These are historic times for the Jewish People and very meaningful times for those of them in Israel. We are fighting a brutal war with an enemy who knows no boundaries and knows no rules.
Yes, historic times for the Jewish people.
I often visit the square in front of the Tel Aviv Museum of Art which has been renamed "Hostage Square" where families of hostages gather to tell their stories. It’s a holy experience, quite somber gathering to hear families talk about their loved ones who are missing. Trying to keep hope alive. Amidst the daily news of another dead hostage's body recovered by the IDF. It's an experience which can’t be described in words. The most raw emotion one can imagine.
Spent time this week with HAMAS-ISIS survivors, Margalit Moses and Raz Ben Ami whose families I have had the blessing of getting to know. Such horror stories. Such stories of anguish from our people.
Hospitals are filled with heroic soldiers who have been injured. Today there were ten funerals. Our tiny country is devastated by their deaths and yet our heroic IDF soldiers fight for our values, for our country, for our people, for our nation and for the West to valiantly protect us. Thank you IDF.
And every day sees historic things happening. Was honored to attend an event at ZOA House with Rami Davidian, the hero who saved 750 people at the Nova Festival by driving back and forth again and again. And people praised him, rightfully so, as a hero from another world. Truly something which must be remembered for generations.
And in that same impactful event where Rami was honored so too was Gideon Abbas, the Druze-Arab grandfather of an Arab-Israeli fallen soldier who, to a packed crowd in the midst of a war, pronounced, “ We believe in Israel and Zionism.” As his grandson was memoralized as an outstanding IDF soldier, Abbas proclaimed “Israel needs to destroy Hamas until the end. There is no other state, ony the State of Israel which must be protected.” Touching words during the war.
This is a long war which will reshape the entire world. The Jewish world as well will need to rebuilt, as will the state of Israel. For now, however we must stay focused on war efforts and ensuring our complete victory. We must fully support our troops and heroes and people in so many ways.
In so many ways there must be support of our state. While groups are starting to visit, there should be more. Rightfully, this weekend the first and largest business delegation since the war started will be arriving of 65 investors, CEOs, and senior executives of US-based technology, venture capital, and private equity firms including leaders from Bain Capital, Meetup.com, Apollo, Houzz, TPG, Susquehanna Growth Equity, and many others.
“After October 7th, we feel it is critical for venture capital and technology business leaders to stand with Israel. That means more than donating, but also being present to say that we have always been and will always be there to support Israel’s flourishing tech ecosystem. We will invest and continue to stand with “Start-Up Nation,” said David Siegel, CEO of Meetup.com and co-organizer of the Israeli Tech Mission. Kudos and thank you. The perfect time to invest in Israel.
Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli recently told a story where he quoted the late Professor Shalom Rosenberg, a professor of Philosophy and Jewish Thought at the Hebrew University as saying “Pure evil has repeatedly chosen the Jewish people.” And as Chikli eloquently put it, October 7th reminds us of the pure evil of Hitler and the Nazis. Of how even as his own death approached Hitler continued to work for the murder of Jews. And Chikli rightly notes as Jews if we are the ultimate enemy of evil Hamas, then clearly we are on the side of light. Clearly we are doing something good and light will overcome darkness.
Am Israel Chai.
Ronn Torossian is an Israeli-American entrepreneur and author.