I cried more this past week than I have since October 7

Your Jewish friends and colleagues are barely keeping it together most days. The grief punctuates at regular intervals throughout the day. If you see our eyes glaze over or well up with tears during meetings or midway through a conversation, this is why.

It has been a particularly difficult week. Commencing with Yom Hashoah, Holocaust Remembrance Day commemorations, our pain was laid bare as we were forced to admit that the message of “Never Again” has fallen on deaf ears in large sections of society. October 7th was the largest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust, and yet again people dare to deny that it even happened.

It is unconscionable that Holocaust survivors were kidnapped on October 7th. Inconceivable that people in their millions around the world are displaying Jew-hatred loud and proud and calling for our extermination again. History, truth and facts stand for nothing on collage campuses whose only remit is to educate.

President Biden delivered a keynote speech on Yom Hashoah where he pledged iron-clad support for the Jewish people and Israel. Behind the scenes, he had already broken his pledge with the announcement that his administration would stop sending arms to Israel, which is not only one of America’s greatest allies, but the only one fighting the latest wave of Islamic terror on behalf of the free world. It was a treacherous betrayal.

But it got worse. The Washington Post reported that the Biden administration had informed Israel that US Intelligence had information on the whereabouts of Hamas’s psychopath leader, known as the Butcher of Khan Yunis, Sinwar and his fellow henchman Deif, as well as the location of secret tunnels. While only quoting anonymous sources and impossible to know if this is verified, the mere idea that the US is playing a game of leverage with Israel is staggering. Such information could end the suffering, end Hamas and free our hostages and the people of Gaza. If this is indeed true, I can’t breathe. I have cried so much over the past week.

Also last week, the United Nations, which we know all too well is United only in  their hatred of Israel and the Jewish People, voted to give Palestine membership of the UN. Imagine holding such a vote in the midst of an ongoing war, a war that Hamas not only launched, but also proudly streamed their atrocities online. Only these nations voted against the resolution: The United States, Israel, Argentina, Czechia, Hungary, Micronesia, Nauru, Palau and Papua New Guinea.

Let’s be very clear, the two leaderships (Hamas and Fatah) hate each other. Hamas, has expressed no interest in nation building, only tunnel building and the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza. Hamas is a commercialised terrorism enterprise that the world has fallen for for nearly two decades. Hamas is no partner of peace. When did the world stop being able to discern between good and evil? Never Again falls once more on deaf ears.

The past week took ever more twists and turns. It was the week where Eden Golan  carried the weight of the war and the hopes of Jews, Israelis and our supporters, to triumph at the Eurovision Song Content. Eden Golan, Israel’s 20-year old pop singer had to be protected around the clock from death threats for performing in a song contest hypocritically themed United by Music. Outside, the Swedish authorities once again failed to act against the Islamist population that has taken over the city of Malmo in recent years. A hate-filled and violent crowd of 20,000 radicals gathered outside the stadium all week calling for death to the Jews and Israel. Greta Thunberg was arrested. What a mighty fall Thunberg has had. She should have stayed angry about the environment.

At the Eurovision Grand Finals, Eden Golan was booed inside the stadium. Her fellow competitors verbally abused her. The official judging panel refused to give points to Israel,  despite being the best song and singer in the competition. And then a miracle happened. The public vote from Europe, which represents all countries in the competition (and more), rallied for Israel and against Jew-hatred and gave Israel the second biggest public vote. It pushed Israel up to 5th place in the competition. We cried tears of joy as the silent majority of Europeans, ordinary citizens, showed the world where they stand on all this anti-Jewish hate and radical Islam.

Eden Golan arrived back safely in Israel and broke down in tears at the airport. She carried herself with such grace in the face of unfathomable hate. She rose like the Lioness of Judah. We could not be more proud of her.

The burden and the pride of being Jewish has carried our people for over 3,000 years. We are the People of The Book. The OGs. This is why we are hated. Every generation finds a reason to blame the Jews for the problems of the world. Problems that we did not create and problems that are way beyond our tiny numbers. As a people, we have always refused to bend to empires. The Babylonians tried, the Romans tried and so did the Persians. The British had a go as well.  The Christians could not convert us, neither could the Muslims. We did not stray from our faith. We never left our Land willingly. Instead, we remained steadfast as the Nation of Israel, scattered yet always longing to return to our Homeland. We are the people of Israel. The Muslims know it because it is written in the Quran. The Christians know it because the Old Testament is Part One of their story.

In this generation, Jews have become the scapegoat for all who feel oppressed. Ridiculous really, as it is us who carry in our DNA the trauma of thousands of years of oppression. We are hated because we found our way back our Homeland and have built a home there that is strong, open, free and shared with Muslims, Christians, Druze and Bedouins who can thrive, pray freely and love who they want to love.

The citizens of Israel have built an incredible country that you should visit instead of vilifying as an armchair activist with no lived experience. The State of Israel has not been built at the expense of the Palestinians. Their leaders have had multiple chances to build, have peace and live alongside Israel as neighbours. They have refused time and again, because their struggle is not a roadmap to a viable nation or a lasting peace. Their struggle is one of perpetual victimhood that pays nicely in dollars and sympathy. A continuous and fictitious loop of blame that is generationally entrenched.

We end the week with Yom Hazikaron and Yom Hatzma’ut. Yom Hazikaron is Israel’s Remembrance Day and it leads into Israel’s Independence Day. These two days are observed back-to-back. We remember our fallen who lost their lives on the frontline, and those who were killed as a result of acts of terrorism. Gallant young Israeli women and men of all faiths who are drafted at 18 years old and trusted with the ultimate responsibility of protecting their family — all the inhabitants of Israel. This year we commemorate a heavy loss of 25,040 total fallen.

Today is Yom Hatzma’ut. Israel’s Independence Day. Normally a day of jubilant celebration, this year we are sombre, fighting for the continued existence of our State and the return of our hostages still captive. It is important that we stand proud today and every day to honour those who died for our nation. We owe it to our children to stand tall and continue the great legacy of our People. Am Israel Chai, the Nation of Israel Lives.