Can Israel recover its international reputation?

The question was a wishful aspiration, expressed in last Thursday’s op-ed of the Jerusalem Post, in response to the many possible advantageous outcomes that could result in a reset of the Abraham Accords, a central focus of U.S. President Donald Trump’s recent trip to the Middle East.

Listing what could ensue from Trump’s efforts, Israel stands to gain an “improved diplomatic standing in the Middle East, the garnering of partners, to put pressure on Hamas to bring about a definitive end to the war and, finally, the recovery its international reputation.”

The expression for such improbable thinking is “hoping against hope,” the belief in something which doesn’t have a chance. While that may sound disheartening, it is, sadly, a realistic prognostication of the direction that the highly infectious virus of antisemitism is taking. 

One case in point just occurred, when over 350 well-known celebrities, including Richard Gere, Susan Sarandon, Ralph Fiennes, Mark Ruffalo, Javier Bardem, and many others, who attended the Cannes Film Festival, signed a letter accusing Israel of genocide after a 25-year-old photojournalist had been inadvertently killed following an Israeli air-strike.  

Of course, that military operation would not have occurred had it not been for the small detail of the October 7th Hamas massacre of innocent Israeli civilians, intended as part of an ambitious campaign to eradicate the Jewish state. But then that bit of minutiae seems unimportant when trying to lay full blame on Israel.  

True to form, they demonstrated their acting prowess by expressing that, “Cinema has a duty to carry their messages, to reflect our societies. Let’s act before it’s too late.” 

It's a pity that their concern for society is not reflected in its degeneration, by way of the savage barbarism employed by terrorists whose sole objective is to conquer every human being who does not embrace Islam, subjugating them to the ideology which, to them, is the one, true religion.  Wonder how they would feel about strutting the red carpet in burqas, because that’s where it would end up!

If that isn’t enough proof that Israel’s reputation is not remotely on the road to recovery, there were yet another “72 former Eurovision contestants who signed an open letter, demanding Israel and its national broadcaster KAN be banned from this year’s contest, due to take place this week.” 

The letter appealed to the organizers to disqualify the Israeli contestant due to “Israel’s genocide against the Palestinians in Gaza and the decades-long regime of apartheid and military occupation against the entire Palestinian people.”

Apparently, unknown to the 72, was that Israel withdrew their presence from the Gaza Strip some 20-years ago and has not occupied any part of that land. They also seem to have missed the fact that Arabs, including those who identify themselves as Palestinians, have risen to the ranks of Knesset members, politicians, judges, physicians, professors and the top echelons of the most respected careers in the nation of Israel. Hard to make a case for apartheid when the chances of your being treated by an Arab doctor at most emergency rooms and clinics is very high. 

But then none of these malevolent accusations are ever based on personal knowledge, comprehensive investigation or factual information. They usually begin with vilifying representations of a Jew-hater whose passions are so enflamed against the race of people that they despise, that for lack of any justifiable criticisms against them, malicious lies must be created.

Those lies are then amplified and adopted by lazy and ignorant individuals who are either looking for relevance or believe the false claims of celebrities who have taken on what they see as a virtuous cause, because, these days, it is required of every celebrity to champion some victim or marginalized group, lest they be accused of not displaying compassion and sympathy for those who are allegedly being oppressed.

It is the reason for lapel pins, protest marches, calls for divestment and all of the other requisite resistance which is being pushed by those with a platform, almost exclusively directed at Israel.

Sadly, it’s likely that this is just a foretaste of much worse that is yet to come. Because once a full-scale Gaza operation gets underway, it’s very probable that the spread of hatred against Israel will only intensify, gathering up more nations and governments whose goal will be to isolate the Jewish nation, quarantining her from all others as a punishment for the sins they claim she has committed.

Not to believe such an outcome would require a remarkable turnaround where nations of the world would agree that Israel has a right to defend herself. It would mean the abandonment of the apartheid claims, which contend that non-Jews, living in Israel, are relegated to second-class citizens as a result of being denied the same opportunities. It would also have to acknowledge the constant aggression and pre-empted attacks by antagonistic countries who are dedicated to our destruction.

In short, it would require truth – something which is not to the advantage of those who hate members of the Jewish race, their homeland and, most of all, their many accomplishments which benefit the world. Because by doing so, it would force them to confront their own unfounded biases and bigotry. To be honest, they might have to admit that there is a deep jealousy which is at the root of their anger and vexation.

But those kinds of soul-searching epiphanies are unlikely, because the heart of antisemites is filled with an unbridled rage that is beyond logic, reason and the ability to employ rational thought. It is literally an uncontrollable impulse, devoid of justification, often fully taking hold of a person to the point of a certain level of insanity. 

When that kind of hatred is unleashed and uncontrolled, its energies are expended on how to destroy the object of its loathing. That explains 2,000 years of intense persecution towards the Jewish people. No one has ever encompassed the definition of ultimate victimhood as much as they have, yet an image they refused to accept. Conversely, it was their determination, throughout millennia, to overcome the adversity by excelling at all they do, and the price for that striving has been an abhorrence of our nation and our people.

That is why Israel may never be able to recover her international reputation from a world that is largely invested in resentment, animosity and revulsion towards the same people who, coincidentally, God personally chose!