'a wonderful morning for the world' — israelis celebrate u.s. strikes on iran
adam zivo: in israel, people are firm in their commitment to ending the threat posed by the islamic republic
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an elderly man sits in an empty alley in the old city of jerusalem on monday.
john wessels/afp
jerusalem — “hallelujah. we’ve been waiting for this moment. i knew it would come. a lot of people doubted that it would come,” said fleur hassan-nahoum, an israeli politician and media commentator, as we waited in a public bomb shelter in jerusalem early sunday morning.
hours earlier, the united states struck several of iran’s key nuclear facilities, in some cases using bunker-buster bombs to destroy deeply buried infrastructure that had been beyond the reach of israeli weapons. while the exact extent of the inflicted damage was (and remains) unknown, it was already evident, even in those first hours, that much had been destroyed.
despite the sleep deprivation of an early-morning alarm, the mood in the shelter was celebratory.
“israelis have been waiting patiently for american involvement, and israelis don’t know how to wait patiently for anything,” continued hassan-nahoum, who said that she did not fear retaliation from the iranian leadership because israel had spent the previous week “cutting off their legs.”
she said that, “being in a shelter at 7:30 in the morning, losing people, having buildings destroyed, running to shelters, having our children traumatized. everybody’s willing to do that for the sake of destroying the existential threat against our country.”
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raphael, a dual u.s.-israeli citizen, was similarly elated. “i think it’s a wonderful morning for the world. we’ve woken up to a new reality where we’ve seen one potential nuclear menace taken off of the map,” he told me amid the dim light.
having just returned from the united states, he understood that americans are “reticent” about getting entangled in another middle eastern “forever war.” however, he feels that this situation is different from iraq or afghanistan, because, this time, the goal is not to reconstruct a foreign nation, but only to de-fang an emerging nuclear state that could pose a “very credible threat to the west.”
he said that regime change is needed, characterizing the islamic republic as an “evil state that’s trapped the (iranian) people in tyranny.” like others in the shelter, he was unconcerned about iranian retribution, because jews have “survived many tougher ordeals over thousands of years” and “whatever they throw our way, we’ve seen worse before.”
the alarm ended soon after and life resumed. the day was hot and sunny. iran had launched around 35 missiles that morning — far fewer than the hundreds that had been sent in the initial days of the war — but only three managed to land. at a nearby cafe, locals drank coffee and discussed the american strikes over pastries.
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but the city was relatively quiet. most businesses were closed by emergency mandate, and only food stores operated. one australian tourist, zevi gestetner, explained how the attacks caused his government to cancel its evacuation plans for the day, leaving his family stranded. they sat on a patio together, mulling their options, as buskers performed music down the street.
old jerusalem, with its labyrinthine streets of golden-hued limestone, was almost empty. there was only the sound of one’s own footsteps. shopkeepers loitered, listless in their solitude.
“i was so proud and happy that america bombed the nuclear facilities in iran. i think that this has been a long time coming,” said kaya, an israeli-american mother who resides in old jeruslam’s jewish quarter, as she walked her four young children to the park. “i think we saw what iran can do. i don’t think they could do any worse. we’ve already obliterated most of the potential of what they can do. so i’m not afraid.”
two female students — elena and kelsey — were similarly serene. “at least for me, personally, i’m not too shaken, emotionally,” said kelsey, who said that the situation was “definitely different than what i thought being in the middle of a war would be like.” both of them said that they felt safe — a sentiment they say is shared by most of their schoolmates — and that they trust in god to protect them.
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but a 16-year-old palestinian boy, rassem, said that he did not feel safe and that arabs who criticize the war are “immediately” jailed. “they are killing each other, and i don’t care about them. i just want to live freely and speak to my cultures. i need to speak freely, but i can’t, because i am a palestinian living in the old city,” he said.
eight other arabs in old jerusalem made similar claims, although none would provide interviews to elaborate. “we have family. we have kids. i hope you understand,” explained one shopkeeper. “it’s been two years. we need peace.” a trio of arab men said they were “obviously” opposed to u.s. involvement, but claimed that they would be imprisoned if they expressed such a view openly.
i messaged luai ahmed, an influential muslim journalist in israel, for his thoughts. he dismissed such claims of repression as “bulls–t,” and said that there are arab-israeli social media influencers who openly criticize israel, and even support iran, while living freely in israel.
“it’s true that in the immediate aftermath of october 7, the government arrested a number of arab citizens for social media activities, including liking or sharing certain posts. but let’s be clear: many of those posts crossed a line into glorifying or sympathizing with terrorism … there’s a moral and legal difference between criticism and incitement, especially when lives are at stake,” he wrote.
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adam zivo is reporting in israel on behalf of the news forum, a canadian television station.
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