Comme au bon vieux temps

Quel est le sentiment de la population israélienne, du point de vue psychologique, face à la crise avec le Liban et le Hezbollah ? Certains témoignages montrent une attitude presque de soulagement mêlé de nostalgie. Cela est bien rendu par ce texte de l’écrivain Etgar Keret, publié dans l’International Herald Tribune de ce jour. Keret rapporte cette conversation avec un chauffeur de taxi : «  When we got on the highway, he said partly to me, partly to himself, “It's a real war, eh?” And after taking a long breath, he added nostalgically, “Just like in the old days.” »

Keret explique cette réaction et s’explique lui-même :

« Thinking back, trying to recreate my conversations with worried friends about this war with Lebanon, about the Iranian missiles, the Syrian machinations and the assumption that Hezbollah's leader, Hassan Nasrallah, has the ability to strike any place in the country, even Tel Aviv, I realize that there was a small gleam in almost everyone's eyes, a kind of unconscious breath of relief.

» And no, it's not that we Israelis long for war or death or grief, but we do long for those “old days” the taxi driver talked about.

» We long for a real war to take the place of all those exhausting years of intifada when there was no black or white, only gray, when we were confronted not by armed forces, but only by resolute young people wearing explosive belts, years when the aura of bravery ceased to exist, replaced by long lines of people waiting at our checkpoints, women about to give birth and elderly people struggling to endure the stifling heat.

» Suddenly, the first salvo of missiles returned us to that familiar feeling of a war fought against a ruthless enemy who attacks our borders, a truly vicious enemy, not one fighting for its freedom and self-determination, not the kind that makes us stammer and throws us into confusion.

» Once again we're confident about the rightness of our cause and we return with lightning speed to the bosom of the patriotism we had almost abandoned. Once again, we're a small country surrounded by enemies, fighting for our lives, not a strong, occupying country forced to fight daily against a civilian population. »

A la lecture de ces réflexions de Keret, il s’agit d’une attitude bien compréhensible. La nostalgie domine, pour une époque où, effectivement, les batailles d’Israël avaient la netteté et l’enthousiasme des causes justes. Mais ce n’est que de la nostalgie, qui ne saurait résoudre le problème politique que pose l’attaque contre le Liban. Cette attitude ne durera pas

et, quand elle changera, l’évolution du public sera un facteur de grande importance. Dans quel sens ? Evidemment, on l’ignore.

Mis en ligne le 18 juillet 2006 à 10H15