There was a time when Israel understood something fundamental: power is not only measured by military strength, but by restraint. Not every provocation requires humiliation. Not every activist needs to be turned into an enemy. And not every political stunt deserves to become an international spectacle.

“Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, and let not your heart be glad when he stumbles.” (Book of Proverbs 24:17)

There is a reason the Book of Proverbs warns us. Judaism understood long ago that power without restraint corrodes the soul of a nation. We are not commanded to love those who seek our destruction, nor are we expected to surrender our right to defend ourselves. But we are warned against something equally dangerous: allowing cruelty, mockery, and humiliation to become sources of national pleasure. The moment a state begins celebrating the degradation of detainees as entertainment or political theater, it has crossed from defending itself into diminishing itself.

The shameful spectacle orchestrated by Minister of Internal Security (and I use this term lightly), Itamar Ben Gvir today, was not a sign of Israeli strength. It was vulgarity masquerading as patriotism.

Let us be honest. Many Israelis, myself........

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