But honestly, going into our national trauma, and my own feelings, is hard, especially on a daily basis. I don’t like to take my own temperature, or the national temperature, too often.

We have to get through this. How do you think we feel when our biggest ally announces to the world they no longer support us and the welfare of our enemies supersedes their interest in our well-being? How do you think we feel when we are already in Rafah but still fighting Iran and its proxy Hezbollah that has basically made huge parts of the north of Israel uninhabitable, and they now know they can just wait for us to run out of weapons, thanks to Joe Biden? What do you think we feel when we know our hostages are being tortured, raped and killed every day, but Hamas now has renewed hope not to give an inch because they too can wait for us to run out of weapons?

The other day my husband had a cataract operation in a Tel Aviv hospital. We had an excellent surgeon and the facilities were modern and welcoming. Here we were in the middle of a war, and yet everything was functioning as normal. We stayed over in Tel Aviv at a very nice hotel on the beach because of an early appointment with the surgeon, and in the afternoon we took a walk along the lovely boardwalk. The sky was blue with fluffy white clouds. Young men were surfing the blue waves, and pretty girls were walking their dogs and jogging. “Let’s sit here,” I suggested to my husband pointing to a bench across from the ocean. We breathed in the salt air and let the sun kiss our faces pink.

And then, suddenly, I heard the whirring of a motor. When I looked up, there was a motorized paraglider right above us. In the past, we always thought people hanging from those things were adventurous and charming. Now I looked up imagining he was holding a submachine gun getting ready to fire down at us.

Yes, we Israelis are not the same as we were before October 7. Our hearts are full to breaking with the stories and images of all the beautiful young people, the children, the elderly who were killed and tortured; with all those still in captivity with the most degenerate and violent antisemites who ever lived. It aches with the loss of the heroic soldiers, policemen and border guards who gave their lives to stop the slaughter.

Since last Remembrance Day, another 761 soldiers have fallen, and another 61 wounded have succumbed to their injuries. 711 have died so far in the current war, 637 IDF soldiers, 39 local protection groups, 68 policemen, and 6 Shabak members. Another 1,294 new families have been added to the list of the bereaved. 248 new widows, 520 new orphans, and 2,174 new siblings.

In its wars, Israel has lost 25,034 soldiers. It’s an enormous number for such a little country.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: “Seventy-six years ago we were a small number facing many. We had no weapons, and there was a weapons embargo against Israel. But our souls were strong, we had bravery, heroism, and unity and we were victorious. Today we are much stronger. We are determined and we are united to defeat our enemies and those who wish to kill us.

“If we have to stand alone, we will stand alone.

If we have to fight with our fingernails, we will fight with our fingernails.

But we have much more than just fingernails. With that same strength in our souls, with G-d’s help, we will win.”

Amen.

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