JERUSALEM, Israel – When Hamas attacked Israeli communities on October 7th, much of the world initially stood with Israel.
Anti-Semitism, however, also skyrocketed soon after. Now, after four months, Israel is launching an offensive to fight back.
Statistics show that anti-Semitism is as prevalent as it's been since the beginning of the Nazi movement.
Israeli government minister Amichai Chikli stated, "It's a major threat for Jewish communities. We see that Jews are afraid to wear the yarmulke, the Magen David, and to go out on the street. We have the case of Paul Kessler, a professor, who quietly raised an Israeli flag in the streets of L. A. and was brutally murdered, by pro-Palestinian protesters."
In his government role, Chikli handles issues relating to Jews worIdwide. He recently shared a report on the dramatic rise in anti-Semitic acts and focused on key incidents of 2023 – mainly, the murder of Jews and Israelis in the U.S., Tunisia, and Egypt, and American university presidents arguing that calls for genocide of the Jews did not violate their code of conduct.
Chikli told CBN News much of this can be traced to universities receiving funding from foreign states such as Qatar, and organizations promoting terror jihad.
"I think we need to examine what's happening in CAIR and other Muslim Brotherhood-related organizations that possess a threat, not just for Jews, but also for any other civilian, and especially for the ideology and the values of the Judeo-Christian civilization," Chikli declared.
He also signaled cause for alarm within the Palestinian Authority.
"Mahmoud Abbas, who says that Hitler exterminated the Jews, not because of their religion, but because of their social role and financial business. This is basically mamash – almost medieval – blood libels.
The focus of growth, however, comes back to the United States, which recorded some 45 percent of worldwide anti-Semitic incidents since October seventh.
"So, today, the U. S. became the center of anti-Semitism. In terms of the cases that we are facing, we know that this is the largest Jewish community outside of Israel. And just afterwards, we have Europe and other places.
The greatest weapon though, is social media, which reaches across borders.
"We've seen an increase of 1,200 (percent) of anti-Semitic content, that calls for violence against Jews. These are not just posts against Jews, these are posts with a specific intent that you commit a violent assault," Chikli explained.
Chikli says Israel is changing its strategy from defense to offense, including:
--Countersuits against Hamas for war crimes
--Exposing anti-Semitic indoctrination in UNRWA and the Palestinian Authority, including the pay-to-slay program, which rewards those who murder Jews.
--Pressuring governments, decision-makers and financiers to freeze or put conditions on aid to the PA, UNRWA and similar organizations.
Chikli puts emphasis on a key reminder – that the Hamas attacks on October 7th were not just against Israel.
"It's against the Jewish people and also against, I think, the Western civilization," he insisted. The jihadist, the global jihad agenda, is not just related to Jews and it's not just related to Israel, it's the Western civilization as a whole."
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