By: Yoram Yahav

Yesterday at 7:05 AM, as though synchronized in hell, a rain of rockets fell on Paris, Istanbul, London, Copenhagen, Washington DC, San Diego, Buenos Aires, Rio and Beijing. They dropped from the sky like angels of death hitting cars, buildings, kindergartens and empty lots. The leaders of the cities found themselves helpless against the wave of fear and devastation caused by only a few seconds of explosions and smoke.

This simulated scene obviously sounds foreign to many of the readers of this newsletter around the world. However, it sounds very familiar to those of us living in Israel. It is happening not in simulated virtual realities, but in reality. How would you feel my San Diego friend if rockets were shot from Tijuana, Mexico into your neighborhood? How would you feel Senator Joe Blow if rockets shot from Cuba would land on the roof of your children’s school next to Dupont Circle in Washington DC? And how would you feel Mr. Erdoğan of Turkey, if a Syrian kid playing in the backyard of his parents’ house, would shoot a long range missile right into Ankara? Well, allow me to speculate on your feelings and reactions my dear virtual friends. Basically, you would be infuriated, you would want to catch those responsible for these preposterous and despicable acts.

What is happening here? Would anyone care to truly explain it to me, I am all ears. Isn’t it obvious to most of us sane and open-minded human beings? The Hamas, a movement declared and recognized as a terrorist organization, shoots all year-round thousands of rockets into Israel, striking innocent civilians. Is the world blind? The routine repeats itself over and over and over again, up until Israel loses its patience and reacts.

There are so many smart and intelligent Arabs, don’t they comprehend what is happening? Do they hate Jews or anything associated with Israel so badly that they are willing to ignore the truth and blindly support terrorists?

I believe I am a pretty reasonable guy. My friends are spread over many countries, many of them Arab Muslim. My personal opinions about race and religion are quite modern and tolerant and I could care less if a person is white, black, green or yellow, as long as they serve the good of us all. I oppose any sort of violence or killing. However, As do many of my friends from both sides of the political arena, I believe that at this stage using diplomatic means with unreasonable people doesn’t work anymore. The only way to stop the terror inflicted on Israel is by getting to the people who “shoot those bombs.”

Forgive me for being so blunt, but sometimes, sitting thousands of miles away and watching the news from your comfortable couch, is not the same as running to shelters all day long and spotting white streaks of smoke in the sky.