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Why Is the Gaza War Different?
FILE PHOTO: A militant fires a rocket launcher during what the terror group Hamas says is an engagement with its fighters during a battle with Israeli forces amid Israel’s ground offensive in a location given as near Beit Hanoun, Gaza, in this still image taken from video released November 17, 2023. Hamas Military Wing/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo
JNS.org – The current Israeli operation in Gaza has led to an unprecedented wave of fury against the Jewish state in Western capitals. Massive demonstrations have brought hundreds of thousands of people to the streets in Washington, London, Paris and elsewhere. Muslim residents of these cities are clearly over-represented among the demonstrators, but they are not the only participants.
The official slogans of such protests tend to focus on a call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. Many of the banners and slogans on display, however, are unambiguous in their support for Hamas, the Islamist movement that governs Gaza and which carried out the Oct. 7 massacres that precipitated the current war.
The scale and volume of these protests are without precedent. The Gaza war itself, however, and the massacre that preceded it, are neither unique nor without very recent parallel. This raises an interesting question as to the reasons for the particular virulence and fury currently directed against the Israeli war effort.
The closest recent parallel to the current Gaza war, both in terms of the actions that triggered it and regarding the way it is being conducted from a military point of view is the U.S.-led Coalition’s war against Islamic State in the period 2014-19. This war indeed contained a number of episodes of urban combat that directly resemble the current action being undertaken by the Israel Defense Forces in the Gaza Strip.
Mosul and Gaza
I am one of the fairly small group of journalists who covered the ISIS war from close up and who are currently engaged in reporting on the Gaza war. Both the similarities in the wars and the enormous difference in Western perception of them are striking.
Regarding the actions that triggered the conflicts, the similarities are unmistakable. In each case, an Arab movement of Sunni political Islam set out on a campaign of wholesale slaughter against a non-Arab and non-Muslim population in the Levant: Kurdish-speaking Yazidis in the ISIS case, Israeli Jews in that of Hamas.
But can one usefully compare the 21st century, Start-Up Nation, Westernized Israelis with the beleaguered, impoverished non-Arab minorities of northern Syria? The answer is yes. The similarity lies not in the area of their technological development, but rather in the intentions of their enemies towards them.
This became apparent on Oct. 7, 2023. For around 12 hours on that day, the ultra-modern technological defense structures of the State of Israel malfunctioned and ceased to operate. In that mercifully short period, there was little to differentiate between the treatment meted out to the Israeli Jewish communities of the “Gaza envelope,” and that afforded the non-Arab, non-Muslim minorities that faced the onslaught of ISIS on the Nineveh Plains in the summer of 2014.
I was in the Gaza area on Oct. 8, 2023, and in Syria in August 2014. The murderous, indiscriminate slaughter that triggered the ISIS and Hamas wars was of a piece.
When one turns to look at the response, there are also clear parallels. The war to destroy Islamic State required the conquest of an area far larger than that of the Gaza Strip. But in the episodes of urban combat which this included, the similarities are striking.
The current Israeli campaign in Gaza particularly resembles the Coalition’s battle against ISIS in the Iraqi city of Mosul. The latter was the largest urban center that the ISIS jihadis controlled. Getting them out of there took nine months of fighting. The brunt on the ground was borne by units of the Iraqi armed forces, with U.S. air support crucial to their eventual success.
The Mosul fighting—involving the slow enveloping by conventional infantry and armored forces of a well-dug-in jihadi enemy—closely resembled what has been taking place in Gaza since the Israeli ground incursion began on Oct. 27.
The ratio of the dead
Examination of the casualty rates of civilian and military dead in Mosul and currently in Gaza further indicates the similarities. In both cases, the figures must be treated with some skepticism.
Regarding Mosul, estimates vary widely. Figures for the number of ISIS fighters killed range from 7,000 to 25,000. Regarding the number of civilians killed, again, the span is wide. At the lower end, the Associated Press quoted figures suggesting between 9,000 and 11,000 civilians died in the course of the Mosul fighting. The Iraqi Kurdish Asayish intelligence service, meanwhile, estimates that around 40,000 civilians were killed.
In terms of ratio, this means that estimates suggest that there were anywhere between one and four civilians killed in Mosul for each ISIS fighter slain.
Regarding Gaza, the Hamas-controlled Health Ministry in the Strip claims that 20,000 Gazans have been killed so far in the Israeli incursion. The ‘ministry’ records that all those killed are civilians, i.e., it asks observers to believe that not a single Hamas fighter has lost his life in the fighting.
Ron Ben-Yishai, most veteran of Israel’s war correspondents (and very far from an apologist for the current Israeli government), quoted Israeli military sources this week as estimating that somewhere between 7,000 and 9,000 Hamas fighters have been killed in the fighting.
