The vicious attack at the Jewish Museum in Washington that left two Israeli embassy staff members dead brings the current wave of antisemitism across the US to new heights. When apprehended by security personnel, the attacker chanted the battle cry of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement: “Free, free Palestine.” What began as demonstrations and encampments on college campuses has escalated to physical harassment of Jewish students and professors and has now led to murder.
Just over a month before the Washington attack, a man tried to set fire to the governor’s mansion in Pennsylvania where Gov. Josh Shapiro and his family were asleep. When caught, the perpetrator told police that he carried a hammer with which he intended to kill Shapiro to express his rage over what Israel is doing in Gaza.
Unlike attacks on Israeli and Jewish targets in Europe carried out either by Arab terrorists or Muslim immigrants frustrated with the environment in which they live, the attacks in Washington and Pennsylvania were carried out by American citizens with no direct linkage to anyone in the Middle East. As such, they show that when it comes to bashing Jews, it is easy to translate words of hate into hate crimes, especially in a country where there is no shortage of lunatics holding unregistered firearms.
Hate crimes around the world
Such acts of violence are not limited to America. In recent months, we have witnessed numerous attacks on Jewish and Israeli targets – individuals, synagogues, embassies, etc. – from Australia to Canada and many sites in between.
Thus, while Jews in Israel face bloodthirsty Islamic extremists attacking them on seven different fronts, Jews around the world are once again facing violent expressions of antisemitism.
While it’s no longer politically correct to blame the Jews for killing Jesus as was common in the Middle Ages, it has now become quite acceptable to use anti-Israel rhetoric to disguise the ancient and ugly face of antisemitism.
Since when are Jews allowed to fight back? Aren’t they always supposed to be the beaten party? The party others can tread on, spit on, kick, and humiliate in many other forms? Sadly, the title of this piece, borrowed from the movie industry, applies to every Jewish community around the world. They are all facing the growing threat of antisemitic attacks.
Supporting our Jewish brethren
Since its establishment as an independent state in 1948, Israel has been the fortunate recipient of tremendous support from its Jewish brethren around the world. Part of that support came in the form of financial donations that played a crucial role in developing our schools, universities, hospitals, and many other organizations. Other forms of support included lobbying, public relations, material support, and more.
It’s time for the Jews in Israel to realize that the principle of “mutual guarantee,” a pillar of our Jewish heritage, works both ways.
It is now our responsibility to help our Jewish brothers and sisters who are threatened by violence in so many places outside Israel. Obviously, we must respect the law and refrain from violating the sovereignty of other countries. There are numerous legal ways to help: allocating appropriate resources, taking the initiative, and being creative – and we Israelis are quite capable of doing that.
The writer is a professor and former executive vice president of the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology. An expert in management science, he serves as a board member and as a consultant to various companies and organizations. He is also a senior fellow at the Neaman Institute, where he leads a project that addresses the academic boycott against Israel.