Observation ·
Lessons from Clausewitz about the Information War against Israel
By John Spencer, Michal Cotler-WunshAmerica ignores the Gaza War’s “eighth front” at its own peril.
Gaza War 2023
Latest Mosaic Content for Gaza War 2023
Observation ·
Mosaic’s Defining Essays from 2025
By Jonathan SilverReflections on Israel, America, and the West that remind us we are not captive to fate.
Response ·
Benjamin Netanyahu Deserves Credit for Israel’s Stunning Triumph—and for Its Stunning Failures
By Shany MorThe prime minister doggedly pursued a strategy that few would have dared.
Monthly Essay ·
The Strategic Fruits of Israel’s Military Victory
By Arthur HermanIsrael contra mundum.
Observation ·
The Use and Abuse of “Genocide” by Those Who Should Know Better
By PhilologosMany people are delighted to be told that Israel is doing to the Palestinians of Gaza exactly what the Nazis did to the Jews of Europe.
Observation ·
No, the Israeli Minister of Defense Didn't Suggest Creating a Concentration Camp in Gaza
By PhilologosThe problem with history is not that it has no lessons but that the ones it has can be read in opposite ways.
Response ·
The Unsung Heroes Who Make Israeli Victory Possible
By Daniel PolisarOperation Rising Lion highlights the sacrifices and contributions of the IDF's reservists.
Monthly Essay ·
The Israeli Reservists Who Just Won’t Quit
By Daniel PolisarFighting Israel’s longest war, the IDF’s citizen soldiers are revitalizing the Zionist ideal.
Observation ·
Hamas Is Not Just a Terrorist Organization
By John Spencer, Solomon MoshkevichAt the start of this war, the jihadist group had governing authority, territorial control, a functioning bureaucracy, and a trained army.
Observation ·
Israel’s Second War of Independence
By Michael OrenThe generation fighting in Gaza and Lebanon is tempered, steeled, anything but fragile, and intensely patriotic.
Response ·
Israeli Territorial Concessions Worsen Anti-Semitism in the West
By Evelyn GordonWithdrawals are a triple loss for Jews outside of Israel. The only question is how much worse things have to get before that finally sinks in.
Response ·
Unless Israel Rejects Postmodern Strategy, It Won’t Be Able to Win
By Ran BaratzThe military failures underpin all others.
Response ·
The IDF’s High-Tech Investments Paid Off, but They Came at a High Cost
By Edward LuttwakNot postmodern fantasies, but a failure to preempt Hamas and Hizballah led to Israel’s current security crisis.
Observation ·
The Onslaught against the Jews Is an Onslaught against the West
By Melanie PhillipsHow the Palestinian narrative exploited a self-destructive weakness in Western society.
Observation ·
How the Jews Remain an Eternal People
By Ruth R. WisseWe Jews are the blue and white in the red, white, and blue.
Monthly Essay ·
What American Jews Gave After October 7: An Accounting
By Jack WertheimerIn response to crises in Israel and at home, American Jews mobilized to raise vast sums. But why was the community so unprepared? And did it rise to the occasion?
Response ·
Israel’s Mistake Was Viewing Hamas as a Minor Nuisance
By Amnon LordIf you are alienated from your identity as a Jew, it becomes harder to understand an enemy that wants to murder you because you are Jewish.
Response ·
The Peace Process Failed, but Its Bad Assumptions Live On
By Gadi TaubHow mistaken beliefs about human nature contributed to flawed strategy.
Observation ·
A Year On, Israelis Still Haven’t Found a Name for the Current War
By PhilologosEven as it becomes clear who will emerge victorious.
Response ·
Maintaining the Status Quo Is a Choice
By Rafi DeMoggeWhen every available cure has catastrophic side effects, it can be reasonable to prefer chronic illness.
Observation ·
October 7 and the Battle for the West
By Arthur HermanWhy Jews matter.
Response ·
Yes, Bad Policies Paved the Way to October 7. But What If They Were the Only Policies Available?
By Evelyn GordonDeferring dramatic action in the West Bank only works if you take the precautions necessary to survive and thrive.
Response ·
The Strategic Failures of October 7, One Year Later: A Symposium
By The EditorsA diverse group of writers engage in a vigorous debate over what went wrong on October 7, who's really to blame, and how that should influence Israel today and long into the future.
Monthly Essay ·
The Failed Concepts That Brought Israel to October 7
By Shany MorHow four interlocking ways of thinking combined to leave the Jewish state at the mercy of its enemies.
Observation ·
Israelis Have Three Different Words for “Hostages”
By PhilologosAnd one has a historical background that is not unrelated to the plight of the hostages in Gaza.
Observation ·
Do Jews Have Martyrs?
By Aton HolzerThe idea of martyrdom is an uncomfortable one for Jews. Yet respect for religious self-sacrifice finds its very origins among them, as I saw on Mount Herzl this summer.
Monthly Essay ·
How Israelis Probe Their Failings
By Scott AbramsonSince its birth, the Jewish state has convened unusually powerful commissions to investigate its own mistakes. Will the same happen now, and if not, why?
Observation ·
How the Eurovision Censors Helped Make Eden Golan a Star
By PhilologosIn trying to take references to October 7 out of the Israeli singer's now-famous song "Hurricane," the competition both accidentally improved it and made her a cause célèbre.
Monthly Essay ·
The Exodus Project: A Jewish Answer to the University Crisis
By Eric CohenAmerican Jews feel betrayed by the very institutions they helped build. It’s time for young Jews to go to colleges and universities that welcome and embrace them.
Monthly Essay ·
Jewish Studies against the Jews
By Andrew KossAs America's universities catch fire and its Jewish students grow more fearful, the field most likely to have something to say has remained silent—or worse. How did it go wrong?