In so far as it can be currently ascertained, the ratio of civilian to military dead in Gaza appears then to broadly resemble that of Mosul.
So similar precipitating events, and comparable military campaigns. Yet the response in the West has been starkly different. No one demonstrated for the civilians killed by coalition bombing during the ISIS war (I personally witnessed enormous mass graves in Raqqa city, rapidly dug by Islamic State to bury the victims of that bombing). There were no furious crowds in Western cities denouncing “genocide.” Most in the West understood, rather, that the deeds of Islamic State and its ideology made it necessary that it be removed from power, in spite of the undoubted ugliness and the deaths of innocents that this would involve.
So what’s the answer? Why this stark contrast? It is difficult not to conclude that the unique place of the Jew in parts of both Islamic and Western political culture and consciousness lies somewhere at the root of the cause. Perhaps some more pleasant explanation can be found. The discrepancy, in any case, is obvious, and enormous.
The post Why Is the Gaza War Different? first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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France Halts Visa Renewals for El Al Staff Amid Growing Airport Worker Protests Targeting Israel Flights
Illustrative: The Israeli flag carrier El Al’s airliner lands at Abu Dhabi International Airport, United Arab Emirates, Aug. 31, 2020. Photo: WAM/Handout via REUTERS
France has reportedly halted visa renewals for security personnel of the Israeli airline El Al amid rising diplomatic tensions, as airport workers in both France and Belgium escalate protests and boycotts against the airline’s flights.
After multiple media reports revealed a six-month delay in renewing stay permits for El Al security personnel in Paris, the Israeli embassy called on French authorities to address the problem, with both governments now engaged in talks to resolve the matter.
The affected staff are Israeli citizens working as ITAN personnel — security employees attached to Israel’s diplomatic missions — for the airline’s Paris operations.
The delays have left some agents in France without legal status, while others have sought temporary diplomatic visas through the Israeli embassy or returned to Israel.
In a separate incident on Monday, El Al made headlines once again after an air traffic controller at Paris’s Charles de Gaulle airport reportedly shouted “Free Palestine” at one of the airline’s inbound flights during its final approach.
French authorities have launched an investigation into the incident, working closely with Israeli counterparts to ensure a swift and appropriate response.
“El Al takes very seriously the incident that occurred last night, in which a French air traffic controller addressed the company’s pilot in an unprofessional and inappropriate manner,” the Israeli airline said in a statement.
“El Al will continue to fly around the world with the Israeli flag proudly on the aircraft’s tail, while ensuring professionalism and the safety and security of passengers and crew,” the airline continued.
Last week, El Al’s Paris offices were vandalized with antisemitic graffiti and pro-Palestinian slogans spray-painted on walls and doors, including messages such as “Palestine will live, Palestine will win,” “To hell with Zionism,” and “Genocidal airline El Al.”
The Israeli Embassy in France attributed the attack to “a climate of violent and unchecked incitement by some French elected officials,” though it did not specify any names.
France, which has experienced a record surge in antisemitic incidents amid the ongoing war in Gaza, has lambasted Israel for its military campaign against the terrorist group Hamas, announcing plans to recognize a Palestinian state. Israeli officials have described the decision as a “reward for terrorism.”
In another incident, airport staff at Brussels Airport are demanding a suspension of Brussels Airlines flights to Israel, citing the alleged “genocide” in Gaza, as the airline prepares to resume service to Ben Gurion Airport on Wednesday.
Airport staff have pledged to boycott flights to Israel “until the genocide in Gaza and the West Bank comes to an end.” Local unions representing the workers have called on the airline to exempt employees from assignments involving Israel “for moral reasons.”
These latest incidents come amid a wave of reports across multiple airlines involving targeted harassment of Jewish passengers and coordinated efforts to boycott Israeli carriers.
This week, a Jewish passenger aboard a JetBlue flight was reportedly served a kosher meal labeled with the slur “Zionazi.”
In a press release, JetBlue confirmed it launched an investigation to determine which flight was involved, emphasizing that no complaints or reports have been filed by customers so far.
“We have zero tolerance for hate, bias, or discrimination,” the statement read. “If we determine that any individual associated with JetBlue or our catering partners was involved, we will take swift and appropriate action.”
In a similar incident last week, a Jewish passenger on an Iberia Airlines flight from Buenos Aires to Madrid discovered “Free Palestine” written on their kosher meal tray, prompting the Spanish airline to launch an investigation.
In a separate incident, Spanish airline Vueling faced backlash last month after forcibly removing a group of French Jewish teenagers from a flight from Valencia to Paris, allegedly for singing in Hebrew.
The forced removal of the group has triggered political outrage in France, after their group leader was handcuffed by Spanish police and a government minister insulted the teens as “Israeli brats.”
