No more supporting Israel ‘at all costs’

MK Bezalel Smotrich giving a press statement at the Knesset on 21 June 2021

Laura Janner-Klausner writes in Haaretz on 15 February 2022:

Last week’s Smotrich Saga proved that the umbilical relationship between British Jews and Israel is not one that can be cynically exploited for political point-scoring. That it won extensive reporting in the Israeli media suggests that this is a historic moment in Israel-Diaspora relations that may reverberate for many years.

By “calling on all members of the British Jewish community to show [Smotrich] the door” and tweeting “[G]et back on the plane Bezalel, and be remembered as a disgrace forever,” the Board of Deputies of British Jews took a bold step in banishing his views from our community spaces.

The Zionist Federation of Great Britain and Ireland, another representative umbrella institution, followed suit in no uncertain terms, declaring that “far-right politics of hatred and division have no place in our country nor in our community.” A third group, the Jewish Leadership Council, also indicated it would send Bezalel Smotrich packing. We haven’t seen so much cross-communal agreement since the days of Jeremy Corbyn!

But it surprised me that British Jews’ sharp, principled position against a political extremist was so shocking in Israel. How did one tweet from Britain make so much news and cause so much head-scratching among TV interviewers? Have some Israelis become so numbed to racism and homophobia that a reaction from an engaged, Zionist community in the Diaspora seems so odd, or disproportionate?

Perhaps the response of British Jews could actually provide a healthy mirror for the way some sections of Israeli society and politics have become desensitized to Bezalel Smotrich’s putrid intolerance of Israeli Arabs, non-Orthodox Jews and LGBT+ people, thus normalizing it.

No one can reasonably doubt how connected the vast majority of British Jews are with Israel. We were there in 1917 when the Balfour Declaration committed our government to establishing a Jewish national homeland. We were there at the founding of the Women’s Campaign for Soviet Jewry, in London, to bring Jews living under the Kremlin’s oppressive yoke to Israel. We were there when Zionism was besieged on campuses, during pro-Hamas protests on our streets, at the UN.

Today, an overwhelming majority of British Jews is deeply connected with Israel. From the 50 percent of our 16-year-olds who attend organized Israel tours every year, to our philanthropy and partnerships with a host of organizations on the ground there, to our constant visits to friends and relatives, our Israel engagement runs deep.

Laura Janner-Klausner

I’m proud that British Jews are at the forefront of defending Israel from slander and misinformation. Just last week a campaign was launched by the Board to counter damaging accusations of widespread apartheid in Israel lodged by Amnesty International.

For British Jews, Smotrich’s litany of inciteful remarks – and actions – fall into the category of what is, at home, simply illegal under laws against racial and anti-LGBT+ hatred. We only need to look at a couple of well-known examples, such as organizing a ‘beast parade’ in opposition to LGBT+ rights and proudly declaring that his wife would not give birth in a ward shared with pregnant Arab citizens of Israel. The UK laws that would ban this kind of behavior also protect us, as Jews.

In what might prove infamous, a photo has surfaced of Smotrich meeting with Jewish figures in London, including the national head of the religious Zionist movement, Mizrachi UK, Rabbi Andrew Shaw.

Yet it is at least a little heartening that Mizrachi UK has since emphatically disassociated itself from Smotrich. Bnei Akiva, whose shlichim were pictured with Smotrich as well, also insisted that their attendance did not reflect the movement’s politics, which rejects “all forms of racism, homophobia and hate.” Smotrich’s peddling in all three may yet haunt those in the photo.

An infamous photo: Bezalel Smotrich met with Jewish figures, including the head of the religious Zionist movement, Mizrachi UK, which later emphatically disassociated itself from the far right MKCredit: Instagram
Even though World Mizrachi later defended Smotrich’s right to share his views, it will be fascinating to see what happens now that Zionist organizations around the world may feel more emboldened to speak out against the grain or defy their parent bodies.

Far from taking heed of the deeply rooted and intuitive relationship that exists between Israelis and British Jews, Smotrich clapped back at his critics by employing an ignorant, cheap and offensive comparison between British Jewry and Germany’s pre-Holocaust Jewish leadership. This exacerbates, but also clarifies, the divide between British Jews and Smotrich.

It is encouraging that our anti-racist sentiments were echoed by Israel’s Diaspora Affairs Minister Nachman Shai, who tweeted “Smotrich has nothing to do in the UK. The community there has already given its opinion. Racism has no place anywhere. Go home.” That is the true face of Jewish unity.

I have no doubt that other Diaspora communities will also not remain silent. Perhaps the Smotrich Saga represents the beginning of a sea-change in Diaspora-Israel relations, from supporting Israel “at all costs” to insisting that democratic values trump everything, even when someone – whether rabbi, politician or just a plain old rabble-rouser – claims their views are Torah Judaism.

Ironically, even though Smotrich calls for the establishment of a theocracy run by Jewish law, he defies the Torah’s fundamental teaching that each person is made in the image of God.

All of us who hold Zionism so close to our hearts are not afraid of being in a true dialogue with Israel and helping Israel to be better. Whether that’s advocating for a two-state solution and so ending the occupation, a position supported by 78 percent of the UK Jewish community, or standing up for the rights of religious and ethnic minorities, we are proud to share in the Jewish and democratic destiny of Israel.

British Jews are feisty and brave. We have shown ourselves willing to stand against the crowd when something is wrong – whether calling out recent antisemitism in the Labour Party, supporting Israel (even when this is an unpopular view) or just remaining stubbornly and joyfully Jewish against the prevailing winds of assimilation.

Just as we believe Israel should be a light unto the nations, we in the Diaspora have the privilege and right of helping that light to shine brightly, and shining our own light. It will be illuminating to see which other Diaspora communities follow our lead.

Rabbi Laura Janner-Klausner is a leadership coach, communal rabbi and the former Senior Rabbi to Reform Judaism in the UK. Her latest book is ‘Bitesize Resilience: A Crisis Survival Diary.’

This article is reproduced in its entirety