"Polarization is an existential national threat": Bereaved families, hostage survivors, and war victims established "The Common Denominator"

Three years after October 7 and about three weeks before the elections, bereaved families, hostage survivors, and victims of war and terror announced the establishment of "The Common Denominator" – an initiative to reduce polarization in Israeli society. The group demands the next government establish a national infrastructure for cohesion within 100 days, and sets a public goal of ten million new connections between Israelis.

Three years after October 7 and about three weeks before the Knesset elections, bereaved families, hostage survivors, their families, and victims of war and terror announced the establishment of "The Common Denominator" – a social initiative aimed at reducing polarization in Israeli society. Group members, who come from diverse backgrounds and hold varied political views, discovered through loss and captivity that it is possible to think differently and still act together. They warn that polarization is an existential national threat, citing data from the Jewish People Policy Institute for 2026, according to which 55% of Israelis see polarization as the most dangerous threat, compared to 23% who see the Iranian nuclear threat as such. At the center of the activity is a demand for the next government to establish a national infrastructure for social cohesion within 100 days, alongside a public goal of ten million new connections between Israelis from different communities, under the hashtag #עוד_1_למכנה.

"Polarization is an existential national threat": Bereaved families, hostage survivors, and war victims established "The Common Denominator"