To put out fires of hatred, Israel must toughen on pyromaniacs - opinion

Putting out those fires of hatred and preventing their recurrence is a major challenge facing Israel’s new government, elected to serve every citizen.

By MICK DAVIS
ISRAELIS WAVE flags as they dance next to Damascus Gate in Jerusalem’s Old City last Tuesday (photo credit: OLIVIER FITOUSSI/FLASH90)
ISRAELIS WAVE flags as they dance next to Damascus Gate in Jerusalem’s Old City last Tuesday
(photo credit: OLIVIER FITOUSSI/FLASH90)
The Israeli flag is a noble symbol of pride, strength and liberation for the Jewish people. It is also the flag of all citizens of Israel, Jewish or not, with all the complexity and conflicting emotions that entails. It is nauseating, therefore, to see it hijacked by the provocative and entitled extremists who have come to dominate the so-called flag march through the Old City of Jerusalem.
The march has its origins in the reunification of Jerusalem in 1967, and the restoration of Jewish rights to live and pray in our eternal capital – a worthy cause for celebration. But in a contemporary setting, the sole purpose and outcome of these marches appears to be to antagonize, provoke and humiliate the city’s Palestinian residents.
Israel’s mixed cities were very recently set ablaze by violence between Arabs and Jews. Putting out those fires of hatred and preventing their recurrence is a major challenge facing Israel’s new government, elected to serve every citizen. But their efforts could prove futile as long as these pyromaniacs are allowed to run rampant.
They have been mollycoddled for too long or, worse still, actively nurtured by a previous government that shockingly engineered the rise of their representatives as an electoral force. They might have been cast into opposition for now, but the challenge they present for the new government, Israel and Jews around the world, remains.
Prime Minister Naftali Bennett is under no illusions as to the danger. He might hail from the Right, but after forming a government alongside right-leaning, centrist, left-leaning and Arab parties, he now finds himself in the extremists’ crosshairs. Chants of “Death to Arabs” are standard fare on the flag march. But chants of “Bennett the traitor” are a 2021 innovation from those with nothing but contempt for the democratic values that underpin the State of Israel.
Unchallenged, extremism only grows, with awful consequences, even when the perpetrators are Jewish. The world, and in particular the Jewish world, will be watching to see how Bennett and the government he leads addresses this threat. For many, it is perplexing that what has essentially become a festival for racist hooligans is allowed to go ahead, requiring the protection of thousands of police, inflaming tensions across the country, incubating the homegrown extremists of tomorrow, increasing the chance of escalations and jeopardizing Israel’s international standing.
Bennett’s challenge is compounded by the fact that his government is comprised of parties whose sole point of agreement is not what they stand for but who they oppose. In his first speech to the Knesset as prime minister, Bennett stated, “Our principle is, we will sit together, and we will forge forward on that which we agree – and there is much we agree on, transportation, education and so on – and what separates us we will leave to the side.” I wish them every success, as these are all areas in need of improvement and investment to deliver fairness and opportunity across every demographic of Israeli society.
RECENT EVENTS, however, have shown that leaving to the side “what separates us” hasn’t worked. Pretending that the deepest wounds in Israel’s society will heal of their own accord if neglected for long enough did not prevent riots in Acre, Lod and Bat Yam. Pretending that the grievances and aspirations of Palestinians in the territories can be managed has proved wishful thinking at best. In truth, “managing the conflict” has all too often seemed like a strategy for making it harder to solve, while allowing its malign effects to linger. The increased prominence of extremists like those inciting violence on the flag march is one such malign effect.
Hamas pledged to respond to the flag march with attacks, and sent dozens of incendiary balloons across the Gaza border causing destruction in Israeli border communities. Let’s be clear: Hamas attacks Israel only serve its own corrupt agenda. It attacks Israeli civilians with an increasingly sophisticated arsenal of missiles, while deliberately putting its own civilians in harm’s way. Hamas is and has always been a bad actor and needs no pretext to behave as such. But Israel and its supporters around the world are fighting a narrative battle, and a cursory glance at social media, university campuses and the experience of Diaspora Jewish communities suggests that it is not a narrative battle we are winning.
The next time Hamas unleashes missiles and Israel is obliged to respond, we will, as ever, stand with Israel, advocate for its right to defend itself and stand up to those who see the conflict as an opportunity to delegitimize its very existence and attack Jews. We will call out and face down the extremist, antisemitic hatred that so often comes wrapped in a Palestinian flag.
But when extreme racism and violent intent comes wrapped in the flag of the Jewish nation, it should shock us all to see a powerful symbol of our self-determination perverted in this way. It is not condemning the flag march that gives succor to our enemies but failing to do so. The extremist incitement broadcast by the global media hands an open goal to our opponents. And, whether we seek to inspire young Jews with a love of Israel or win new allies to the pro-Israel cause, such displays are unlikely to attract the most desirable type of supporter.
If the Diaspora and Israel are to remain in lockstep, and Israel’s all-weather friends can continue to hold their Israel banners high, it is vital that the coalition courageously faces down these enemies from within as resolutely as they respond to enemies from without.
Sir Mick Davis is a former chairman of the UK Jewish Leadership Council and former CEO of the Conservative Party. He is writing in a personal capacity.


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