Danny Orbach（ダニ・オルバフ）

Saturday morning, October 7, 2023, should have been a festive day in Israel. The end of the Jewish high holidays is usually marked by prayers, joy, and dancing with Torah scrolls. Many Israeli youngsters preferred to celebrate the holiday by having a nature party near the border between Israel and Gaza. However, we all woke up to shocking news instead. More than 1,500 militants from the Hamas terrorist group invaded Israel and occupied dozens of military bases, villages, and other rural communities. They stormed the nature party and invaded several larger towns. What happened was far from being a terror attack; it was, in fact, a genocide in the making.

イスラエル軍による地上侵攻が近い――。米国は武装組織ハマスへの報復を支持。一方で、パレスチナに同情を寄せる日本人は少なくない。ガザ地区を封鎖して電気や水の供給を止めるのは国際法違反だと非難する声は欧州からも聞こえてくる。こうした冷ややかな「空気」を、イスラエル人はどのように受け止めているのか。日本に留学経験がある軍事史家で、国立ヘブライ大学教授のダニ・オルバク氏がAERAdot.に緊急寄稿。胸の内を明かした。