Israel has been accustomed to short, relatively short wars. Prolonged conflicts are exhausting and eventually accustom everyone to situations they shouldn't experience.
The event of October 7, 2023, has unleashed a seemingly endless series of events. The kidnappings, the war fronts, the situation in Gaza, the day after that never comes, the threats of further conflict. Sometimes, in these long, seemingly endless months, certain events inherent to the dynamics of countries and of life itself seem to trigger some progress. As the days pass, we find ourselves in another stage of an ever-developing crisis.
The election of Donald Trump in November 2024, his very eloquent and decisive statements and actions, were a catalyst for changing everyone's approach to the conflict. Certainly, negotiations were forced, and hostages were released. Some were still alive, others not. The pressure exerted at one point, which gave a deadline of Saturday at noon to release all the hostages, had the result some had hoped for. With a long first phase over, dozens of hostages remained in Gaza, a second phase has yet to begin, and the frustration of the hostages and their mourners. This frustration is surpassed only by the immense pain felt for the unfortunate hostages.
The cycle repeats itself with fatal monotony. Threats from the kidnappers not to return or kill the hostages; threats from Israel and now the United States not to tolerate this situation; demonstrations by families and groups advocating for the hostages' release, although this is what everyone in Israel is advocating for. Blames are placed on the security forces that allowed what happened or failed to recognize the imminent danger. Condemnations from international organizations become part of a circus that yields no results.
Heading into eighteen months of conflict, there is no sign of peace in the region. Even if negotiations resume, or the ceasefire is suspended, no short-term solutions are in sight. The gradual release of hostages appears a likely but also chilling scenario; it is a way to prolong the anguish indefinitely and brutally.
Crises must occur for limited periods of time, which are overcome to allow for other variables to come into play, other living and functioning conditions. In the Middle East, the crisis is permanent and constitutes everyday life. What has happened since October 7 is a crisis that has become part of everyday life, the daily life of Israelis. Of ordinary citizens, of the victims and their immediate families. Of the media, military, and political apparatus. Of everyone. The crisis unleashed since October 7, 2023, has become the way of life, no longer an exception to everyday life.
It's also a delicate matter that this crisis, which is already calling for action, drags on and tires out those who should or must intervene, beyond Israel and the direct protagonists. Words that don't lead to effective action, actions that don't produce significant and decisive results, contribute to everyone becoming accustomed to living with and tolerating an unbearable anomaly. Declarations end up losing importance and credibility, threats fall on deaf or weary ears. A fearsome tiger is created, but a paper tiger that doesn't solve anything.
In Israel, the crisis has become a daily occurrence, or vice versa. The results are depressing. If the United States of America and its new administration allow the crisis to become a daily occurrence, and if it remains unresolved, we will all be in a dangerous situation. The kidnappers and their ideologies, the mechanisms employed, and their intentions will gain a legitimacy and even popularity that will become, if they are not already, the modus operandi of those who challenge civilization, with a high probability of success.
The constant crisis tires everyone. Those who suffer it firsthand are the most affected; habit doesn't lessen the pain. Those who don't experience it, those who observe it from a distance, even though it may affect them, grow bored with the drama of something foreign, and things end up staying more or less the same.
Everyday life is dangerous. We urgently need to end the crisis.
Elías Farache S.