Israeli escape: « Everyone is investigating whether they can get a European pass »

The war in Gaza has been going on for nineteen months and some end does not seem to be imminent. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently announced that Israel will take over the entire Gaza Strip.

This happens at the same time that around 70 percent of the Israelis instead want to see an end to the war. At the same time, 40 percent of the country’s residents state that they could consider moving away from the country.

Last year, 60,000 Israelis emigrated without returning, which was twice more than the year before.

Political scientist Isabell Schierenbeck is researching Israeli domestic policy and says that most who move do so because of the war. But the legal reforms that the government wants to introduce are also a common cause.

– I have hardly a single friend or colleague who has not investigated their opportunities to get dual citizenship. And it is a serious problem if many move, it would mean a huge flight of knowledge, says Isabell Schierenbeck.

Ophir Bromberger lives in Tel Aviv and says they are pessimistic for the future. He has long demonstrated against the government, their proposed reforms and against the war policy it conducts. He also considers it good to have alternatives if the situation in Israel would be further aggravated.

– People are getting tired of demonstrating. There are many good people in Israel, but many are disappointed and lack hope. Now everyone is investigating whether they can get a European passport. My family and I recently bought a house in Italy to have a sanctuary. Just in case that … you know, he says.

According to Ophir Bromberger, there are also other reasons why Israelis want citizenship in countries other than just Israel.

– The United States put pressure on Hamas and then released Hamas one in hostage with double citizenship. Our government makes no effort at all to get rid of those who only have an Israeli pass.

Does this mean that the Israelis no longer trust that the government should protect them?

– Quite! A majority has begun to understand that large decisions are made without strategic thinking. They just want to keep the government coalition alive and Netanyahu out of jail, says Bromberter.

Benjamin Netanyah’s play and the threats of a total starvation disaster among the civilian population in Gaza have also got countries that are usually friendly to condemn Israel’s escalated offensive in sharper terms.

The outside world requires Israel to allow deliveries of food, fuel and other supplies before the famine disaster in Gaza becomes total. Netanyah’s government has long opposed the help.

The world’s increased pressure is also beginning to feel in Israel, says Isabell Schierenbeck. However, it is not the famine in Gaza that has mobilized the Israelis in their resistance to the war.

– It’s more about hostage than about the suffering of the Palestinians. It is difficult to imagine how important the hostage question is if you have not been to Israel since Hamas attack. You can hardly walk a meter in Tel Aviv without seeing a lamp post or a shop window with a sticker or a picture of someone in hostage, says Isabell Schierenbeck.

Also Ophir Bromberger notes That it is more of the hostage than the famine in Gaza that upset the Israelis. According to him, this is partly due to the fact that the Israeli news reporting differs significantly from the gaza reporting of the European media.

Bromberger follows himself with foreign media to get a more objective picture of the events in Gaza, he says.

– The wide mass in Israel is not exposed to pictures of starvation and bombings, and they also do not want to see it.

A further sign that more Israelis are starting to get enough of the war at the beginning of the week when Yair Golan, Israeli opposition politicians and former top military, criticized the Israeli government’s warfare. He warned at the same time that Israel is becoming a pariast.

« A healthy state does not for war against civilians, does not kill babies as a hobby and does not set goals for themselves to banish an entire population, » he said according to the newspaper Haaretz.

– It was good that he said so. It is always more difficult for the Israeli public to live in denial. More and more people have begun to show their dissatisfaction, but not enough, says Bromberger.

According to Schierenbeck, Israel is now facing a crossroads. The next election will be extremely important, she says.

– The question is what the distribution of power between the court, the Riksdag and the government should look like in the future, but also what role Judaism should have in society.

– Since January 2023, this government has wanted to disrupt the previous distribution of power to be able to drive Israel in a more illiberal and religious direction. The election of government after the next election will be important for what path Israel takes, she says.