Eretz Nehederet is an Israeli prime-time television satirical sketch comedy show, that premiered on Keshet's Channel 2 in 2003. It features satirical references to current affairs of the past week through parodies of the people involved, as well as the thoughts of recurring characters. The program's concept is inspired by Saturday Night Live and The Daily Show and others. The program is one of the most watched and influential shows on Israeli TV.
Last week, they made a choice that left many viewers stunned. They used the "Help" sign written by three Israeli hostages in their final moments - before being tragically killed by friendly fire in Gaza - as a prop for political comedy. The scene sparked immediate backlash, most powerfully from Iris Haim, mother of Yotam Haim, one of the hostages killed.
Haim, who none of us had ever heard about before October 7th, reacted to the murder of her son with courage and grace that made us all wonder where in the world she drew her strength from. And she continues to lecture and inspire and touch everyone with whom she comes into contact.
"Who did this amuse?" Haim asked in a heart-wrenching social media post. "I would love to know... Who did this sketch speak to or make them think about something... other than crying again about my son and his two friends?"
Her words cut through the usual debates about comedy and free speech. This wasn't about politics or artistic freedom. It was about three young men - Yotam Haim, Alon Shamriz, and Samer Talalka - who survived weeks in Hamas captivity only to die within sight of rescue, after writing "Help" on a white cloth. Their last desperate attempt to survive became a throwaway joke.
The show never even reached out to the families. As Haim notes, "No one from Channel 12 or the show's writers asked permission to use this sign that clearly only certain people have the right to approve its use." For her, watching her son's tragedy become a punchline was "a punch in a mother's gut... a punch, slap, axe to the head in a father's face."
What makes this particularly jarring is the timing. The families are still raw with grief. Over 100 hostages remain in Gaza. As Haim puts it, "The entire country is bleeding, wounded, feeling our pain. But Eretz Nehederet apparently doesn't care what Iris, Raviv, Tuval, Noya, the Shamriz family and the Talalka family feel."
The show has always walked a fine line between comedy and commentary. But this time, they didn't just cross a line - they trampled over fresh graves to make a political point. Some things should stay sacred, even in satire. A desperate cry for help from three young men in their final moments is one of them.
"Let's put an end to hatred that has crossed all red lines," Haim writes. "Where did we get confused?" It's a question worth asking. In our rush to be clever or make a point, have we forgotten basic human decency?
The truth is, great satire punches up, not down. It mocks the powerful, not the grieving. When a comedy show turns the tragic deaths of three young men into a prop for political commentary, it's not just failing at being funny - it's failing at being human.
As Haim concludes, "I'm sorry Yotam that they made fun of your efforts and turned them into a bad, sad, and pathetic joke."
Some things just aren't funny. And no clever political point is worth causing more pain to families who have already lost everything.
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