(Newsweek) Ilan Berman - On July 9, the U.S. intelligence community divulged that Iran has been playing an active role in stoking the protests, encampments, and civil unrest in the U.S. regarding the war in Gaza. Antisemitism and anti-Zionism are being harnessed to harm American interests abroad. Amplified by outlets such as Qatar's Al Jazeera network, regional anti-Israel and anti-American attitudes have contributed to a precipitous decline in approval for the U.S. among Mideast publics. These same forces are being used to drive wedges in America's Mideast alliances, most clearly the U.S.-Israeli partnership itself. Most significantly, antisemitism is being instrumentalized by radical activists and foreign actors to deepen cleavages in American society. In May, the Network Contagion Research Institute reported: "While nominally focused on Israel, the current protests can be better understood as a well-funded initiative driving a revolutionary, anti-government, and anti-capitalist agenda, with the leading organizations serving as versatile tools for foreign entities hostile to the U.S. The methods of these organizations exacerbate societal tensions, polarize the younger generation, and appear to seek the destabilization of American institutions." There's an old saying: "Whatever starts with the Jews never ends with them." The rampant antisemitism visible on elite university campuses, on social media, and on the streets of major cities is a clear and present danger to our social cohesion and our standing in the world. That makes it a national security threat which needs to be addressed without delay. The writer is Senior Vice President of the American Foreign Policy Council.
2024-07-16 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive