Opinion About Israel Protests

Victor Davis Hanson wrote an opinion piece published on May 28, 2026 with which I mostly agree. Mostly, because he is a conservative and had harsh words for all what he called “left-wing.” Factually he is right, only I am not sure what to call the Columbia University protestors and their ilk. The primary factions at Columbia were Students for Justice in Palestine, Palestinian Youth Movement, Jewish Voice for Peace IfNotNow, Young Democratic Socialists of America.

Since October 7, we have been continuously lectured about the alleged unique sins of Israel. Campuses, Progressive media, and new Democratic Socialist officials at both federal and state levels have echoed student activists and professors from the Middle East. They have depicted Israel and its Jewish supporters as Nazis, fascists, and some of the worst murderers in today's violent world.

This portrayal is absurd. The medieval-style massacre of 1,200 Jews in their homes on October 7, during a peaceful period, should have heightened awareness of the existential threats Israel faces. Instead, it triggered a surge of antisemitism.

What was Israel supposed to do? Progressives and pro-Hamas students and faculty celebrated the massacre with the slogan "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free." The deaths of hundreds of Jews sparked joy from the Middle East to American campuses.

In the three weeks following the mass killings, before the IDF entered Gaza on October 27, Israel and its supporters faced unprecedented condemnation. Despite Israel's efforts to negotiate the release of 251 hostages and the surrender of those in Hamas responsible for the massacres, international outrage towards Israel only grew. Or was it anticipation of further Israeli casualties?

Israel's demands were met with increased defiance. Hamas and its supporters, both in the Middle East and the West, saw October 7 not as an end to violence but as the start of more bloodshed and the hoped-for end of Israel.

This dream fueled the excitement among Democratic Socialist/pro-Hamas Progressives. In their extreme hatred, they believed that Iran's "ring of fire" (terrorists from Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis, and scattered groups in Syria and Iraq) would engulf Israel from all sides. Iran, the mastermind behind the attacks, believed Israel would be overwhelmed by hundreds of thousands of drones, missiles, and rockets, which is why Iran had armed its Arab terrorist allies for years.

When Israel finally invaded Gaza on October 27, it was immediately accused of conducting "genocide." None of its accusers provided alternative solutions for how Israel might stop the Hamas perpetrators or recover the hostages.

How was Israel supposed to restore deterrence, punish the guilty, and prevent future massacres? Should it appeal to the U.N. Security Council, where members like China and Russia would be unlikely to objectively assess the situation? Should it ask Hamas to abandon their civilian shields and engage in direct combat? Should it seek negotiations overseen by European leaders in Geneva?

Consider a hypothetical scenario: the United States, 34 times larger than Israel, faces a proportional threat. Imagine 200,000 Sinaloa cartel members crossing the southern border and killing 40,000 Americans, followed by the abduction of 8,500 hostages who are then hidden in fortified tunnels in Mexico. What would the U.S. do if neither the Mexican government nor the cartel agreed to surrender the killers and release the hostages?

Would the U.S. take the matter to the U.N., ask Spain to mediate, or negotiate in Geneva? After three weeks of inaction, if the cartels became more defiant and their crimes were celebrated by anti-Western media, would the U.S. be criticized for responding?

Indeed, the narrative often shifts when discussing other nations. Over the decades, the U.S. has supported Turkey, which conducted a genocidal policy against Armenians from 1915 to 1920 and has never apologized. Turkey also invaded Cyprus in 1974, ethnically cleansing the north of its Greek inhabitants and altering the demographic by settling Turkish citizens there. Yet, there are no protests in America against Turkey's actions.

Similarly, before the 1967 war, nearly one million Jews lived in the Arab and Muslim Middle East. They were almost entirely expelled during the Arab-Israeli conflicts of the last century. Today, almost none remain. In contrast, Israel's Arab population has grown significantly since the state's founding in 1948.

Who are the real ethnic cleansers and who are the displaced persons and refugees? The silence on these issues reveals a double standard in the criticism of Israel.

The focus on Israel's supposed crimes, while ignoring more severe atrocities elsewhere, is a clear indicator of antisemitism. The disproportionate criticism of Israel serves as a distraction from the real issues and injustices around the world.