It is a terrible day in Israel. Terrible because of the many dead and wounded – there were morning attacks in Ra'anana and in Jerusalem, and the day is still long as I write. Helicopters are flying over Tel Aviv in search of something. The road from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem is blocked, for an unspecified reason. In Givataim, residents of a certain area were called to stay at home. At the intersection, on my way from a short visit in Ra'anana to my office, there was a demonstration of youngsters calling for tougher measures against the attackers. Everyone is a suspect, everyone is a paranoid. The dilemmas faced by leaders, citizens, parents, employers are mounting. Not one of them has an easy answer.
Here are four:
1. A leader's dilemma: Collective punishment?
Even with the two knife attacks in Ra'anana today, Jerusalem, where there was shooting, and knifing, and driving over, is ground zero of the new “situation.” Jerusalem was always tough, among other things because it is a mixed city of Jews and Arabs, Israelis and Palestinians. The West Bank and Gaza can be put under closure. The closure is never hermetic, but it can be quite efficient in preventing some potential attackers from getting into Israel. In Jerusalem, closure is much more difficult to achieve, both operationally and conceptually. Operationally – because Jerusalem is a mix of neighborhoods of many types. Conceptually, because putting Jerusalem neighborhoods under closure is an admission that the city is not really united, that it is not really all under “Israeli” control. If one treats areas of Jerusalem like one treats areas of the West Bank, one promotes the idea that Jerusalem – parts of it – are more “territories” than “Israel.” And yet the mayor of Jerusalem, Nir Barkat, believes it is necessary to close some of the neighborhoods under his own jurisdiction.
2. A parent's dilemma: Bus or carpool?
Veterans of the second Intifada are familiar with the dilemmas that the “situation” brings about. I know it first hand, and hear it all around me. Should we let our son come back from school by bus, as he is used to doing on a daily basis, or leave the office to go and get him? Should we let our teenage daughter go to the cinema with her friends, or find a way to convince her to stay at home? The Israeli parent knows that you cannot live in this place haunted by constant apprehension. He knows that it is not good for him and his child's mental health to be in a constant state of anxiety. He knows that, statistically speaking, car accidents are more dangerous than the terrorism of knives. He knows that it is essential for Israel to demonstrate to its enemies that it can’t be easily scared away. And yet. And yet. Do you want your son to go on a bus all by himself today?
3. A bystander's dilemma: Flee or fight?
In Ra'anana, this morning, a man with an umbrella saved the day. He was at the office, heard people screaming, realized it was an attack, identified the attacker, grabbed the tool that was closest to him – an umbrella, of all things, in this heat wave – and went after the attacker. We have seen this in recent days all over Israel. Citizens chasing attackers, confronting them, saving others. Brave Israelis. Many of them could have fled – many others did flee, and it is hard to blame anyone that chooses to flee when a man or a woman with a knife is trying to kill him. But they choose to fight. Younger and older, stronger and weaker. The accidental heroes of Israel's “situation.” They cannot prevent terrorism. They cannot save everyone. But they saved many, and also, to some degree, our collective wounded sense of self.
4. An employer's dilemma: Keep or dismiss?
The second attack in Ra'anana today was carried out by a construction worker, employed not far from the scene of the stabbing. One of the attackers in Jerusalem is an east Jerusalemite that was working for the communication company Bezeq. The more Arabs of such character – employed, seemingly mainstream – carry out attacks, the harsher the consequences will be for many other Arabs.
Don't underestimate the difficulty: I was at the supermarket this morning. The cashier is notably Arab, wearing a headscarf. The butcher is Arab. I know them. I have no doubt that they mean no harm. But incidents such as the ones we had this morning tend to quickly erode the trust people have in other people. If the “situation” is a long term one, Arabs – innocent, well meaning, decent, Israeli citizens and non-Israeli citizens – are going to lose their jobs. Not because they ought to lose their jobs. Because that is the way people behave in very tense situations. Thinking about the so called “cycle of violence,” we have to also take such possible trends into account. Mistrust leads to unjust dismissal. Dismissal leads to frustration. Frustration leads to feelings of hatred, or even to violence.
