Stubbed your toe? Blame Israel: The rise of 'Israel Derangement Syndrome'

A quick perusal of social media these days on both the extreme left and the extreme right shows a pretty common occurrence: somebody eventually figures out a way to blame Israel.

Immigration crisis? Israel. American foreign policy you don’t like? Israel. Jeffrey Epstein? Israel. Charlie Kirk’s assassination? Israel. 9/11? You guessed it. Israel.

The phenomenon has become so widespread that former Israeli government spokesman Eylon Levy is having some fun with it. A satirical video circulating on 𝕏 this week portrays “Israel Derangement Syndrome,” or IDS, as if it were an actual medical condition requiring treatment.

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee tells ALL ISRAEL NEWS he thinks humor may be exactly the right medicine.

“Sometimes the best way to respond to hate is with humor and this brilliant video is a great example of making the critics and haters look ridiculous,” Huckabee said.

The video is funny but the phenomenon behind it isn’t.

Israel Derangement Syndrome isn’t actually a new phrase. Harvard Law professor emeritus Alan Dershowitz says he began using the term more than 35 years ago to describe what happens when otherwise intelligent people seemingly abandon their normal standards of reasoning when Israel enters the conversation.

The Washington Post was writing about IDS on the far left as far back as 2016.

Do you suffer from Israel Derangement Syndrome?? pic.twitter.com/XXOJcWFjAh

— TBC (@TBC_on_X) August 18, 2026

But something has changed. IDS is no longer primarily a phenomenon of the radical anti-Israel left. Increasingly, it has found a home on parts of the populist right as well.

Catherine Perez-Shakdam, Executive Director of Forum for Foreign Relations, described the phenomenon this way: “Something very strange happens to otherwise sensible people when Israel enters the conversation.”

She makes an important distinction: Criticism of Israel isn’t Israel Derangement Syndrome. After all, Israelis themselves criticize their government constantly. Neither Benjamin Netanyahu nor the Israeli government should be immune from criticism. Neither should Israeli military policy or America’s relationship with Israel.

However, IDS is something different. “It begins when Israel is subjected to rules invented especially for Israel,” Perez-Shakdam writes.

It also apparently means attributing almost supernatural powers to Israel. Consider what happened recently in Spain.

When tens of thousands of migrants crossed into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta from Morocco, an online conspiracy theory exploded alleging that Israel was somehow behind the crisis. Years-old comments and social media posts were recycled as supposed evidence of an Israeli plot.

According to an analysis from the Combat Antisemitism Movement, 173 high-impact posts generated 57.5 million views and an estimated reach of more than 103 million people on 𝕏 in just 72 hours.

One viral AI image actually depicted Netanyahu with migrants pouring out of his mouth onto a Spanish beach.

There was no credible evidence establishing that Israel orchestrated the migration crisis. But hey, why let evidence ruin a perfectly good conspiracy theory?

Then there is the assassination of conservative leader Charlie Kirk. Candace Owens has spent months questioning the official account and promoting theories surrounding Kirk’s killing. The Washington Post reported in July that Owens had baselessly suggested that Israel, Turning Point USA officials and even Kirk’s widow were involved in orchestrating or covering up his murder.

Prosecutors, meanwhile, presented surveillance footage, DNA evidence and alleged messages in which the accused killer reportedly confessed. None of that mattered. Israel nevertheless became part of the conspiracy.

Earlier this year, Tucker Carlson advanced other explosive allegations involving Israel and Jews, promoting the unsubstantiated theory connecting the Chabad Jewish movement to the Iran war and also made unsupported claims involving Mossad agents and Israeli President Isaac Herzog. All nonsense.

Then there was the recently concluded Republican congressional primary in Florida. Dan Bilzerian challenged Jewish Republican Rep. Randy Fine with a campaign that went considerably further than questioning America’s relationship with Israel.

An AI-generated campaign video depicted Fine with classic antisemitic imagery, invoked Jewish stereotypes and even asked whether Americans should reconsider the opinions of the “Austrian painter” – an unmistakable reference to Adolf Hitler.

Bilzerian lost badly on Tuesday but still received nearly 19% of the Republican primary vote.

This is where the horseshoe theory of politics becomes hard to ignore. For years, some elements of the progressive left have treated Israel as the embodiment of colonialism, racism, capitalism and Western imperialism.

Now portions of the far right increasingly portray Israel as the hidden hand behind American wars, immigration, government policy and a collection of global conspiracies.

The far left says Israel controls America because America is imperialist. The far right says Israel controls America because Jews secretly manipulate American power. Different ideological roads but still one medical condition: Israel Derangement syndrome.

Vice President JD Vance actually identified the danger during a June interview with conservative commentator Allie Beth Stuckey.

Vance was careful to criticize both extremes. He warned pro-Israel Americans against automatically labeling legitimate criticism of Israel antisemitic and stressed that American and Israeli interests aren’t always identical.

But then he addressed the other side.

“There are certainly people who take every frustration with the Trump administration, every policy disagreement becomes because of Israel,” Vance said, calling that “absolutely wrong.” Vance said that mentality can “bleed into some very dark places.”

He’s right.

There’s nothing antisemitic about questioning foreign aid to Israel. There’s nothing antisemitic about opposing an Israeli military operation, criticizing Netanyahu, demanding changes in Gaza policy or arguing that America should pursue a different Middle East strategy. Those are political arguments.

But when Israel becomes the dastardly explanation for everything, something else is happening.

It’s called Israel Derangement Syndrome. Unfortunately, there doesn’t appear to be a vaccine. For now, humor may have to do.