Hamechane Sets 100-Day Deadline for New Israeli Unity Framework

The group behind the initiative has set a specific deadline: 100 days after the next government takes office. Within that window, they want a national framework for social cohesion to be established. The push comes from Hamechane, a coalition formed by relatives who lost family members in the Israel-Gaza War, alongside captivity survivors and those wounded in the conflict.

Moshe Shapiro, whose son Aner was killed on October 7, 2023, is a leading voice in the effort. Shapiro lost his son while he was throwing grenades from a roadside shelter to protect other attendees at the Nova music festival. Shapiro is using a historical precedent to frame his argument. He points to the wildflower protection campaign that began in the 1960s, which combined legal protections with public education. He wants the same kind of ingrained cultural respect for others to become standard in Israeli society.

Shai Zohar, the uncle of Capt. Omer Neutra, argues that internal polarization is the country's most serious existential threat. Neutra, a lone soldier from New York, was killed on October 7, and his body was returned from Gaza in November 2025. Zohar stated that the divisions existing before the attack helped create the conditions for the catastrophe. He described unity as an operating system rather than a one-time event, warning that the nation has already paid an immense price.

Zohar acknowledged a personal blind spot regarding the 2018 Nation-State Law. He admitted that the law's impact on non-Jewish communities did not fully register with him until he heard Hoda Daxa speak. Daxa’s husband, Col. Ehsan Daxa, who commanded the 401st Armored Brigade, was killed in northern Gaza in October 2024. As a Druze woman, Daxa explained how the law, which reserves national self-determination for the Jewish people, feels to those outside the majority community.

Daxa cited everyday moments that test a sense of belonging. She recalled riding a train with her children while speaking Arabic. She noted that while no one spoke, she could sense the discomfort of the other passengers. She said that hatred does not distinguish between groups. She emphasized that unity must go beyond solidarity among Jews alone, as many non-Jewish citizens feel a strong part of Israeli society and wish to contribute.

The group’s members represent a wide political spectrum. They vote for different parties, but they maintain that conversation works because they are willing to learn. Daxa said they approach discussions with an open heart rather than assuming one side is correct. Shapiro described a yearlong process of building a shared vision among religious and secular Jews, haredim, Druze, and members of the political Right and Left. He said this mix represents the actual face of Israeli society.

Shapiro drew on family history to support his case. His grandfather, Haim-Moshe Shapiro, was a signer of the Declaration of Independence and a minister. Before the Six-Day War in June 1967, the grandfather urged Prime Minister Levi Eshkol to include opposition parties in the government. That government was widened to include Gahal, led by Menachem Begin, and Rafi, whose members included Moshe Dayan.

Aner Shapiro had expressed a similar view before his death. In a social media post written after graffiti defaced an image of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, he criticized the rigid categories of religious, secular, right-wing, and left-wing. He wrote that there really is no them. Moshe Shapiro said he had believed such divisions were fading during the shiva for his son, but he feels disappointed by their return.

Hamechane has not yet decided on the specific structure of the body it wants elected officials to create. That detail is left to professionals and new leaders. The group plans to encourage personal connections through schools, workplaces, and local communities. Shapiro wants children to learn how to listen and handle disagreement. He also wants measures against online activity that inflames hatred. He stressed that he is not asking people to sacrifice their lives, only to make room for others and remember that disagreement does not cancel mutual obligations.