Why I went to Israel: The importance of listening across divisions | Opinion

I recently traveled to Israel with a bipartisan delegation of 250 state legislators — to ask questions and try to understand a conflict that has cost far too many innocent lives.

I’ve watched the devastation in Gaza with horror. The civilian toll is staggering. Children, families, entire neighborhoods wiped out. I’ve also seen the anguish of Israeli families mourning murdered loved ones.

This appalling loss of life demands more than slogans and outrage. It demands inquiry and listening. It demands that we not retreat into ideological camps where empathy ends.

This trip offered a once-in-a-lifetime chance to ask high-level politicians, soldiers, citizens, Jews, Muslims and critics of the Israeli government what they see, fear and believe the path forward should be.

We visited the Oct. 7 massacre sites to hear from survivors exactly what happened. We hid in bomb shelters as missiles were launched into Israel. None of this could be replicated by surfing websites from home.

At the state dinner with the Israeli president, I publicly told him that Israel’s international support is evaporating due to the Gaza civilian death toll and asked what the government is doing to protect civilians. I could deliver this message to top leadership only because I was in the room.

When invited by the Israeli Foreign Ministry, I secured assurance that my attendance would not be represented as an endorsement of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government.

The recent op-ed attacking our delegation wrongly claims we planted an Idaho flag to show “unwavering” support for Israel’s government. In fact, we planted a tree honoring the victims of the horrific Oct. 7 massacre.

Nor was there nefarious concealment as the letter accuses — for security reasons we did not advertise the trip in advance, but I have openly responded to inquiries. Legislators travel with international delegations all the time — usually without public proclamations.

Such misunderstandings exemplify what happens when folks rush to attack rather than discuss.

We are living in a dangerous time of political violence and censorship. Don’t we need more effort to understand each other, not less?

Demonizing and forbidding dialogue doesn’t solve conflicts. If we’re serious about peace, we must try to comprehend each other’s beliefs, motives and objectives. Shouting across oceans has never ended a war. Speaking face to face might not either, but it’s a start.

Some have suggested that talking to Israeli leaders legitimizes their military actions. But dialogue is not endorsement.

In the Idaho Legislature, I have listened to endless advocacy for repealing Medicaid expansion and denying LGBTQ+ equality. I am quite capable of hearing a position and rejecting it. Listening does not mean you are brainwashed by propaganda.

Mourning the deaths of Palestinians does not require denying the suffering of Israelis or their very real, ongoing security threats. Opposing Hamas’s actions does not mean endorsing the actions of the Israeli government.

Ending violence requires understanding why it’s happening. It’s easy to point fingers and moralize from a distance. The harder path is to lean in, listen and learn. The people caught in this war deserve that much from us.

When I entered the Legislature 11 years ago, I was warned I’d never get anything done as a superminority Democrat. Instead, I have successfully passed a vast array of legislation spanning education, healthcare access, clean energy, criminal justice reform and more.

This was possible because I work to understand differing viewpoints. If you want someone that will indignantly shun the other side, I’m not your person. I prefer useful results.

I went to Israel with questions, not answers, and I return with conviction that peace will only come when we speak not just about each other, but to each other.

I do not pretend to be an expert on the Israel-Gaza war. I know more than I did a week ago; there is obviously much more to learn. It was not possible to visit Gaza due to security concerns, but someday I hope to do so.

If we truly care about ending the violence, then we must reject the false comfort of ideological purity and embrace the messy work of dialogue.

Rep. Ilana Rubel, D-Boise, represents Legislative District 18 in the Idaho House.