Alon Gratch writes March 1, 2015:
In the aftermath of World War II, Israeli foreign policy rested on the idea that if you want to make history, you must forget history. This idea allowed the government to negotiate with Germany over diplomatic relations and financial restitution on the basis of self-interest rather than emotions. It resulted in a tremendous economic growth and greater security for the fledgling state.
Holocaust privatization
But then came the Adolf Eichmann trial of 1961, bringing home to all Israelis the horrific personal stories of the survivors and ushering in what historian Hanna Yablonka called “the privatization of the Holocaust.” Starting then, Israel gradually embraced the opposite idea, the notion that those who are unwilling to remember history are doomed to repeat it, as the organizing principle of its foreign policy.
This also led to greater prosperity and security for Israel.
But whereas the earlier philosophy was based on Israeli Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion’s practical vision and the cold calculus of a few professional policymakers, the latter was based on a set of powerful emotions experienced by the whole nation. Due to the language barrier and the general intensity and vitality of life in Israel, foreign observers often fail to grasp the extent to which the trauma of the Holocaust has penetrated every aspect of Israeli life.
As a result of decades of intensive educational programs, the Holocaust has become the central building block of the national identity of many Israelis. A 1992 study among university students studying to become teachers found that close to 80% identified with the statement, “We are all Holocaust survivors.” And in present-day Israel, hardly a day goes by without some mention of Holocaust in the media.
Underlying this national preoccupation are the twin emotions of anxiety and rage, along with the refusal or inability to tolerate any feelings of helplessness. “Never again will Jews go like lambs to the slaughter” is a phrase inculcated in the mind of every Israeli child.
Psychological burden
More than anything else, it is this psychological burden that will determine Israeli reaction to the West’s negotiations with Iran.
