Clifford May observes that “Israelis have only begun the painful process of examining the failures” that led to the October 7 attack by Hamas and other Islamists. Chief among them was the belief that “if Gazans’ lives improved” including “more and better-paying jobs, schools for their children, and improved health care” than Hamas leaders would “refrain from initiating” another war. It must be said: this is an old ailment.
Both Israelis and many of their allies have long believed that economic inducements could lessen hostility to Zionism, the belief in Jewish self-determination. In 1896, Theodore Herzl, arguably the founding father of political Zionism, argued that Jewish settlement in their ancestral homeland would bring financial benefits to non-Jews, as well.
In 1919, Chaim Weizmann, Herzl’s successor of sorts, similarly hailed the transformative impact of establishing a Jewish “national home.” Weizmann inked an agreement with Faisal, the future ruler of both Syria and Iraq, asserting that the Zionist Organization would undertake a “survey” of the economic possibilities and “report on the best means for development.”
Zionists did indeed bring untold economic benefits to the land. Many of the hospitals and universities in both Gaza and the so-called West Bank were built by Israelis. Israel itself is the famous “Start Up Nation” and a leading light in numerous fields. But for Palestinians this was the road not taken.
Palestinian leaders have, without exception, refused to recognize the Jewish state’s right to exist.
A fundamental tenet of their ideology is to tear down and destroy, and they’ve proven time and again that they will sacrifice their own people to do so. Promises of economic riches and measurable improvements to quality-of-life count for little with an ideology that celebrates child “martyrs” and suicide bombers. Ultimately, there can be no compromise over the most basic ask: the right to exist.
Sean Durns
Washington D.C.
The writer is a senior research analyst for the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis
(Note: A slightly different version of this letter appeared in the Washington Times on December 18, 2025)