Israel’s survival depends not on domination, but on rediscovering its moral compass and embracing coexistence with a free Palestine
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There comes a moment in the life of every nation when it must confront the truth about what it has become — and what it risks losing. For Israel, that moment is now. The relentless devastation in Gaza, the tightening grip of occupation, and the growing isolation from the world community have laid bare a crisis not only of politics, but of conscience. The inescapable reality is this: Israel cannot bomb its way to peace, nor can it suppress an entire people into submission without destroying the moral foundations of its own statehood.
For decades, Israel has relied on the language of security to justify actions that would be unconscionable under any other name. Every airstrike, every demolished home, every blockade has been explained as “self-defense.” Yet a state that continues to occupy and subjugate millions of Palestinians cannot claim perpetual victimhood. True self-defense does not mean the defense of domination; it means the defense of life, dignity, and the rule of law. Israel’s leaders have confused power with righteousness — and in doing so, they have trapped their own citizens in a future defined by fear, not freedom.
The human toll of this moral confusion is staggering. Gaza today is a graveyard of shattered families, destroyed hospitals, and broken futures. The images of starving children and desperate civilians fleeing the rubble are not abstractions — they are the direct outcome of choices made in Jerusalem and justified in Washington. The world’s patience is wearing thin. Even Israel’s most steadfast allies are beginning to ask whether the state that once sought refuge from persecution has now become a purveyor of it.
To face the inescapable reality is to accept that Israel’s long-term security cannot come at the expense of another people’s existence. No wall is high enough, no missile defense strong enough, to extinguish a people’s demand for freedom. History has shown time and again that oppression breeds resistance, and that a nation built on fear will eventually implode under the weight of its own contradictions. The Palestinians are not going anywhere. Their struggle for dignity will continue — whether Israel chooses to acknowledge it or not.
If Israel’s leaders truly wish to preserve their democracy, they must confront the growing rot within. The occupation has not only dehumanized Palestinians; it has corroded Israeli society itself. An entire generation has grown up believing that domination is normal, that collective punishment is justified, and that the rule of law is optional when the victims are Palestinian. This moral blindness is not only unsustainable — it is self-destructive. No democracy can endure while ruling over another people by force.
Leadership requires courage — the courage to tell hard truths to one’s own people, to seek reconciliation rather than revenge, and to understand that security without justice is an illusion. Israel needs leaders willing to imagine a future beyond military dominance, beyond permanent occupation, beyond the endless cycle of fear. That future begins with acknowledging Palestinian humanity, ending the siege of Gaza, and committing to a genuine path toward peace — not through slogans, but through action.
The international community, too, must face its own complicity. Year after year, Western nations have armed and financed policies they claim to regret. Statements of “concern” and “restraint” ring hollow when accompanied by weapons shipments and vetoes at the United Nations. The moral hypocrisy is staggering. If the world truly wants to see peace, it must stop enabling impunity. Accountability must no longer be a word reserved for others.
The choice before Israel — and those who support it — is stark. Continue down the current path and embrace perpetual war, isolation, and moral decay. Or confront the truth: that the survival of the Jewish state depends not on the subjugation of the Palestinians, but on coexistence with them. A free, secure Israel can only exist alongside a free, secure Palestine. Anything less is a slow march toward self-destruction.
The world is watching. History is recording. The question is whether Israel will continue to define itself by fear and force, or rediscover the humanity that once inspired its founding vision. It is time to face the inescapable reality — that peace is not the absence of enemies, but the presence of justice. Only by reclaiming that truth can Israel hope to find its way back from the moral abyss.
Mihran Kalaydjian is a devoted civic engagement activist for education spearheading numerous academic initiatives in local political forums with over twenty years’ experience in government relations, legislative affairs, public policy, community relations and strategic communications in Los Angeles, California.