War Victims and Hostage Survivors Demand National Social Cohesion Infrastructure

Three years after the October 7th massacre and the outbreak of war, and three weeks before elections, a group of bereaved families, hostage survivors, and war victims announced on Sunday the establishment of the "HaMakhne" (The Common Denominator) group. This initiative aims to address the polarization within Israeli society as a primary national challenge requiring solutions in the coming years. They are demanding that the next government establish a permanent national infrastructure for social cohesion within its first 100 days.

The group's members warn that societal polarization in Israel is no longer just a political disagreement but a threat requiring national-level attention and treatment. According to a 2026 assessment by the Jewish People Policy Institute, 55% of Israelis identify internal polarization and disputes as the most dangerous threat to Israel, compared to 23% who cite the Iranian nuclear threat and 18% who point to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

For "HaMakhne" members, these figures necessitate a shift from talking about unity to implementing policy and action. Among the group's members are Merav Berger, Merav Leshem Gonen, Chen Avigdori, Avinatan Or, Ari Spitz, Noam Idan Ben Ezra, Tzvi Sussman, Huda Daksah, Shir Segal, Gania Tsohar, Shai Tsohar, Gideon Bogale, Moshe Shapira, and many others.

Keren Sokolov, CEO of "Living Together" and founder of "HaMakhne," stated, "Israel has known how to unite in the most difficult moments. October 7th proved how much power we have when we act together, but we must not need the next disaster to remember this. Polarization is no longer just a political debate; it is a threat to our ability to continue living here as one society. Therefore, we demand that the next government treat it as a national challenge and establish a body responsible for it, while also calling on the public to start acting now. Ten million new connections can change the way Israelis know and see each other."

Ari Spitz, a severely wounded combat soldier from the Givati Brigade who was injured in Gaza, said, "We paid a very heavy price for this country, and now our responsibility is also to preserve the society that lives in it. We can think differently and argue, but we must not reach a point where we stop seeing each other. We don't need to agree on everything to remain one society, but we need to recognize, meet, and remember that we have much more in common than it sometimes seems."

Chen Avigdori, whose wife and daughter were kidnapped to Gaza and released, stated, "In recent years, we have become accustomed (or rather, been made accustomed) to speaking in 'you plural' instead of 'you singular.' This is what happens when you see the person opposite you as part of a group rather than as an individual. This approach does not allow us to truly speak with each other. If more Israelis personally know someone not from their camp and speak with them openly without attaching labels invented and maintained by cynical interested parties, it will be much harder to divide us."

Merav Berger, mother of hostage survivor Agam Berger, said, "During the struggle to bring Agam back, we met people from all parts of Israeli society. People we didn't know, who didn't always think like us, but were there for us in the most difficult moments. This connection gave us strength. I want us to know how to preserve it even when there is no emergency and when we disagree. We don't need to wait for the next disaster to remember that we have much more in common than it seems."

Tzvi Sussman, father of Sergeant Major (res.) Ben Sussman, who fell in battle in Gaza, stated, "Ben went to fight out of a deep sense of responsibility for the country and the people living in it. For me, our responsibility now is to protect not only the country but also the society within it. We don't have to think the same way, but we must know how to stay together even amidst disagreement. After the heavy price so many families have paid, we must not accept a reality where Israeli society is disintegrating from within."