Eyal
Gilad Naftali. It's a long monicker for a newborn baby, but that's
the name that my daughter and son-in-law, who live in Jerusalem,
chose to hang on their youngest son.
It
happened just a few days ago at his bris — a ritual
circumcision which is the first rite of passage of a Jewish boy. The
ceremony, on the eighth day of his life, is one in which he is
welcomed into the religion and the time when he is named.
Eyal
Gilad Naftali. It's likely that he isn't the only child so
designated, for it contains the given names of the three boys
murdered a few days earlier by terrorists in Israel. It was the
trigger for the fighting that followed, although in reality there had
been much provocation earlier with rockets sent from Gaza to kill
whatever Israelis they might find. Precise aim was not an issue. It
was not a critical capability of the weapons of terror, and it wasn't
all that important who got killed. The more important point was that
those rockets were intended to attract return fire, fire that would
kill and maim those in Gaza — both terrorists and the civilians
they used as shields — in order to attract the world's attention.
Those killed in Gaza would be "martyrs," and they should be
grateful that they were accorded the "honor" of dying in
the war against Israel.
All
wars have soldiers, and many are volunteers. But there are also a
large number who are drafted. The typical draftee is young, in his
late teens or early twenties, and male. He is chosen because it is
assumed that he will be a fit warrior, and he is trained for this
task, as well as armed for it. In this instance there are numerous
unnamed draftees, civilians neither trained nor armed for their
duties.
And
all wars have what is euphemistically called "collateral
damage," those inadvertently killed while the battle is raging.
Inadvertently. Their deaths may be inevitable but are unintended and
undesired. In this war, however, the collateral damage is the goal.
The fewer fighters among the terrorists who are killed and the more
civilians the better. They, the unwilling draftees, are the martyrs
who will show the world the justice of their cause. They may not
choose such a role for themselves, but the choice is not theirs. And
the presence of any protection, such as shelters, would be
counterproductive — so none are available.
Accordingly,
three teenaged Israeli boys were abducted and murdered. It was one of
many provocations but the one that led to the current hostilities.
And it was one that brought all of the citizens of Israel together.
It united a country that had many internal disputes. Political
disagreements and religious differences in Israel were of no
consequence. Everyone prayed for them together when they were
reported missing. And everyone mourned them when their fate was
known. We do not know the names of their killers because that is
irrelevant. We will name no streets or squares after the boys or
after the terrorists who killed them. That may be the practice of
those who would like to see us destroyed, but it is not our way. We
will name babies after our sons, and we will do our best to ensure
the safety of our other children. And we will punish those among us
who adopt the inhuman practices of our enemies. They are not our
heroes. They are our enemies — the adversaries of all we believe.
Eyal
Gilad Naftali. My youngest grandson and, I hope, a representative of
a future of peace in a region that has always known war. My children
and grandchildren live each day in the midst of the war, as do
millions of others. And they bear and rear children despite it. It's
a fact of life. I only pray that those who place death before life
will realize the folly of their acts and renounce them. I'm not
hopeful of such an event, but prayer is all I can offer.
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