How much longer can we watch parents, siblings, and a nation cry? How much longer can we endure the loss of our soldiers? Not to mention the financial and economic toll on individuals and the country as a whole.

The past two years will be remembered in the minds of Israel's citizens and the Jewish people worldwide, not just for years to come, but for generations.

The recent Israeli military operation “Rising Lion” was launched in June 2025. The name "Rising Lion" is inspired by a biblical reference in this week’s Torah portion Balak: the blessings and prophecies of the wicked sorcerer Bilaam, “Look, a nation like a lioness will rise up, and like a lion he raises himself” (Numbers 23:24), which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cited before the operation began. “Behold, a people that rises like a lioness and raises itself like a lion. It does not lie down until it eats its prey and drinks the blood of the slain.”

The classic commentator Onkelos renders “until it eats its prey,” namely, “It will not settle in its land until it destroys (the enemy) and takes possession of the land of the nations.”

And Onkelos continues, “And drinks the blood of the slain. He prophesied that Moses would not die until he would strike down the Midianite kings dead, and he [Balaam] would be slain with them.”

The end of the rising up like a lion is supposed to end in “it destroys (the enemy).”

Jewish people are intelligent; the Torah says this. Smart people learn from history so it isn't repeated. Our unfortunate history is that we too often buckle under pressure and suffer enormous, terrible consequences. We need to learn from our mistakes.

Gamal Abdel Nasser, as a young Egyptian army officer, was surrounded by Israeli forces during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War in the "Faluja Pocket." Along with other Egyptian units, his brigade was cut off for weeks. The siege ended after the Israel-Egypt Armistice Agreement, signed on February 24, 1949, and brokered by the United Nations.

The agreement allowed the encircled Egyptians to withdraw with their weapons. The decision to lift the siege was a diplomatic move promoting peace talks.

As a military officer and later as President of Egypt, Nasser was a central figure in Egypt’s wars and conflicts with Israel, including the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, the Suez Crisis of 1956, and the 1967 Six-Day War. Nasser supported and authorized military and fedayeen (guerrilla) operations against Israel, including cross-border raids by Palestinian Arab militants trained and equipped by Egypt in the 1950s. These actions led to many Israeli casualties.

Additionally, Nasser’s regime was responsible for the expulsion and persecution of Egyptian Jews, especially after the Suez Crisis, which led to the forced migration of thousands of Jews from Egypt.

Egypt signed a peace treaty with Israel on March 26, 1979, very much to the chagrin of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi MM Schneerson. Since then, Egyptian leaders have historically expressed support for Arab causes against Israel through a combination of military action, political advocacy, public rhetoric, and symbolic gestures, adapting their approach according to changing regional and international dynamics.

Some peace. Hamas smuggled most of its arms and military supplies through Egypt, with Egyptian personnel cooperating and greatly benefiting from this smuggling, primarily via an extensive network of tunnels under the Gaza-Egypt border.

During the 1982 Lebanon War, Israel launched "Operation Peace for Galilee" with the stated goal of pushing Palestinian Arab armed groups, especially the PLO terrorist organization, away from its northern border. Although Israel's initial public objective was to advance only about 40 kilometers into Lebanon, Israeli forces quickly reached the outskirts of Beirut and laid siege to the city. The United States, led by envoy Philip Habib, sought a diplomatic solution to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe in Beirut.

International concerns about civilian suffering and the risk of regional escalation led to negotiations and the continued occupation of southern Lebanon with forces arrayed against Israel. (I should add again against the advice of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, who was pushing the IDF to continue on to Beirut.) Hezbollah filled the vacuum.

Ariel Sharon, Prime Minister of Israel, initiated and executed the Israeli "disengagementf"- read that "expulsion of Jews" - from the Gaza Strip in 2005. The United States and other international actors pushed for steps that would advance the peace process and stabilize the region. Sharon’s plan was partly a response to these pressures. The actual withdrawal began on Tisha B’Av, August 15, 2005, and was completed by September 12, 2005, with all Israeli civilians and military forces removed from Gaza.

We don’t need much of a reminder of what Gaza has become to Israel as a result of this "disengagement". (I should add again against the advice of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, who said it was suicide to give up an inch of land.)

While most recently in the “Lion Rising,” Israel had a great opportunity to continue its military campaign against Iran, but it buckled under pressure once again. It halted its campaign before bringing the enemy to its knees. Although a great miracle occurred, Iran's rhetoric remains highly adversarial, with repeated threats of retaliation and claims of military capability, while also promoting ideological themes of resistance and martyrdom.

There is no indication of a move toward reconciliation or moderation in Iran's official stance on Israel following the recent conflict. The rhetoric remains confrontational, with ongoing threats, claims of military strength, and calls for resistance and martyrdom.

This war in Gaza has dragged on too long, because of concern about harming the 20 live hostages still there. We have to free them by giving Hamas a decisive blow, not by giving in to its demands. And we could have ended this a long time ago if we hadn’t given in to all the calls to feed our enemies.

If we are to rise like a lion, we must ensure we finish the project with complete victory.

Giving in to pressure from wherever it comes has never benefited us. The smart ones among us, and God knows we have plenty of them, know exactly what to do. Almost every day that passes, we lose young people. Every day, the pain and scars on our community deepen.

We suffer today because of the terrible mistakes of the past.

Will we repeat that with our current campaign against Hamas? Don’t we owe it to ourselves and our children to learn from history, recognize our mistakes, and understand how we can avoid future pain, loss, and suffering?

God is on our side; we see miraculous signs every day, but God also grants us free will. Despite our foolish errors, God has saved us and continues to do so in miraculous ways.

Let us stand firm like a lion and finish the task, as the verse says in “And I shall walk broadly (in pride and confidence) Psalms 119:45, …”

“I am the Lord, your God, Who took you out of the land of Egypt from being slaves to them; and I broke the pegs of your yoke and (will) lead you upright.” Leviticus 26:13.

Rabbi Shlomo Ezagui is an author and lecturer.