Diaspora Jews are hostages to Israel’s behavior
JVL Introduction
A former Israeli ambassador to Germany and a Prof at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem ask the question: “are Diaspora Jews effectively captives of Israel’s political and military conduct?”
They are clear that the Zionist movement’s presumption to claim to represent all Jews worldwide has had dire consequences for Jews not in Israel.
The result is that the distinction between Israelis and Jews is elided and Jews worldwide are seen as represented by a “racist, nationalist, theocratic and annexationist” government in Israel. No wonder they become a punching bag for anyone who is appalled by Israel’s actions.
Should this identification be made in Britain, Germany and elsewhere? Of course not.
But the authors have no problem in understanding exactly why it happens. Indeed, successive Israelis governments (and Jewish communal leaders who should know better) have willed it.
RK
This article was originally published by Haaretz on Sun 19 Nov 2023. Read the original here.
Diaspora Jews are hostages to Israel's behavior
Diaspora Jews have learnt the hard way that, whatever their affiliation or politics, they become a punching bag for harsh critics of Israel’s actions, with incitement that slides into antisemitism. It’s time that Israel at least acknowledges this reality
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I must say I am very sceptical of some of the commentary in this article regarding levels of antisemitism roused by the annihilation of thousands of innocent Palestinians. I can only speak of the UK and what I’ve seen. The many many Jews that have bravely and selflessly taken part in protests against Israel’s brutal behaviour are displaying to the UK public that being a Jew doesn’t make you an Israeli. Is it time for there to be drawn a concrete distinction between faith and political ideas?
Generally I applaud the diversity of articles which JVL reposts, but the above article appears to me stunningly mediocre – a litany of banalities and half-truths which illuminate nothing.
Yes indeed diaspora Jews are held hostage by the actions of the Israel. But in the analysis above there is no mention of the active collusion of the ruling classes of western democracies in the Israeli-inspired conflation of antisemitism with antizionism, which is in no way due to a sympathy for or love of Jews, but is rather a cynical propaganda tool used to mask the true role of Israel as a powerful settler colonial state – the “unsinkable US aircraft carrier in the Middle East” – and to mask the transparent racism of western policies towards Palestinians as “antiracism”.
Nor is any mention made of the appalling role played by many Jewish so-called “representative bodies” in generating antisemitism by their unconscionable support for barbarous Israeli policies, and their fraternisation with parties of the extreme right who suddenly love Israel because “that’s where Jews belong”. In practice, like many other ethnic or religious communitarian bodies, these “representative bodies” just represent the dominant interests of their principal oligarchic donors.
There is certainly no danger of the first author joining antizionist Jews, whom he revealingly depicts as “preferring to join the Israel-hating, post-colonialist demagogic chorus”. In 2007 he wrote “If one uses terms like Warsaw Ghetto or racism [sic] in connection with Israeli or Palestinian politics, then one has forgotten everything, or learned nothing”.
Oi! This is us, isn’t it, or at least me: ‘the minority that prefers to join the Israel-hating, post-colonialist demagogic chorus’? Sad to read these contemptuous words in Ha’aretz…But I suppose a former Israeli ambassador has to make his continued loyalty plain,and it’s an achievement that he has even written as he does here. However, the implication is that if Israel had a different kind of government all would be well both there and in the diaspora. We now know the history better than that.
I agree with George Wilmers that diversity in your articles is usually positive but this one is a step too far. For example what does this mean, especially ‘this time’:
“it is difficult to convince both politicians and public opinion in the world that, this time, the boundless hate against Israel and the violent hatred of Jews is indeed a clear case of prejudice founded on the arsenal of “classic” antisemitism, from which Diaspora Jewry suffered before the state was established.”
I would make one simple point though – I’m not a diaspora Jew – I’m a British Jew. Israel was never metaphorically or in reality my homeland. It makes no difference to me what brand of zionist government is in place.
Seems to me, as far as Israel is concerned, if you reject Zionism then you’re an anti-Semite and not even a proper Jew. In fact, as we’ve seen in recent months, if you’re anti-Zionist, you’re someone deserving of their contempt and it wouldn’t surprise me if they reveled in your suffering. Of course there are diaspora Jews who are Zionists but they have a choice – move to Israel or endure. Ironically, even those who made Aliyah and have raised families in Israel do not feel protected. Consider the events of Oct 7th and after – it took hours for the Israeli military to even turn up and then, when they did, there were reports of Israeli forces firing on festival goers (suggesting that they may have invoked the Hannibal Directive). Even the anguish of the families who’s loved ones have been taken captive seems to be inconsequential to them as there have been no constructive attempts to negotiate their release for weeks and hawkish Israeli ministers risk the captives lives even more by refusing a diplomatic approach.
I honestly think expecting members of the Israeli govt to consider the needs of the Jewish diaspora, before their own self interests, when they clearly don’t even care for the safety of Israeli citizens, is naïve.