Last Sunday was one of the hardest, most heartbreaking days an Israeli can remember, and we’ve had quite a few such days to remember since the massacre of Oct. 7. You could almost see a dark cloud hovering over people鈥檚 heads. And there was some rain in Tel Aviv, for the first time since the beginning of the long, hot, summer.听

Six innocent Israelis were executed by Hamas in the deep, dark, suffocating tunnels of Gaza, having survived 11 months in captivity. It was as sudden and as pointless as it was cruel. Maybe their captors panicked and wanted to escape, maybe they were aiming to put pressure on Israel, maybe they had other reason we don鈥檛 yet understand. Maybe they had a reason we don鈥檛 need to understand because, ultimately, this is what Hamas is planning for all of us. Hand them the opportunity, and they鈥檇 kill us all. That鈥檚 a lesson we learned that can鈥檛 be easily forgotten.

So, on Sunday the country was sad, and it was frustrated, and it was angry. All Israelis were angry with Hamas. Many were also angry with the Israeli government. These Israelis believe that the government should have done more to secure a hostage deal with Hamas. And for some reason they believe that they are the majority 鈥� but they aren鈥檛. Well 鈥� that depends on the exact question they are asked, but by and large, Israelis are willing to accept a painful deal to secure the release of the remaining hostages, and they aren鈥檛 quite sure that there鈥檚 a deal on the table. The government is telling them that there isn鈥檛 one. So, in a way, this becomes not a question of supporting the deal but rather a question of trusting the government.听

Things are becoming more complicated because the government says there isn鈥檛 a deal, and the heads of the defense establishment, including the defense minister, are more than hinting that a deal would be possible if the government wanted to have one. They don鈥檛 absolve Hamas from responsibility for the fact that a deal wasn鈥檛 yet reached. They don鈥檛 absolve the Israeli government either.

Things are becoming more complicated because the government says there isn鈥檛 a deal, and the heads of the defense establishment, including the defense minister, are more than hinting that a deal would be possible if the government wanted to have one.听

That may be the saddest thing about Israel鈥檚 current state of mind, except, of course, from having to mourn for the innocent lives lost. Israelis 鈥� and not a negligible fraction of them 鈥� are willing to believe that their government is indifferent to the fate of the hostages. They are willing to believe that their government gave up on the hostages. Worse still, they are of the view that the true reason for such a position isn鈥檛 strategy 鈥� it鈥檚 purely political calculation. Just pause to consider the level of cynicism they attribute to their war leader. They think that he is willing to let Hamas execute more hostages lest his coalition falters.听

I do not want to believe such a thing. I assume 鈥� and there鈥檚 no way to know for sure 鈥� that the PM mixes strategic and political considerations without him 鈥� and maybe us 鈥� having the ability to differentiate between the two. Humans have great ability for self-delusion and self-justification. In many instances they believe what they need to believe 鈥� such as: I oppose the deal because it鈥檚 bad for Israel (and not because it鈥檚 good for me to oppose it). Or: I blame the government for not having a deal because it鈥檚 clear that its only reason to oppose a deal is political (and not because the proposed deal is either nonexistent or strategically harmful). 听

On Sunday evening, hundreds of thousands of Israelis took to the streets in protest. They cried that they want a deal 鈥渘ow.鈥� They were assuming the worst about their government 鈥� and in return, the government and its supporters assumed the worst about them. In both cases, the assumption is that there are no noble, principled, reasoned motivations. In both cases the assumption is that even amid war all that Israelis care about is politics. The obstacles to a deal are merely a tool for keeping the coalition together 鈥� the protest for the hostages is merely a tool for hammering the coalition that the opposition dislikes.听

I do not want to fall into this trap of cynicism. But it鈥檚 a trap that鈥檚 quite hard to avoid. Am I certain that government ministers truly care about getting the hostages out? Am I certain that protesters鈥� aim is the release of hostages and not the fall of government? The most sacred region of policy consideration – thinking about saving the lives of abducted Israelis who are buried under the ruins of the Gaza strip 鈥� is tainted by cynical politics. I鈥檇 join a protest against that! I鈥檇 join it if I would not suspect that this protest is also tainted by cynical politics.

Something I wrote in Hebrew

Here鈥檚 what I wrote on Justice Minister Yariv Levin鈥檚 blocking the appointment of a Chief Justice unless or until some of his demands for 鈥渞eform鈥� are met:

His holy war for legal reform, which seemed irresponsible and promiscuous even a year ago, seems almost senseless now that Israel is daily counting its dead. After all, the cabinet members told us 鈥� they explained to us 鈥� that it is difficult for Israel to start a war in Lebanon, against Hezbollah, because it is difficult to focus on two fronts at the same time. Justice Minister Levin seems to want to prove that it is in fact possible: he will fight against the High Court as if there is no war in Gaza and the northern border. So here, a second front has opened, just not in the right place.

A week鈥檚 numbers

JPPI conducted its survey on Sunday morning. So Israelis were answering this question as they were digesting the devastating news from Gaza.

A reader鈥檚 response:

Rivka Borisov asks: Is it true that many Israelis are leaving the country? There were some reports on this in the Israeli press. Answer: We don鈥檛 know. And I鈥檓 not sure what we mean by 鈥渕any.鈥� It is fair to assume 鈥� and there are signs that this is what鈥檚 happening 鈥� the number of leaving Israelis had risen in recent months.听

Shmuel Rosner is senior political editor. For more analysis of Israeli and international politics, visit Rosner鈥檚 Domain at jewishjournal.com/rosnersdomain.