The Spanish low-cost airline denied the allegations, insisting the incident was not related to religion but rather that the group was removed because of its members’ “highly combative attitude that was putting the safety of the flight at risk.”
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‘Antisemitic Plan’: Over 100 Rabbis Call for Boycott of North Carolina Democratic Party Over Israel Arms Embargo
Anderson Clayton, chair of the North Carolina Democratic Party, speaks after Democrat Josh Stein won the North Carolina governor’s race, in Raleigh, North Carolina, US, Nov. 5, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Jonathan Drake
A coalition of more than 100 rabbis from across the US has issued a blistering public letter condemning the North Carolina Democratic Party (NCDP) for its recent vote in favor of an arms embargo targeting Israel, urging others “not to support or collaborate with” the party’s leadership until they renounce their plan.
The letter, titled “Nationwide Rabbinic Protest Letter Against the NCDP’s Recent Vote for Arms Embargo,” was published as a full-page advertisement in the Charlotte Observer. The signatories, who represent synagogues, Jewish federations, and religious organizations from across the US, accused party leaders of taking a “biased” and “morally unsound” stance that singles out Israel while ignoring threats posed by its adversaries.
In late June, the state executive committee of the NCDP passed a resolution calling for an immediate arms embargo on Israel, claiming that weapons and other military aid that the US has provided Israel “have been used to commit the crime of genocide and other war crimes in Gaza.”
According to the coalition of rabbis, the resolution was a “morally unsound” measure and tantamount to declaring that Israel “is the only country that is not allowed to defend itself.” The letter described the move as an unprecedented “one-sided” action that “shocked us all to our core.”
“Your judgment to single Israel out in such an unprecedented, one-sided way rewards Israel’s adversaries,” the letter read, denouncing the call for an arms embargo as “simply a prejudice that we cannot live with.”
The rabbis called on the public to boycott the NCDP until it apologizes for singling out the world’s lone Jewish state, a staunch ally of the US.
“We call on all Jewish people, their allies, and any person who stands against hate not to support or collaborate with North Carolina’s Democratic Party leadership until they renounce their antisemitic plan of an arms embargo against America’s top ally in the Middle East and until they apologize for the cruel way in which they refused to meaningfully engage with vulnerable minority populations, our fellow Jewish North Carolinians,” the letter stated. “The state of North Carolina will not impact the efficacy of the Israel Defense Forces, but they will make North Carolina less hospitable by marginalizing Jewish people with a regression back to bigotry.”
The group, which includes leaders from Reform, Conservative, and Orthodox congregations, drew parallels to historic Jewish alliances with civil rights leaders such as Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. They argued that cutting off military aid undermines Israel’s security, jeopardizes US strategic alliances, and fuels antisemitism by marginalizing Jewish voices in political spaces.
The rabbis urged allies to reject what they framed as the NCDP’s “hateful anti-Zionism” and to “stand against hate, not support or collaborate with it.”
The letter reflects growing tensions between segments of the Democratic Party and pro-Israel advocates, as some progressive activists push for restrictions on US military aid in response to Israel’s military actions in Gaza and the West Bank. While such measures have gained traction in local party bodies, they have also sparked backlash from Jewish leaders and more centrist Democrats who view them as undermining Israel’s right to self-defense.
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Iran Says Direct Nuclear Talks With US Possible Under Suitable Conditions
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian speaks during a meeting in Ilam, Iran, June 12, 2025. Photo: Iran’s Presidential website/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS
Iran could hold direct nuclear talks with the United States if conditions are suitable, first Vice President Mohammadreza Aref said on Tuesday, according to state media.
But he said US demands for Tehran to drop uranium enrichment entirely were “a joke.”
A sixth round of talks between Tehran and Washington was suspended following Israeli and US strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities in June.
Both powers accuse Iran of seeking nuclear weapons, an accusation Tehran has rejected.
“Iran is ready for negotiations under equal conditions in order to safeguard its interests … The Islamic Republic’s stance is in the direction that people want and, should there be suitable conditions, we are even ready for direct talks,” Aref said.
Previous rounds of negotiations, which started in April, were indirect, mediated by Oman. Washington says uranium enrichment in Iran constitutes a pathway to developing nuclear weapons and should be dropped.
On Sunday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian made a controversial statement in favor of resuming negotiations with the US regardless of current levels of distrust.
“You don’t want to talk? Well then, what do you want to do? Do you want to go to war? … Going to talks does not mean we intend to surrender,” he said, adding that such issues should not be “approached emotionally.”
A senior commander of Iran‘s Revolutionary Guards, Aziz Ghazanfari, reacting to Pezeshkian’s comments on Monday, said foreign policy requires discretion, and careless statements by authorities can have serious consequences for the country.