Israel is the West’s canary in the coal mine

Israel’s issues often become the West’s issues and today this is more evident than ever. When Jews are attacked to bring attention to a political issue, as we have horrifically witnessed twice in America in the past 30 days, the argument can be made that this is an act of terrorism.

America is now experiencing what is essentially a form of anti-Israel political terrorism in which the perpetrator has replaced the cry of “Allahu Akbar” with “Free Palestine.”

On June 1, 2025, 15 Americans – including one who is a Holocaust survivor – were wounded in Colorado when Mohamed Soliman targeted them with homemade weapons while yelling “Free Palestine.” On May 21, 2025, two young Israeli Embassy staff members were murdered in our nation’s capital as Elias Rodriguez shot the two of them 21 times while also shouting “Free Palestine.”

“Free Palestine” has become the rallying cry on college campuses, social media, and even in Hollywood circles. The phrase is not new, but it increased in popularity after October 7, 2023, when Hamas committed one of the most horrific terror attacks this century. For many, “Free Palestine” is not a protest of Palestinians suffering under the rule of Hamas in Gaza or a vision of a two-state solution; rather it is a call to end a perceived Jewish occupation of the entire country of Israel – it is a call for Jewish genocide.

As an FBI Supervisory Special Agent who was posted to Israel from 2020 to 2024, I was in the country on October 7, 2023. On this day, the Islamist extremist terror group Hamas brutally murdered approximately 1200 innocent victims and kidnapped 251 others.

Although news of the aftermath of October 7th is no longer on front pages outside of Israel, I visited Israel last month and personally witnessed how this topic remains prominent for Israelis every single day. Israelis are discussing and debating the ongoing war and hostage crisis in coffee shops, on the streets, and at family dinners. The fact that 53 hostages (alive and deceased) remain in Gaza and the fact that Israel has resumed its attack on Hamas in Gaza has Israelis buzzing about issues including:

1. Feeding the enemy: Is Israel really expected to provide food, water, electricity, and fuel to an enemy across its border who continues to hold dozens of its citizens hostage?
2. Deferred Cost: In hostage negotiations with Hamas, should Israel continue to release hundreds of convicted Palestinian terrorists in exchange for a single Israeli hostage, knowing such releases could endanger national security and the safety of future generations?

The above issues feel specific to Israel only; however, my point is the current crisis, which resulted from an Islamist extremist terror attack on a democratic country, has raised new and difficult questions that – until today – no civil society has had to confront.

As a counterterrorism professional who has studied terrorism academically and investigated plots and nefarious actors operationally for over two decades, I believe Israel’s experience with terrorism is often a preview of what the West can expect to see within its borders. When Israel experienced a surge of airline hijackings in the 1960s and 1970s, that same terrorism tactic was later exported to the West; there is no greater example than that of Al Qaeda’s hijacking of multiple commercial airliners, resulting in the deadliest terror attack ever on American soil on September 11, 2001. When Israel experienced a surge of suicide bombings in the 1990s, that same terrorism tactic was later exported to the West; two major examples are the suicide attacks in the United Kingdom in 2005 targeting the London transportation system (Al Qaeda-inspired) and again in 2017 targeting a Manchester music concert (ISIS-inspired).

The threat of Islamist extremist terror, whether it is from Hamas, ISIS, or Al Qaeda, has not diminished, and the West would be wise to view Israel as a barometer. The Western world should pay attention to terror trends impacting Israel and recognize that at least some of the challenges faced by Israel on the back of the tragedy of October 7^th could potentially be the same challenges Western countries will face in the coming years. In recent weeks, we have seen evidence of this right here at home.

Israeli academic Dr. Ahron Bregman believes history can only be viewed accurately after the passage of time. Specifically, Dr. Bregman says current events can only be understood after 50 years have passed. I hope that in 50 years, history books will look back and see how Western governments prevented Islamist extremist terror by learning from Israel’s scars. I also hope that in 50 years we will live in a world where the scourge of extremist terror, in any form, only exists in history books.