Nearly two years and 10 months after his son, IDF Capt. Daniel Perez, was killed and abducted during the Hamas terrorist attacks on Oct. 7, 2023, Rabbi Doron Perez says grief has not diminished—but neither has hope.

Speaking during a July 27 interview at the JNS Media Hub in Jerusalem, Perez, president of the World Zionist Organization and executive chairman of the Mizrachi World Movement, reflected on personal loss, rising antisemitism, the future of Zionism, the upcoming Israeli elections and the need for greater Jewish unity.

“Nothing can ever prepare you to deal with such a challenge and a tragedy of having a son who is abducted,” he said.

Daniel Perez, a tank commander, was initially listed as missing before Israeli authorities confirmed 163 days later that he had been killed on Oct. 7. His body remained in Hamas captivity for another year and a half before being returned to Israel for burial.

Perez said the long period of uncertainty was one of the most difficult experiences imaginable, as the family waited months to learn Daniel’s fate while also caring for their older son, Yonatan, who was wounded fighting Hamas on Oct. 7.

“The first two weeks he was missing, we knew absolutely nothing about his whereabouts,” he recalled. “We hoped he was alive. Then we learned he had been killed on Oct. 7, and we waited another year and a half before we could bury him.”

Yet even amid profound grief, he said his years as a rabbi prepared him to confront tragedy with faith.

“As painful as it is, I feel a certain authenticity,” he said. “I believe what I’ve been saying to people all these years.”

Finding meaning in loss

Perez said one of the most important lessons he has learned is that comfort comes not from erasing pain but from finding meaning within it.

He recalled hearing another bereaved father explain that his son had died while saving lives on Oct. 7.

“That was the first bit of positivity after 48 hours,” Perez said. “I was in such a dark place, but it helped shift my perspective.”

He believes Daniel likewise died fulfilling the mission he chose.

“He knew he was the last line of defense,” Perez said. “The head of Southern Command told me that had Daniel’s tank not been where it was and fought the way it did, hundreds more would have been killed.”

That knowledge, he said, cannot erase the pain.

“It doesn’t bring him back. But there is meaning in knowing he gave his life saving so many others.”

Perez said Jewish history itself offers a model for resilience.

“We’ve never lost hope,” he said. “Jonathan Sacks often said perhaps what defines the Jewish people more than any other quality is hope. We should be experts in suffering—but instead we’re experts in hope.”

The new face of antisemitism

Perez said the central argument of his book, The Jewish State: From Opposition to Opportunity, written before Oct. 7, has only become more relevant.

He argues that contemporary antisemitism differs fundamentally from earlier forms.

“For centuries antisemitism was directed against the Jewish religion or the Jewish people,” he said. “Today we have a new antisemitism—opposition to Jewish statehood.”

According to Perez, many critics claim they oppose only Zionism rather than Jews.

“We can tolerate powerless Jews,” he said, describing what he believes is the mindset of Israel’s opponents. “We cannot tolerate powerful Jews.”

He argued that anti-Zionism seeks to transform Israel’s greatest achievements into accusations.

“The greatest decolonization project in history is portrayed as colonialism,” he said. “One of the Middle East’s freest societies is accused of apartheid.”

Rather than viewing this solely as a threat, Perez believes it presents an opportunity to better explain Israel’s legitimacy.

“The battle for moral legitimacy has become another front in the war,” he said. “We need to treat it like one.”

Political rivals, not enemies

As Israel heads toward elections scheduled for Oct. 27, Perez urged Israelis not to confuse political rivals with enemies.

“Our enemies are Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran and their supporters,” he said. “Internal political opponents are not enemies.”

He expressed concern over increasingly bitter public discourse.

“What really grates me is when people say this politician or that ideology is the greatest threat facing Israel,” he said. “That’s simply not true.”

Perez acknowledged sharp disagreements over issues such as Haredi military service but insisted ideological differences must not become delegitimization.

“Our sages taught that baseless hatred destroyed the Temple,” he said. “People always think they have good reasons to hate. The problem is not that the hatred has no reason. The problem is that it’s not a good enough reason to turn a political opponent into an enemy.”

Drawing on a soccer analogy, he added: “Play the ball, not the man.”

Perez said he hopes Israel’s next government will focus on national healing.

“We don’t need only a government of change or a government of the right,” he said. “We need a government of healing.”

He also believes Israel is larger than any individual leader.

“The Jewish people and the State of Israel are bigger than any one politician,” he said.

Building courageous Jews

Alongside his responsibilities at the World Zionist Organization, Perez continues to lead the Mizrachi World Movement, which promotes Religious Zionism in 32 countries.

One of its flagship priorities, he said, is strengthening gap-year programs in Israel for young Diaspora Jews.

“I would argue that one of the most important years in a young Jew’s life is spending a gap year in Israel,” he said.

Ultimately, Perez believes the Jewish world must invest in raising confident young leaders capable of defending Israel’s legitimacy without arrogance.

“We need courageous Jews,” he said. “Not brazen or arrogant, but people with backbone who know the justice of our cause, who can articulate it clearly while respecting others.”

For Perez, whose own family has paid one of the war’s heaviest prices, hope remains both a personal conviction and a national imperative.

“We’ve never shied away from challenges,” he said. “And we shouldn’t start now.”

You can watch the whole interview here.