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Is Europe's Jihadist Problem Generating Empathy toward Israel?
(JTA) Cnaan Liphshiz - Following Sunday's terror attack in Jerusalem which killed four Israeli soldiers, the Israeli flag was projected on the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin and Paris City Hall, while Rotterdam City Hall flew the Israeli flag at half-mast - all signs of solidarity with the Jewish state. "I think it's a new development that sincerely stems from the change in the mind of many people in Europe, in government and beyond, who now understand better than a few years ago the impact and influence of terrorism on the daily lives of innocent victims," Oded Eran, a former Israeli ambassador to the EU and a senior research fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies, said Wednesday. Yet the gestures of empathy toward Israel will not likely carry over to EU policy, said Eran. "These gestures are heartwarming and indicative of a positive change, but there is a clear distinction between empathy and policy in the corridors of the European Union, which is likely to remain as critical as ever."