We must insist that out of the October 7 tragedy must come lasting peace | Jo-Ann Mort

Friends of mine in the Israeli peace camp express the hope that out of such great tragedy could come a peaceful resolution

October 7 is a day of mourning. For Israelis, it is a reminder they remain a broken nation, with 101 hostages (many, perhaps half, presumed dead) still held in Gaza, and a dangerous escalation in the north as Israel battles Hezbollah. As one friend wrote to me today: Just when we think it can't get worse, it does."

There is Gaza: the heartbreak, massive civilian deaths, homelessness and hunger, resulting from the IDF invasion after 7 October, even as Hamas fights on and the Netanyahu government refuses to articulate a viable exit strategy.

Jo-Ann Mort is co-author of Our Hearts Invented a Place: Can Kibbutzim Survive in Today's Israel? She writes frequently about Israel for US, UK and Israeli publications

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