The defeat of Germany and its Nazi empire at the end of the Second World War did not end genocidal attempts to murder Jews, especially those in Israel.
Attempts to destroy Israel
When the State of Israel was declared, five Arab countries launched a war to wipe out the Jewish state. Miraculously, they lost. Called the Nakba Day, (Catastrophe Day) it is a lament for a failed attempt to commit genocide. Their emblem of suffering for as long as Israel exists, Nakba Day will be honored by the UN on May 15.
In 1967, several Arab countries were again about to launch another genocidal attack against Israel; it was thwarted by a preemptive attack in the Six-Day War. Seven years later, Arab countries, aided by the Soviet Union, launched another genocidal attack, known as the Yom Kippur War. Israel survived another Nakba.
Attempts to destroy Israel, however, continued aided by the Soviet Union, Muslim and non-aligned countries, and indirectly by the UN. Murdering Jews and destroying Israel remains the policy and practice of Palestinian terrorist organizations, supported by Arab and Muslim countries.
Hoping to end such genocidal efforts, the Israeli government, led by the Labor Party, and backed by US president Bill Clinton, agreed to implement the Oslo Accords, which not only legitimized Arafat and the PLO, but gave them a mini-state under a Palestinian Authority, and promised more concessions.
When this failed to stop Palestinian terrorism, Labor Party leader Ehud Barak, backed again by Clinton, offered Arafat nearly everything he demanded, including a Palestinian state in all of Judea and Samaria (the West Bank), and parts of eastern Jerusalem. Arafat rejected it, and declared a new, more violent conflict – the Second Intifada.
The Holocaust's legacy
ATTEMPTS TO appease Arafat and the PLO continued, nevertheless, despite ongoing waves of terrorism. In 2002, Russia, the US, the EU and the UN (the Quartet) proposed a “Roadmap for Peace;” it crumbled quickly. A year later, led again by the Labor Party, with support from EU countries, especially Switzerland, the bankers and financiers of the Nazi regime, launched the Geneva Initiative.
Basically an extension of the Oslo Accords, it included: (1) Israeli withdrawal to the 1949 Armistice Lines, with minor adjustments; (2) a “right of return” for at least some of the Arab refugees to Israel. This was the basis for what became known as “the Two State Solution.” Palestinian terrorism, however, remains the decisive factor, and now, Iran’s declaration – and ability to destroy Israel.
Destroying Israel is the reason why Iran wants the bomb and supports proxies in Lebanon, Syria and Gaza. It’s why the Obama administration sought a deal with Iran, and why the Biden administration seeks to renew it. For Palestinian terrorist organizations, such as the PLO and Hamas, it’s their raison d’etre. It’s what Islamic Jihad (holy war) means.
It’s why the PA pays monthly salaries to terrorists who are in prison, and rewards families of those who were killed and are considered “martyrs.” It’s what is taught in PLO and Hamas-run schools and what they advocate in their media. It’s what Muslim organizations, such as the Muslim Brotherhood and Muslim student organizations around the world teach. It explains why there is a rise in antisemitism and hostility to the State of Israel.
Preaching and teaching hatred of Jews, demonizing Israel and declaring that Israel has no right to exist, nor to defend itself, denying the Holocaust, denying the connection between the Jewish people and the Land of Israel, and glorifying terrorists as “freedom fighters,” is not only immoral and anti-human, it leads to violence and – as it did under the Nazis – leads to genocide.
Expressed as religious doctrine, and supported by “religious leaders,” it is an abomination. Bigots and bigotry have no place in civilized society.
The Holocaust began with words of Jew-hatred and found a sympathetic culture nurtured by Christian churches. A similar phenomenon in Muslim societies and cultures throughout the world, as well as in international organizations such as the UN now exists. For those who believe, “Never Again,” it is a challenge that must be faced.
The Holocaust is over, but the legacy of those who perpetrated and promoted it thrives among many today who seek to destroy Israel. It can happen again.
The author is a historian and writer.