Gaza, 2014: War of Emuna

Many people are disappointed that the recent round of hostilities, aka "Operation Protective Edge" or "Gaza War, 2014", did not end in a decisive, clear-cut military victory for Israel. Indeed, in boxing, this would have been a split-decision, where in the absence of a knockout, the winner would be decided according to the points given by three judges at ringside. Militarily, Hamas claims victory, maintaining that their leadership and their power to fire rockets against Israel's cities have both emerged unscathed. Israel claims victory, citing its successful campaign against the Hamas assault tunnels and the overall damage it did to Hamas. Nevertheless, no one in Israel can guarantee that all the tunnels have been destroyed. Furthermore, as we witnessed right before the recent ceasefire was declared, Hamas still succeeded in firing rockets on Israel's southern cities and villages.
 
As the military and diplomatic smoke clears, the outcome of the current "Protective Edge" operation is identical to the outcome of the "Cast Lead" and "Defensive Shield" campaigns of 2008 and 2012. If the same pattern of hostilities continues, we can expect an additional war within a year. Why? There were four years between "Cast Lead" and "Defensive Shield", and two years between "Defensive Shield" and "Protective Edge". Continuing the pattern logically, there would be one year until a renewal of hostilities. And, what's worse, the seeds of a new intifada (Arabic for civil uprising) seem to be sprouting, for terror in Jerusalem has once again reared its ugly head.
 
The above seemingly factual and logical look at our military and political situation in regard to Gaza is deceiving, for it doesn't take emuna into account. With emuna in mind, the recent Gaza War has been a dazzling victory for Israel, not only against Hamas, but against the entire world. Let's see what we have gained, thanks to Hashem's limitless love for His People in Zion:

1. Jewish Unity – Unity among the Jewish People has always been a rare commodity. The lack of it led to the destruction of our Holy Temple, to exile and to Diaspora. Yet, this war saw our entire nation come together. Soldiers were flooded with food and gifts. The morale and spiritual reinforcement of the troops in battle was phenomenal. Outside of the traditional hate-mongers in the self-serving media, one can feel a true change for the better in regard to interrelationships among various sectors of the Israeli population. This is the unity that is a prerequisite for Moshiach.

2. The Hamas Doomsday scheme foiled – Most likely, Israel will create several investigative committees into the "failures" of the recent war, the most prominent of which is the military's and the intelligence community's gross underestimation of the tunnel threats. By way of the tunnels, many of which led to the hearts of the Gaza-area kibbutzim and villages, Hamas had planned to send at least 2,000 of its best fighters through ten different tunnels this coming Rosh Hashana. Simultaneously, ten different Israeli villages would have each been attacked by some 200 terrorists with automatic weapons, grenades and anti-tank missiles. Women and children would have been kidnapped and taken back to Gaza. With the Hamas terrorists wearing Israeli combat fatigues, the ensuing battles would have been utter bedlam, Heaven forbid. Hashem foiled the terror attack of history, for Hamas did not plan on this war, which was premature in their strategy.

3. The Emuna that "it's all for the best" – the kidnapping and heinous murders of the three Yeshiva boys, martyrs Gilad Shaer, Naftali Frankel and Eyal Yifrach, may Hashem avenge their sacred blood, was a tragedy that all of Israel took to heart. No one understood how such a disaster could be for the good. But in retrospect, we all see that our martyred young men triggered a chain of events that led to operation "Protective Edge" and the discovery of the assault tunnels. The sacrificed lives of our three holy martyrs saved who-knows-how-many thousands of lives and foiled the terrorist plot of the century.

4. An International Victory – the current Gaza War took the mask off of international anti-Semitism. Hashem exposed the nations of the world, that their so-called "anti-Zionism" is none other than anti-Semitism at its vulgar worst. If Israel and the Arabs are fighting, why should Jews be attacked on the streets of Paris and why should synagogues in the USA be defaced? What's more, Israel withstood tremendous pressure from the American executive branch of government and the US State Department, the UN and international media, all of whom displayed flagrant pro-Arab bias. As a result, the people of Israel are now fully aware of the Gemara's statement that in these times before Moshiach, there is no one to trust but Hashem.

5. Revelation of Hashem – one can write several volumes about the miracles that took place during the recent war, many of which we saw with our own eyes in my hometown of Ashdod, where hundreds of rockets fell in over seventy different missile attacks. Despite the success of the "Iron Dome" missile-interception system, a number of rockets made their way through and fell in heavily-populated areas. One rocket made a direct hit in a crowded gas station on a Friday morning. Not only were there no fatalities, but a gasoline-tanker truck that held 35,000 liters (about 9,000 gallons) was burned on the outside, but its contents didn't explode! What's more, adjacent tanks of propane gas, ever so volatile, also did not explode. This could have caused an explosion that could devastate a tremendous area. And, this is but one miracle of many…

6. An end to the "Might of My Right Hand" Ideology – the war succeeded in showing Israel that Hashem wins wars, not the military. As we mentioned earlier, military intelligence was caught unaware and unprepared. Hamas tunnels were the springboard of two deadly ambushes. IDF equipment, such as the outdated armored personnel carrier that broke down and became a death-trap for its seven crew members, was frequently faulty and vulnerable. As many IDF officers testified anonymously, the government's hesitation, vacillation and lack of clear objectives severely hampered the forces on the ground. The Israeli Army paid a dear price with the blood of over sixty martyrs. Yet, the IDF fought valiantly. In a phenomenal sanctification of Hashem's name, Givati Brigade Commander Colonel Ofer Winter invoked Divine assistance by having his entire command say "Shema Yisrael" before they went into battle.

 
Gaza, 2014 is not only a war of Emuna for the people of Israel. This is a war of emuna for Jews around the globe. For a Jew, Israel – the Land of Emuna – is the safest place on earth. All the spiritual leaders of this generation have said that the Geula, the final redemption of our people, has already begun. Hashem wants us all to come home. And, judging by the stream of Jews who are making Aliya, the ingathering of the exiles is well underway. Thousands of IDF soldiers are proudly wearing tzitzit, what they nickname their "spiritual flak jacket". We are winning the war of emuna and we will continue to win. Even if you're still outside Israel, you can and must do your part. Help us spread emuna the world over. The light of emuna must extinguish the darkness of radical Islam – that's the real struggle, and with Hashem's help, we'll prevail, amen!