More on the Defense of Israel

Last Monday, Mahmoud Abbas, President of the Palestinian Authority, revealed his true attitude about the Jewish people. Referring to the Holocaust, Abbas said this: "So the Jewish question that was widespread throughout Europe was not against their religion, but against their social function, which relates to usury and banking and such." Abbas has been a Holocaust denier for most of his life. The fact that he relies on antisemitic tropes should come as no surprise.

Even the left-wing NY Times announced that Mr. Abbas had to go. Their concern, however, remains the establishment of a Palestinian state. The Times: "Arab nations, once the Palestinians' patrons, have lost interest and have turned their attention to fighting wars in Yemen and Syria and checking Iran's regional influence." Well, excuse my saying so, but - Duh! Iran is directly, and through their involvement in Syria and Yemen, a threat to the Sunni Arab countries. As long as the Arab countries leave Israel alone, they know that Israel is no threat to them. The Times: "Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia faulted Palestinian leaders for complaining and rejecting past Israeli peace offers." (Quotes from the 5/3/18 editorial in the NY Times.) But the Times can be expected to continue to fault the "hardline" (their term) Netanyahu government for the lack of peace.

Today, Israeli papers are reporting that Iran is threatening to attack military bases in Israel. In the past month, Israel has attacked Iranian bases in Syria, with those attacks resulting in over 30 Iranians being killed. Israeli PM Netanyahu: "We are determined to block the Iranian entrenchment (in Syria), even at the cost of confrontation." How could it be otherwise? Iran has repeatedly vowed to wipe Israel off the map. How could Israel tolerate the existence of Iranian bases in Syria - right at their border? Should Israel risk that all the advanced weaponry possessed by Iran might be moved a few miles from their border? Should Israel risk Iran deciding to mass hundreds of thousands of troops on the tiny country's border?

Yet, as mentioned in my 4/19/18 post, there are Jewish groups and Jewish individuals who do not support Israel. One of those groups, not mentioned in the earlier post, is Jewish Voice for Peace. As with many other anti-Israel groups, the JVP supports the BDS (Boycott, Divest, Sanction) movement against Israel. Writing in The Jerusalem Post, Isi Leibler was harsh, yet accurate, in his assessment: "Twenty years ago, it would have been inconceivable to have any other then delusional Jewish fringe groups attacking Israel. Today, especially on campuses, it requires courage to even stand up against these perverted anti-Israel Jew." As I said, harsh.

But consider this comment from a friend and reader who is a registered Independent, and far more middle of the road than this writer: "Very difficult to deal with group-think. Imagine, it's controversial and unacceptable for Jews to speak up for Israel. Unthinkable for most of our lives. The pressure to conform and assimilate has always been strong throughout history...be glad that tens of millions of Americans are more pro-Israel than large swaths of American Jews. Very weird concept. Hard to accept and imagine even 20 years ago. But the Left is very dominant, especially among American Jews...and the Left doesn't care about Jews or Israel...and the Left wants the US to be in line with the EU, and we see what that means...huge number of American Jews want to conform and be accepted as good progressives, and Israel and Judaism just don't fit in." Something for left-wing Jews to think about.