Among all the worldwide handwringing and concern for the “poor, innocent civilians” of Gaza, I’d like to say a few things about the poor, innocent civilians of Israel for whom no one, save perhaps other Jews and some good-hearted, intelligent individuals worldwide seem to care.

I’d like to talk about the close to 5,000 Israeli soldiers seriously injured and requiring extensive medical care and physical therapy and the 10,000 soldiers who will require therapy for PTSD (so far).

I’d like to talk about the fifty thousand Israeli schoolchildren forced to flee their homes in the South and North under rocket fire and threats from terrorist Muslims of Hamas and Hezbollah. These children, many of them orphaned and traumatized as well as uprooted from their lives, all now have to be placed in other schools, by Israel’s Ministry of Education, which is trying its best to find teachers and classrooms for them all, as well as social workers and psychologists.

It isn’t easy.

I’d like to talk about the women and girls who suffered brutal sexual crimes at the hands of Hamas terrorists as well as crowds of “poor, oppressed citizens of Gaza” who invaded on October 7. While most of the Israeli girls and women tortured and raped by Gazans were murdered, miraculously enough of them survived to the extent that there are NOT ENOUGH THERAPISTS TO TREAT THEM. Let that sink in.

I’d like to talk about a recent study that found that one in three Israelis suffer from PTSD symptoms in connection to the October 7 attacks.

And I’d like you all to consider the pain of young mothers whose husbands haven’t been home for two months; the pain of the children waiting for their fathers to return. And I will only briefly mention the heart stopping anxiety of all Israeli families whose loved ones are now in face to face combat with the monsters of October 7. My daughter, mother of my grandson who is a combat engineer in Gaza, told me that the last week has been particularly harrowing, as her neighbor and a friend lost sons in the past few days, one of them a combat engineer. Imagine going to sleep at night thinking about your child who is doing the work to see that “never again” is really never again.

I’d like to talk about all the Israeli university students now on the front lines in Gaza who will have to miss classes when the universities reopen on December 31, while Arab students, many holding anti-Israel views, will be able to cheerfully go back to school and earn their degrees.

Families of fallen IDF soldiers and those still in Gaza have physically blocked the Keren Shalom Crossing, not allowing “humanitarian” aid trucks to enter, insisting all supplies would be stolen by Hamas (which is the documented truth) and that Israel must not resupply the enemy. This is something I’d be happy to join. A human blockade of Israelis against its government’s weakness and complicity.

But I’d also like to talk about how proud I am to live in this country, this wonderful country with its amazing people. My son sent me an email urging people to attend the funeral of lone soldier Boris Dunavetsky from Russia who fell in Gaza yesterday. Today I saw that thousands had attended. This is always what happens in the case of the death of lone soldiers. The whole country becomes their family.

Today the IDF recovered the recording device on the military dog sent to check out a suspected terrorist stronghold and which was subsequently shot by terrorists. On the tape, one can hear the voices of the three hostages begging in Hebrew to be rescued who were later tragically mistaken for terrorists and killed by soldiers. If only the device had been recovered earlier!

But I would like to bring the words of Iris Haim, mother of Yotam Haim, one of the hostages killed, who today sent the following voice message to the soldiers involved:

“I want to tell you that I love you very much. I know that what happened was not your fault. There is no one to blame but Hamas. Israel needs you to stay alive, to stay healthy. Don’t hesitate for one moment. If you think you see a terrorist, don’t think twice. You need to protect yourselves, because that’s the only way you can protect us. Come visit us. We want to embrace you. We want to tell you that as hard as this is to say, that you did the right thing. Not one of judges you. No one is angry at you.”

Hamas has often used subterfuges like recorded crying in Hebrew of children to lure soldiers to their deaths. I agree with Iris Haim. This is entirely Hamas’ fault. Let’s no one forget who put all of these boys—soldiers and hostages—in harm’s way.