On September 10, I wrote a letter to the director of Shaare Zedek Medical Center, protesting the reinstatement of Hitam Rajbi, an Emergency Room doctor, after he had been suspended for a Facebook post in which he called IDF soldiers “murderers” for their actions in Operation Protective Edge. I called upon the hospital’s director, Yonatan Halevy, to immediately dismiss Dr. Rajbi.
Halevy responded to me that Dr. Rajbi apologized for the post. He also pointed out that Dr. Rajbi has always acted professionally and courteously during his three years in the hospital. “I do not accept your claim,” Halevy wrote, “that in order to protect the public from our enemies within the system, I must dismiss Dr. Rajbi. The staff at Shaare Zedek and I think that Dr. Rajbi’s temporary suspension was proportionate to the situation.”
I responded as follows:
Thank you for your reply. I happen to know Dr. Rajbi personally and understand your statement that he is a devoted and excellent doctor and person. However, the hatred genie that escaped from the bottle in the blood-drenched posts that Dr. Rajbi publicized reveals something deep inside him.
It is important to me to clarify that during Operation Protective Edge, I received complaints from soldiers in various hospitals about hostility they experienced on the part of Arab hospital staff. As these incidents were not documented, I could not do anything despite the anger and frustration they aroused. Soldiers who put their lives on the line for us felt betrayed at the very time they needed warm and caring treatment the most. They felt threatened and persecuted on their home turf. This is unacceptable.
The State of Israel has woven a unique tapestry in which people of Arab nationality are integrated into practically all positions of society. These include positions that require an absolute level of trust. We therefore must be very careful. Throughout the world, and recently in Israel, people who seemed completely normal were suddenly revealed to be mad murderers, joining the wave of hatred and violence sweeping the Arab world. With this in mind, we should realize that an individual who publicly identifies with our enemies has crossed all lines and has marked himself as a person who, in trying times, has the potential to lose control and harm others.
Can you, as director of the hospital, take responsibility and with a clear conscience place the lives of IDF soldiers and their families in the hands of a doctor like Dr. Rajbi? Are you certain that the hatred genie that escaped from him will not escape again, either publicly or privately?
In order to allow the continued existence of the delicate tapestry that integrates members of the Arab nation in all walks of life in Israel, an integration that enhances Israeli society and your hospital as well, clear borders must be set. As you are the director of the hospital and carry responsibility toward the public, this obligation rests upon your shoulders.
I request and expect you to reconsider your decision – not only in the light of your personal assessment of the doctor, but within the broader framework of your public responsibility.
Thank You,
Moshe Feiglin