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We emerged from slavery into freedom. The verse “Let my people go” became a universal call long ago, one that inspired the African-American struggle in the United States for freedom, liberty and equality. It remains one of the Jewish people’s most powerful messages to humanity.
But humanity has disappointed. It seems that today, even among the so-called enlightened — the champions of “progressive values” — free thought is being trampled. Truth has become optional. Agenda reigns supreme.
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Photo taken from the phone of one of the paramedics killed in Rafah shows emergency lights were on
(Photo: PALESTINIAN RED CRESCENT / AFP)
Just how wide is the gap between facts and agendas? Consider this: Hamas’ Health Ministry recently published its list of casualties up to the most recent ceasefire — over 50,000 names. Setting aside the fact that at least five research-based publications have contradicted these figures, let us — for argument’s sake — accept Hamas’ data, which serves as the main basis for the frequently voiced accusation of “genocide” against Israel.
Is it genocide? In previous conflicts, I used Hamas’ own figures to compare the age distribution of the general population in Gaza to the age distribution of the dead. The results were unequivocal: the vast majority of casualties were men of combat age. Yes — according to Hamas' own data.
This time, the task is far more complex. Analyzing a list of over 50,000 names is no simple feat. But we are living in a new era — the era of artificial intelligence. I don’t claim to be an expert in the tools or the methods. But at least two meticulous individuals have taken on this challenge — and it turns out both reached the same conclusion.
Before even discussing their findings, one must state clearly: in the case of genocide, there cannot and must not be any meaningful gap between the age distribution of the population and that of the casualties. Genocide, by definition, entails indiscriminate killing — the mass murder of women, children, infants and the elderly, all with the goal of eradicating a population. That is what happened in Darfur. That is what happened in Rwanda. That is not what happened in Gaza.
If it were genocide, there would be no statistical difference between men and women among the dead.
These figures can be called many things—but genocide is not one of them. Every innocent life lost is a tragedy, and the responsibility for this war, from its outset, lies with Hamas, which initiated this cursed war.
The ongoing war in Gaza, like previous ones, Hamas’ own data exposes the genocide lie. A breakdown of the casualties by age and gender, based on the list published by Hamas’ Health Ministry, shows a stark pattern: across nearly all fighting-age groups, from 14 to 59, men vastly outnumber women among the dead. In most of these age brackets, the number of male casualties is double or more than double that of females.
The figures are most striking in the core combatant age range. Between ages 20 and 44, Hamas data shows 5,850 women were killed, compared to 17,000 men—nearly a threefold difference. Again, these are not figures from an Israeli source but from Hamas itself. Among infants aged 0 to 4, the percentage of deaths roughly aligns with their proportion in the general population, hovering around 50 percent.
These figures can be called many things—but genocide is not one of them. Every innocent life lost is a tragedy, and the responsibility for this war, from its outset, lies with Hamas, which initiated this cursed war. There is also no denying that irregularities occurred during the fighting, possibly including war crimes. Certainly, there was likely reckless fire. Every suspicion of a war crime—such as the incident in which 15 paramedics were reportedly shot in Rafah—must be investigated, and indeed, many investigations have already been launched. But let us repeat: even if we take Hamas' data as accurate, it does not support the claim of genocide.
Truth and freedom in the age of slogans
As we celebrate the festival of freedom, one cannot ignore how the dominant voices in many leading Western media outlets and academic circles continue to chant the same refrain—empathy for Hamas, demonization of Israel. Many of those repeating this narrative, including so-called human rights organizations and activists, have not even bothered to examine Hamas’ own data.
Freedom of thought has been eroded. Freedom of speech has been silenced. Across much of academia and university campuses in the so-called free world, there is scarcely room to state the obvious: Hamas is a jihadist organization openly committed to the destruction of Jews and global domination.
What now passes for academia is often ideological indoctrination. It is no longer about presenting facts and drawing conclusions. Instead, agendas and narratives dominate, while facts lose all meaning.
Israel is part of the free world. And yet, one of the loudest voices accusing it of genocide is Dr. Lee Mordechai, who has previously been discussed in this publication. Does he have any expertise in urban warfare? Has he studied comparable battlefields involving Western armies and terror groups? It's doubtful. Yet he has used his credentials—as an Israeli, a Jew and a lecturer at the Hebrew University—to promote an antisemitic libel of genocide.
This is slavery in its most pitiful form. And it is not just Mordechai. It reflects a broader trend among a vast segment of the educated elite, which has turned into a chorus of slogan repeaters—spouting dogma, distortion and lies. Because it’s in vogue. Because it wins applause. Because facts no longer matter. Because even academic journals now publish based on agendas, not evidence.
We will die before we change
Nothing began on October 7. Back in 2016, the student union at the University of Massachusetts Amherst organized a public debate—one of the many held across countless campuses. At the time, students were still looking, though increasingly rarely, for a conservative speaker to balance prevailing views. Out of 1,300 faculty members on campus, they couldn’t find even one. Not one. It was conformity at its most pitiful.
“Students are fed up with anti-American preaching by professors,” read the headline in the student newspaper. “They demand intellectual diversity.” That demand was ignored. And since then, needless to say, things have only gotten worse.
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Nine years have passed. Just last week, I checked the same student paper. The most-read article was: “Portland University theology students no longer required to study ‘biblical texts’—they can now take a course in queer studies.”
Is queer theology even a thing? In today’s world, anything is. And it’s happening now, even amid massive budget cuts across U.S. universities, driven by the wave of woke absurdity and antisemitism. Much like Israel’s ultra-Orthodox community, which resists reforms despite threats of funding cuts, American academia now seems to be saying: “We will die before we change.”
The sin of non-disqualification
Let’s not fool ourselves—Israel, too, is in trouble. These past two weeks have been difficult. We remain trapped in conflicts where the most determined, stubborn and radical prevail. Too many people invoke the word “democracy” in vain. Political tyranny in the name of a coalition majority is not democracy. Nor is unrestrained judicial activism.
Ben-Dror Yemini Photo: Avigail UziMany of the criticisms against the judicial overhaul—not to be confused with judicial reform—are valid. But it seems that one decision in particular—the court’s ruling allowing Itamar Ben-Gvir to run for Knesset—was at least as damaging to Israeli democracy, if not more so, than most measures taken by the current coalition.
The lawmakers who passed the anti-racism law—designed to safeguard democracy—were wiser than the judges who trampled that law and weakened those very democratic safeguards.
So yes, we could use a little humility—and a little less certainty that so often crosses into radicalism. Because radicalism is not progress. It is not enlightenment. It is not freedom. It is enslavement to an agenda.
That’s what we are seeing in the “enlightened” world’s hostility toward Israel. There is no need for the same pattern to take root here, in Israel, against itself. Happy Passover.