Editor’s Note: Nothing can erase the horror of the Hamas massacres of October 7, 2023. Nothing. And nothing can erase the horror of Hamas hostage-taking in violation of international humanitarian law, and violation of internationally protected space including hospitals, mosques, schools and private residences. Nothing.
The military response to horror is to defeat the enemy militarily; other things will come after. But the societal response to horror is emotional. Society can collapse or it can rise. Israel rose in the wake of 10/7.
We are pleased to bring you excerpts from the book Extreme Trauma by Moshe Kaplan, MD.
The Fandel Family
On October 7, in the courtyard of a quiet house in Moshav Shuva, the Fandel family ran a private rescue operation. Dr. Gedalya Fandel set up and managed an improvised emergency room and field hospital at the junction leading to the moshav, treating numerous wounded with limited resources, while facing a medical and psychological crisis of unprecedented proportions. All day long he cared for a non-stop influx of shell-shocked soldiers and injured civilians. He also dealt with a pile-up of bodies that were dropped off at his makeshift hospital for “safekeeping” until they could be dealt with properly.
Meanwhile, his wife, Merav, and their children managed the home command, offering survivors of the massacre a safe haven with a kind word, a listening ear, games of Rummy, warm food, and beds – ensuring safety, emotional support, and comfort for everyone who came to find refuge. The welcome and hospitality they gave the survivors offered a calming semblance of normality amid the chaos. Their home became a brief shelter for many, including two children who had witnessed their parents murder, and a pregnant woman seeking safety.
As the day wore on, neighbors and other residents of the moshav joined in their efforts, offering additional help and resources.
The Fandel family’s actions exemplify human kindness and the power of community support during times of unimaginable crisis.
Human Potentials
Human potential is a boundless force waiting to be unleashed. As we’ve seen through these acts of kindness and bravery, our greatest achievements come from our capacity to care for, support, and uplift one another. Each of us has the potential to make a significant impact on the world. By embracing our unique human qualities and striving for greatness, we can create a better future for ourselves and for generations to come.
The journey to greatness is not a solitary path, but a collective endeavor. It is through our shared humanity and communal efforts that we rise above challenges. However, it is within the power of each of us as individuals to be the mensches who will inspire change. Our actions, no matter how small, contribute exponentially to a greater good. G-d and the universe are waiting for each of us to actualize the greatness within us, making the world a better place for all. This is the foundation for “normative” human behavior.
Having expressed the particulars of human potential, we have seen what happens when a person, instead of using his gifts for good, uses them to produce tragedy, disaster, and inhumane behavior…
Israeli Women
Israeli women have shown resilience from Day One, as Dr. Miriam Adelson noted, “One dramatic achievement has been clear from the very first minutes of October 7. The women of Israel have earned their reward for the blood, sweat, and tears their sisters shed for the whole nation and all of humanity. Demonstrating their resilience, women became engaged in frontline combat against the enemy. Hamas is discovering, to its misfortune, that women will be the victors in this war. The fact that slender fingers with painted nails press the button that sends many of the terrorists to hell creates a special sense of humiliation for those who preach male supremacy.”
Emerging Stronger from Adversity
Israel’s greatest asset is its people. The unity and determination of its citizens are driving forces that ensure the nation will not only survive but thrive. The Israeli hi-tech ecosystem, including numerous startups, has already mobilized to support survivors, the injured, soldiers, and civilians still under threat. Even as thousands of rockets targed densely populated areas, the focus remained on helping those in need and maintaining the unity of the nation.
Israel’s Hi-Tech Sector
The country’s entrepreneurial ecosystem is built on four fundamental cornerstones with an additional unique element that sets it apart. The first four – entrepreneurial spirit, investor support, engineering talent, and experience – are common to other leading tech hubs like San Francisco, Boston, London, and Berlin. However, Israel has a distinctive fifth element.
Mandatory Military Service
Compulsory military service cultivates individuals with exceptional resilience, leadership skills, teamwork capabilities, and loyalty. While acting under pressure, as it has had to do recently, the fifth element becomes invaluable as it generates strong, resilient, and better-skilled actors where it matters – people with perseverance in leadership positions, ready to work in teams, and with extreme loyalty. When the crisis passes, these people use the skills they have honed to contribute to the strength of Israel’s hi-tech ecosystem.
The result is a stronger, more innovative, and more resilient nation. Israel will emerge from this crisis fortified and ready for many prosperous years ahead. As the saying goes, tough times create strong people, strong people create easy times, easy times create soft people, and soft people create tough times. Israel is currently in a tough time, but its indomitable spirit ensures that it will not only endure but also thrive.
A Beacon of Hope
It was early on the morning of October 7, a day that should have been restful for attorney Hanas Alsanah, director of the Center for Bedouin Women’s Rights at Itach-Ma’aki: Women Lawyers for Social Justice. She had planned a family picnic, a rare break from her demanding work. However, as she prepared for the day, her phone buzzed with an unusual flurry of messages from local WhatsApp leadership groups not typically active on Saturdays. At first, she thought little of the news of the invasion, believing that Israel would swiftly handle whatever disturbance was happening. But as the hours wore on, the gravity of the attack became apparent. Feeling the chaos in the absence of a strong response from the Israeli security services, Alsanah, for the first time, contemplated fleeing her home. This gave her a profound sense of insecurity.
