On this day, September 29, 1938, the Munich Conference took place, where British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain decided to surrender to Adolf Hitler—essentially “reaching an agreement” with him. He handed over Czechoslovakia like a lamb to the slaughter, became the hero of the peace camp for a day and a half, and then found himself facing World War II. Chamberlain proudly waved the piece of paper representing the agreement with Hitler that he brought back from Munich, only to witness the coffins of 70 million people filled over the next six years.
Winston Churchill famously said of Chamberlain's actions: "You were given the choice between dishonor and war. You chose dishonor, and you will have war."
Fast forward to today. Today could be the day when Israel decides, perhaps at the last moment, to turn the wheel against its enemies and those who seek its destruction, to say “no” to ongoing disgrace, and in doing so, perhaps prevent war—or at least avoid annihilation.
The start is not bad—Hassan Nasrallah has been eliminated. The man who dedicated 32 years of his life to the destruction of the world's only Jewish state ended his days in a bunker that served as his prison and, ultimately, his gallows. His violent campaign against Israel was cut short, but that alone is not enough.
Nasrallah’s most memorable speech was delivered the day after Israel withdrew from Lebanon in 2000. He wanted the message of the retreat to resonate throughout the Arab world: "Israel has nuclear weapons and the strongest air force in the region—but the truth is, it is weaker than a spider’s web," he declared. And they listened.
This statement encapsulated Nasrallah’s Spider Web Theory: Despite its military might, Israel is a spoiled, divided nation, overly sensitive to loss of life, which prevents it from fully fighting for its survival. Lacking resilience, it is a collection of quarreling immigrant tribes, self-destructive from within, needing only a small push from outside to collapse completely.
Nasrallah came to believe his own theory and managed to convince his allies in Iran and Gaza as well. The consequences of the Spider Web Theory have been on display ever since.
Eliminating Nasrallah is not enough—his ideology must be eradicated as well.
Crushing Nasrallah's theories
After Nasrallah’s body was crushed beneath tons of explosives, the mission must continue with the destruction of the Spider Web Theory:
1. Unity among us is essential. Most of the nation is already there, except for professional agitators from all sides.
2. Defeat the enemy until it surrenders. (What happens the day after, you ask? The enemy does not exist the day after, or it raises a white flag.)
3. Zero tolerance for any missile, Molotov cocktail, kite, or terrorist attack. The response to a Hezbollah tent on the border must be as severe as the response to a massacre of children; a rocket aimed at Sderot must be treated as seriously as one aimed at Kiryat Shmona or Tel Aviv. There should be zero tolerance for the primitive provocations from beyond the border.
We must confront the harsh reality: Every ceasefire offered to us is simply the enemy’s way of saying, “I wanted to kill 1,000 Jews, but I’ll wait so I can kill a million.” This applies to Yahya Sinwar, Lebanon, the West Bank, Iran, and anyone committed to the project of our destruction, one stage at a time. It’s the ultimate Spider Web mentality.
Our first resolutions for the new year: Victory is not a dirty word. Unity is a necessity for survival. And restraint—you can seek it elsewhere; we’ve had our fill of tragedies.
Or to put it simply: We’re not interested in a white sheet of A4 paper; call us when you raise a white flag.
Nasrallah is dead. Now we must destroy his ideology. The responsibility is ours.
May the year and its curses end.