True, the message of the rally was a bit murky. It didn’t quite name the ideology behind the attacks, it didn’t specify how future attacks would be prevented, and some of the invited leaders were active supporters of terrorism themselves, such as Mahmoud Abbas, whose Palestinian Authority routinely glorifies terrorists who succeed in murdering Jews.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gained attention by saying that all Western countries should unite to fight terrorism together and implying that they currently weren’t taking the threat seriously enough. Unfortunately, the statement sounded a bit hollow, since Israel’s own record of fighting terrorism and those who support it leaves much to be desired.
For example, several Arab members of the Israeli Knesset openly identify with Israel’s enemies and work ceaselessly to undermine the Jewish state, and yet they keep their seats despite laws that forbid such behavior from Knesset members. Also, Jews are forbidden to pray at the holiest site in Judaism, the Temple Mount, despite Israel’s promise of religious freedom for all, because of fear of angering Arabs, and if a Jew even moves his lips in a manner suggestive of prayer, he’ll immediately be arrested by Israeli police.
When Arabs attack Jews in public places, police are sometimes under orders not to intervene, so as not to escalate the situation, and when a Jew acts in his own defense by drawing a weapon, he’ll be the one who gets arrested. And when Arabs engage in massive rioting, Israeli police are ordered to use as little force as possible and do as little damage to the rioters as possible, which means that the rioters won’t have to pay a high price for rioting, so there’s no reason for them to stop. Also, the whole concept of “land for peace” is nothing but an attempt to appease terrorists rather than stand up and fight them.
So before Israel criticizes other nations for not doing enough to fight terrorists and their supporters, it should show leadership in this regard by fighting them much more vigorously itself.
Of course, Israel’s failure to deal decisively with its enemies is not all Netanyahu’s fault. There are many institutions in Israel that are dominated by extreme leftists who scorn traditional Jewish beliefs, deny God and reject the Covenant, and insist that the Arab claim to the land is just as good as the Jewish one. We see this particularly in Israel’s High Court, which arrogates to itself the right to cancel any Knesset law it doesn’t like, and which is one of the biggest obstacles preventing Israel from dealing effectively with its adversaries. We also see it in the mass media with newspapers like Haaretz forever empathizing with Israel’s enemies while reserving their harshest vitriol for those Jews who dare to stand up for the values that the Hebrew nation was founded on nearly 4000 years ago.
Ultimately, Jews won’t be able to survive in the Promised Land unless they’re sure of their right to be there and willing to do what it takes to stay there, and such certainty can only come from the founding principles of Judaism itself. Although some Israelis have renounced Judaism in favor of man made theories such as liberalism and humanism, these ideologies have nothing in their arsenals capable of standing up to the forces of jihad, or even recognizing the true nature of the enemy we’re fighting.
History shows that when Jews place supreme importance on their connection to God and adhere to His commands, they’re ultimately successful, but when they sever themselves from their spiritual roots and put their trust in lesser things, they sooner or later lose everything.
Have Jews regained their historic homeland for the first time in 2000 years only to follow a policy of piecemeal retreat from it because they lack the courage or the desire to defend it? It all depends on whether they finally embrace true Jewish values or continue to follow deviant paths that lead nowhere.