“Giving Deadly Intel To Terrorists”
A Moral Dilemma for the Shabbos Table
By Rabbi Yitzi Weiner
Normally one should violate a mitzva in order to save his or her life. But in regard to three mitzvos, one should rather die than violate them, They are Murder, Incest/Adultery, and Idol Worship.
This brings us to the following true dilemma.
A group of Palestinian terrorists once kidnapped an IDF soldier named Gad. The terrorists threatened to kill him unless he would agree to reveal to them where an IDF weapons cache was hidden. This cache had a large stash of hand grenades. It was clear to Gad that the terrorists were planning to use the grenades to try to kill other Jews. It is likely that if he saved his life by revealing the location of the cache, then other innocent Israelis may be killed as a result.
One is normally not allowed to save his life by murdering another. For example, if a terrorist would tell a Jew, “murder this other Jew, or I will kill you”, one should rather die than murder another.
But Gad wondered if in this case he would be allowed to reveal the information to save his life. He would be putting others in mortal danger, but it was not as direct as actual murder.
On one hand he can’t save his life by helping to kill others, but on the other hand, he would not be killing the innocents, the terrorists would.
What do you think?
See Chashukei Chemed Pesachim page 199
Answer to last week’s moral dilemma:
(click here to review the question)
Have a beautiful Shabbos!
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