The State of Israel and the paradoxes of the extreme left and the extreme right

@ElentirENG ES 8·06·2023 · 7:01 0

This year the State of Israel has celebrated the 75th anniversary of its independence, and its very existence remains the subject of controversy.

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A hatred of Israel present in the far-right and the far-left

I am Catholic and I consider myself to be on the right, and it never ceases to amaze me the aggressiveness that continues to exist among some people against the State of Israel. An aggressiveness that is not observed against countries that violate human rights (such as certain communist dictatorships and not a few Islamic countries) and that many media feed on a daily basis (especially left-wing media) and that is more clearly reflected in the two ends of the political map: the extreme right (today a marginal extra-parliamentary in Spain, because no matter how much some media use that label against it, Vox is a democratic party that has a good relationship with the Jewish community, opposes antisemitism and it is the Spanish party that most supports Israel) and above all the extreme left (with parliamentary parties as anti-Semitic as Podemos, Sumar, the BNG, ERC and Bildu).

The far-left and the paradoxes of its hatred of Israel

That anti-Semitism that is promoted from both extremes generates paradoxes in their political positions. Starting with the broader political spectrum of anti-Semitism in the West today, which is the extreme left, it is quite striking that people who say they believe in equality and feminism profess so much hatred against the most egalitarian country in the Middle East, a country in which women have full equality of rights and also obligations with men.

In fact, in Israel military service is compulsory for both sexes. Right now, the only two countries in Europe where this situation occurs are Norway and Sweden. Unlike what happens in most Muslim countries, in Israel a woman has the same rights as any European woman.

On the other hand, Israel has the most tolerant society and legislation in the Middle East towards religious belief or lack thereof. Although it is a Jewish state (the only one in the world), Israel does not have any moral police like Iran who are dedicated to persecuting women for not wearing veils. On Israeli beaches you can see women in bikinis or Islamic headscarves living together.

Such freedom and tolerance do not exist in countries that receive the support of the extreme left, as is the case with Muslim countries such as Iran and also in the Palestinian territories, especially in the Gaza Strip, subject to the fanatics Hamas Islamists. For a Jew, entering these territories is a grave danger of death.

Something similar could be said of the situation of sexual minorities. Homosexuality is not punished in Israel. In fact, in the city of Tel Aviv LGBT pride day is celebrated , being the largest celebration of its kind in all of Asia. On the contrary, in Lebanon, homosexual relations are prohibited by law, < a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_Syria" rel="noopener" target="_blank">just like in Syria and in the West Bank. In those territories, such relationships are punishable by prison sentences. In Egypt they are punishable by forced labor, a fine and deportation. Curiously, the only one of the countries in the area that annoys the extreme left seems to be Israel.

The extreme right and the paradoxes of its hatred of Israel

As for the extreme right, its defense of Middle Eastern Christians is contradicted by its hostility to Israel, the only country in the Middle East where Christians enjoy religious freedom. In fact, it is one of the few countries in that region where the presence of Christians (75.8% of them are Arabs) is increasing, as the followers of Christ are fleeing from neighboring countries.

For example, Christians in Lebanon live under the constant threat of Islamic extremism, and the same happens with other countries in the area. Except for Lebanon, the other countries neighboring Israel are among the 50 countries that most persecute Christians: Syria (12th place), Egypt (35th) and Jordan (49th). In the Palestinian territories, Christians are experiencing a dramatic exodus, both in the West Bank as in Gaza, but especially in the latter.

Only from anti-Semitism and from an irrational hatred of Israel can it be understood that there are people who say they support persecuted Christians, and who at the same time support countries like Syria or Iran (ranked 8th on the aforementioned list of countries that persecute Christians the most, with an extreme level of persecution) while they attack and launch all kinds of lies against Israel.

A call to reflection for sensible people

Of course, I desist from convincing with rational arguments those who hold such an irrational and aggressive hatred against the only Jewish State, both from the extreme left and from the extreme right. What I hope, at least, is that these lines serve to make them reflect and open the eyes of those who, from more sensible positions, may be tempted to let themselves be carried away by the hoaxes that others disseminate, moved by for that irrational hatred.

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Photo: Reuters/Baz Ratner.