The war has gone on long enough. With 59 hostages still in Gaza, it’s time for Israel to take a bold and painful step: commit to long-term deradicalization efforts while fighting to bring them home.
The crisis didn’t start on October 7, but that date changed everything. The Hamas attacks, the retaliatory strikes, and the human cost on both sides left deep scars. Now, with the clock ticking and dozens of innocent lives hanging in the balance, Israel faces a brutal question: what comes after force?
The Price of Rage and the Cost of Waiting
Hamas isn’t just an enemy army. It’s an ideology embedded in a generation of Palestinians raised on violence and martyrdom. That ideology isn’t going to vanish in airstrikes or crumble in rubble.
What do we do when military success still leaves us with civilians marinated in extremism?
Israel’s response to the October 7 massacre was swift and overwhelming. Entire neighborhoods in Gaza were turned to dust. But here we are, six months later, with 59 hostages still hidden, scattered, or dead. Families in Tel Aviv light candles nightly. Their pain has become a routine. Their hope — fragile.
Yet beyond the headlines and rallies, another question is simmering in policy circles: Is it time to think bigger than just retaliation?
Deradicalization Isn’t Soft — It’s Strategic
Let’s be honest — most Israelis don’t want to hear about deradicalization. Not after October 7. Not while hostages remain in cages or worse. But here’s the hard truth: Killing terrorists doesn’t destroy the ideology that made them.
Two things can be true at once:
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You can dismantle Hamas militarily and
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Also invest in a long-term strategy to uproot extremist indoctrination
Right now, it’s mostly the former. Schools in Gaza have long been filled with anti-Israel propaganda. Social media algorithms feed rage. Al Jazeera broadcasts reinforce the narrative of victimhood, turning teenagers into fighters.
The Israeli government has spent years working on counter-terrorism, border security, and intelligence. But on the ideological battlefield? Very little.
Hostages Are the Key to Shifting Strategy
Here’s where the 59 hostages matter more than just as individuals — although each life is a world. They’re also a potential pivot point.
Every prisoner swap brings up a moral dilemma: Should Israel release dozens of convicted terrorists for one kidnapped child or grandmother?
That’s not just a military or political question. It’s also philosophical.
For decades, these swaps have been one-sided. Israel trades prisoners who return to terror. Palestinians celebrate them as heroes. The system rewards the radicals.
But what if the next swap — if one happens — is different? What if it’s tied to soft-power concessions? To opening new educational initiatives in the West Bank and Gaza? What if it’s the start of a deeper shift?
The Generational Treadmill of Hate
To understand what’s really at stake, look back three decades.
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1993: Oslo Accords signed with cautious hope.
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1994: Palestinian Authority established, meant to usher in peace.
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1996: Al Jazeera launches and quickly becomes a platform for radical voices.
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2007: Hamas seizes control of Gaza.
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2023: Massacre on October 7.
The pattern? Every time there’s been a window for peace, radicalism filled the cracks.
Kids born in Gaza after 2007 have lived under Hamas their entire lives. They’ve never met an Israeli who wasn’t in uniform. They’ve never heard Hebrew without fear. They’ve never seen compromise work.
Meanwhile, Israeli children have grown up with bomb shelters and color-coded alerts. Everyone’s trauma is inherited.
Can Deradicalization Really Work?
Skeptics laugh at the idea. And sure, it won’t be easy.
But there are real-world examples. Post-war Germany. Post-genocide Rwanda. Even Saudi Arabia has tried its hand at turning former jihadists away from violence with mixed results.
Deradicalization can mean a hundred things — from banning incitement in textbooks to rebuilding civil society institutions to reimagining what Gaza could be without Hamas.
Israel doesn’t have to do it alone. It can’t. This would need regional buy-in, probably Gulf funding, and maybe — just maybe — fresh leadership in Ramallah.
None of this guarantees peace. But continuing down the current road guarantees more blood.
The Political Will Might Be the Hardest Part
Here’s where it gets really tricky: Israeli leadership isn’t unified. Far from it.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is under pressure from the right and the center. The opposition wants hostages back yesterday. Far-right ministers demand continued military pressure — no swaps, no negotiations, nothing but force.
Public sentiment is split. Some see any talk of deradicalization as weakness. Others are exhausted.
Then there’s the Palestinian side. Mahmoud Abbas’s credibility is a distant memory. Hamas still runs Gaza. And younger Palestinians aren’t exactly lining up to embrace coexistence.
Even so, deradicalization doesn’t need everyone onboard from day one. It just needs a start. A shift. A thread to pull.
What Happens If We Don’t?
Let’s be brutally clear: If this cycle continues, the next war is already on the calendar.
Hamas will regroup. The next generation will be angrier. And the hostages — if they’re not already dead — will vanish forever.
Deradicalization isn’t a soft option. It’s not a buzzword. It’s survival.