Soon, desperate messages poured in from both Jewish and Bedouin survivors, pleading for assistance as the military failed to respond. Women from unrecognized Bedouin villages urgently needed mobile bomb shelters and coverage from the Iron Dome anti-missile defense system. This was a turning point for Alsanah; she abandoned her plans to escape and sprang into action, leveraging her network to coordinate immediate aid.
Alsanah reached out to individuals who could navigate the desert and locate survivors from the Supernova Music Festival near Kibbutz Re’im. Many of these rescuers were Bedouin, well-versed in the terrain. She spent the first day organizing transportation for the injured and those fleeing the area. By the second day, she was arranging deliveries of essential supplies to the most vulnerable Jewish and Bedouin communities. On the third day, alongside her Jewish colleague, Shir Nosatzki from the organization Have You Seen the Horizon Lately?, she established an emergency situation room in the Bedouin city of Rahat. They united their networks of activists, NGOs, and public representatives to aid both Bedouin families affected by rocket attacks and families from Gaza border communities.
This emergency situation room remains a vital resource, particularly for single-mother families in 16 unrecognized Bedouin villages. Here, 37 Bedouin women volunteers, along with their Jewish counterparts, assist approximately 1,000 needy families with basic supplies, emotional support, and legal aid. Although women lead this movement, many men have also joined as volunteers, reflecting a growing communal solidarity.
Today, Alsanah’s mission is to expand this light through collaborative efforts, ensuring that compassion and cooperation prevail over extremism. Her story is a testament to the power of solidarity and the enduring hope for a peaceful, shared society.
Unity
It has been said that if we were completely alike, we couldn’t communicate, but if we were exactly the same, there would be no need, as we would have nothing to say. Our differences are what allow us to unite. A nation, like a family, doesn’t always have to be perfect or always in agreement, but it must always be united.
Doron Almog, Jewish Agency Chairman, said, “We need to unite to guarantee that this state, this only Jewish state, will not only survive and prevail against a threat from Iran, Hezbollah, Hamas, missiles, [foreign] military attacks, and war, but also a split society.”
Almog emphasized that “we need to unite our people, and we do not have the privilege to lose one segment of it. We need to unite all of us: The Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, traditional, secular – together. To be united, one people – a strong people – in order to guarantee our existence by this unity.”
Reclaiming Our Stories
The reactions of Angelica Gottlieb’s colleagues at her London start-up made Hamas’s horrific attack even more distressing. They began posting blatantly pro-Hamas content on social media, casting Jews and Israelis as monolithic “white colonizers.”
Seeing this narrative play out online, Gottlieb felt compelled to act. She and her friend, Ariella Goodman, decided to use their experiences to educate the public about Zionism and Jewish history. In early March 2024, they launched an Instagram page called Our Shared Jewish History. Their mission: to share stories of those affected by the October 7 attack, highlighting the rich and diverse tapestry of Jewish and Israeli life … to counter simplistic and harmful stereotypes about Jews and Israelis … giving a voice to the voiceless and showcasing the unique and varied backgrounds that make up Jewish and Israeli history.
Their Instagram page began with the story of Alex Dancyg, a 75-year-old Polish Israeli grandfather from Kibbutz Nir Oz, whom Hamas kidnapped on October 7. Through a series of well-researched posts, they shared Dancyg’s life story, his dedication to social justice, and his left-wing ideals, showing that being a Zionist and being a liberal are not mutually exclusive.
On International Women’s Day, they featured Tamas Kedem Siman Tov, an artist and aspiring mayor, whom Hamas murdered along with her family in the October 7 attack.
Another post included the story of Eitan and Yair Horm, Argentinian Israeli brothers currently held hostage in Gaza. They emphasize the brothers’ love of simple pleasures and the void their absence has created in their communities.
While they do not expect to transform global opinions about Israel single-handedly, they see their work as a way to educate and empower the Jewish community.
Conclusion
There is more. Farmer Oz Davidian drove back and forth to the Nova Music Festival site fifteen times to save youngsters and bring them to safety. “I knew that I had been placed there by G-d. I could not ignore what I was seeing. My only regret is that I was not able to save more.”
Rabbi Menachem Kalmanson told of his brother, Elchanan (z”l) who entered Kibbutz Be’eri to rescue survivors. He said the Shema outside a family’s house to reassure them that he was one of them – not the enemy. “This cry for unity echoed around the region that day as thousands of soldiers went out of a sense of deep responsibility and endangered their lives for their brothers. This point which we nearly lost – the sense of brotherliness and mutual fate … We cannot continue to fight without seeing the good in this nation, as the blood of our brothers cries out from the ground, as we are our brother’s keeper.”
There are organizations and people who arose on that day and remain in the forefront of service to their brothers and sisters.
Dr. Kaplan wrote, “It was none other than Albert Einstein who said, ‘Either everything is a miracle, or nothing is a miracle.’ Certainly, one of the greatest miracles of all time is the survival of the Jewish people – having survived pogroms, inquisitions, blood libels, massacres, the Holocaust and more – and our resilience continues.”
Moshe Kaplan, MD., trained and practiced as a psychoimmunologist. He is an author and chief executive officer of the Be a Mensch Foundation.
