Opinion | Amid the Gaza war and the threat from Hezbollah, a gloomy mood is spreading in Israel

“There is a sadness and hopelessness that is gripping everyone,” an Israeli journalist told a group of visiting American scholars organized by the nonpartisan group Academic Exchange. A member of an Israeli think tank said, “We are in dire straits. We are facing the worst threats since the War of Independence (1948).” An archaeologist confessed, “I have never been as pessimistic about Israel’s future as I am now. … It’s depressing. It’s frightening.” These are not isolated cases: In a May poll, only 37 percent of Israeli Jews said they were very optimistic about Israel’s future, down from 48 percent in March.

Numerous analysts have pointed out how traumatized Israelis still are from the horrific October 7 Hamas attack. And no wonder. In my lifetime, the United States has experienced two great national traumas, two decades apart: the 1979-1981 Iran hostage crisis and the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on Washington and New York. Israel experienced a series of disasters on the same day, when Hamas killed more than 1,200 Israelis and kidnapped about 250 more. It was the worst disaster to befall the Jewish people since the Holocaust.

The remains of the 80 or so hostages believed to still be alive in Gaza are visible all over Israel. Many people wear yellow ribbons and signs saying “Bring them home” are everywhere. In such a small country, everyone seems to have a connection to this tragedy. One woman burst into tears as she told us that the daughter of a close friend is still being held in Gaza – and that her own daughter, a soldier, narrowly escaped a terrible fate on October 7 at a military base overrun by Hamas fighters.

Israel has undertaken the largest mobilization of reservists in its history, and citizen soldiers are exhausted from the constant call-ups. One Hebrew University student – a reservist in the Armored Corps – told us how he had to study for his university courses in the middle of the night in his tank near the Lebanese border. “Many of us are tired,” he said. He and other reservists are angry that the ultra-Orthodox – a community of 1.2 million people in a country of 7 million Jews – remain exempt from military service, increasing the burden on the rest of society. (Israel’s Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that the ultra-Orthodox must be drafted.)

That strain could grow even greater because Israel faces the prospect of a major war against Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed militia in Lebanon whose military capabilities far exceed those of Hamas. Since Oct. 7, Hezbollah has shelled northern Israel, driving 60,000 Israelis from their homes. Israel has responded with airstrikes on Hezbollah leaders and positions. Now the Israeli public is demanding that the military push Hezbollah back from the border so Israel’s internally displaced people can return to their homes in time for the start of the school year in the fall. But doing so risks plunging the already depleted Israel Defense Forces into another deadly quagmire, while Hezbollah may launch its arsenal of 150,000 rockets at targets across Israel.

Last week, Shaul Goldstein, the manager in charge of Israel’s power grid, made headlines when he said Hezbollah leader Hasan Nasrallah could “knock out the Israeli power grid” at any time if he wanted to. “After 72 hours without power in Israel, life here will be impossible,” Goldstein warned. “We are not in good shape and we are not prepared for a real war.”

Despite Israel’s war efforts, few international observers show much sympathy for the Jewish state. The world’s attention is focused almost exclusively on the undeniable suffering of Palestinians in Gaza, while Hamas gets away with hiding behind civilians in violation of the laws of war. As one former Israeli government official told us, Hamas’s strategy puts Israel in a hopeless situation: “If you defend yourself, you will become a pariah, and if you don’t defend yourself, you will disappear.”

Few Israelis express much sympathy for the suffering of Palestinians; they focus on their own grief. Many of the Israelis we spoke to thanked us for coming at a time when Israel feels abandoned by much of the world. The sense of being under siege was particularly palpable at the Hebrew University, which has struggled with boycotts from European and American universities despite being a melting pot where Israeli Jews and Arabs are educated side by side.

The incessant international criticism of Israel may prove to be a mistake in getting more Israelis to support the right-wing government: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s approval rating, while still low, has recovered somewhat, now standing at 31 percent from a post-October 7 low of 24 percent, putting him ahead of opposition leader Benny Gantz for the first time in a year. Netanyahu may have been helped by the International Criminal Court issuing an arrest warrant for him (along with Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Hamas leaders) on May 20. The ICC’s move was widely seen in Israel, even by Netanyahu’s opponents, as an attack on the country as a whole.

But Netanyahu’s hold on power only exacerbates Israel’s dire situation. The prime minister cannot agree on a “day-after plan” for Gaza because his right-wing coalition partners have threatened to overthrow his government if he grants the Palestinian Authority any role in governing Gaza or promises to facilitate the establishment of a Palestinian state, no matter how far in the future. Israeli generals are beginning to complain that the destruction of Hamas is not a realistic goal and that without a political endgame in Gaza, their forces are doomed to perpetual war. In response, Netanyahu’s son, Yair Netanyahu, posted vitriolic attacks on social media against the leadership of the Israeli military and intelligence services, reminiscent of former President Donald Trump’s insane attacks on the “deep state.”

The divide between civilians and the military has never been wider in Israel. The same is true of the divide between most Israelis and the ultra-Orthodox, and between right and left. The government’s critics have organized protests to demand a ceasefire that would bring the hostages home, while the government’s far-right supporters are demanding that the war continue until Hamas is destroyed. Many even suspect that Netanyahu is prolonging the war to stay in power.

This is all pretty depressing. One of the few bright spots during my trip occurred in a most unlikely place. Kibbutz Kfar Aza in southern Israel, on the border with Gaza, was attacked by armed Hamas fighters on October 7. The terrorists went door to door, killing and kidnapping. 64 residents were murdered, 19 kidnapped. The aftermath of the attack is still visible in the bullet-torn homes of the victims.

Shahar Shnorman, a 62-year-old former soldier, is one of the few refugees who have returned to Kfar Aza. Of the roughly 800 residents on October 7, fewer than 20 live there today, he told us. He gave our group a heartbreaking tour of the devastation and described his own ordeal on the day of the attack. (He and his wife hid in their house with the only weapon they had – a pocket knife – and prayed that the heavily armed terrorists would not come in.) Some of his neighbors are still being held in hellish captivity in Gaza. He would have every right to be bitter and vengeful.

Nevertheless, he said: “I still believe in peace. If we want to live a normal life in five, ten or 15 years, we have to start talking to the Palestinians. If you talk, you don’t fight. … They shoot at us, we shoot at them. We have tried that for 100 years. That’s enough. Let’s try something else. Let’s try to make peace.”

Admittedly, few Israelis share his hope for peace. But when I left Israel, Shnorman’s resilience and optimism in the midst of grief and suffering gave me a small glimmer of hope for the future.