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Americans Are Turning Against Israel Because the Narrative Is Being Twisted Against It
Israelis sit together as they light candles and hold posters with the images Oded Lifschitz, Shiri Bibas and her two children, Kfir and Ariel Bibas, seized during the deadly Oct. 7, 2023, attack by Hamas, on the day the bodies of deceased hostages, identified at the time by Palestinian terror groups as Lifschitz, Shiri Bibas, and her two children, were handed over under the terms of a ceasefire between Hamas and Israel, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Feb. 20, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Itay Cohen
A new survey conducted by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) reveals a troubling shift in the American public’s attitudes toward antisemitism, as well as a striking lack of understanding regarding the nature of the conflict with Hamas.
The ADL survey was conducted in the wake of several violent attacks on Jewish targets in the United States. These included the arson of Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro’s home, the killing of Israeli embassy staffers in Washington, D.C., and a firebombing at a pro-hostage rally in Colorado — all by individuals claiming solidarity with the Palestinian cause.
The survey results are sobering. Approximately 24 percent of respondents said they believed these violent attacks were “understandable,” and the same percentage said they believed the attacks were staged to gain sympathy for Israel.
According to the ADL, approximately half of those who viewed the attacks as understandable also believed they were false flag operations. Perhaps most revealing, 38 percent of respondents said they believed such attacks would stop if Israel were to declare a ceasefire in its war against Hamas in Gaza.
The Israeli-Palestinian conflict does not fit easily into the moral categories many in the West instinctively apply. Within American academic and activist circles in particular, Israel is frequently cast as a colonial oppressor, and Palestinians as its indigenous, victimized subjects.
This narrative, now firmly embedded in liberal and woke elite discourse, leaves little space for nuance, complexity, or clarity. One may still hope that members of the public are open to reexamining their assumptions and engaging with the true nature of the conflict between Israel and Hamas — because the facts on the ground tell a troubling story.
On the morning of Saturday, October 7, 2023, thousands of armed terrorists led by Hamas broke through the border fence between Israel and Gaza, using explosive devices and bulldozers, after taking down the IDF’s observation equipment. Backed by a massive barrage of rockets fired toward Israel, convoys of terrorists, armed with machine guns, hand grenades, and RPGs, streamed into Israeli territory. They slaughtered 1,200 people and wounded more than 3,000 others in towns and kibbutzim across southern Israel. It was the deadliest day for the Jewish people since the Holocaust.
Most of those killed were civilians, including many children and babies, who were shot, decapitated, blown up, or burned to death. Hundreds of young people were also massacred and raped at a music festival, and Hamas seized around 240 hostages back to Gaza.
Equally disturbing is Hamas’ calculated abuse of the very people it claims to be fighting for. The organization routinely positions its military infrastructure — including weapons, command centers, and missile launchers — within and beneath hospitals, schools, and residential neighborhoods. These tactics are not accidental. They are designed to provoke Israeli military responses that produce civilian casualties, thereby generating international condemnation of Israel. In this way, Hamas turns its own population into both literal and symbolic human shields.
Hamas, which seized control of Gaza in 2007, is not a national liberation movement. It is a radical Islamist organization with a charter that explicitly calls for the destruction of Israel and the eradication of Jews.
The group rejects Israel’s right to exist and opposes any negotiated solution to the conflict. Moreover, its worldview extends beyond Israel, portraying the entire liberal democratic West as a hostile force to be resisted. This is not a matter of personal interpretation. It is a consistent and well-documented feature of Hamas’ rhetoric, actions, and foundational documents.
The ongoing plight of the Israeli hostages underscores this dynamic. During the October 7, 2023, massacre, approximately 240 individuals, including babies, women, children, and the infirm, were abducted from Israel and taken into Gaza. Today, around 50 remain in captivity, hidden away in underground tunnels, and Israel believes that at least 27 of them are no longer alive. Their continued captivity, in blatant violation of international humanitarian law, receives scant attention in many public discussions.
Their absence from the prevailing narrative reflects a troubling narrowing of public concern, where only certain categories of suffering are deemed worthy of recognition. A complete and honest accounting of this conflict must include them — not as an afterthought, but as an essential part of the war’s human cost.
Seen in this light, the conflict with Hamas is not fundamentally about land, nor is it a straightforward expression of Palestinian self-determination. It is a struggle between a sovereign democracy and a deeply entrenched militant regime that willingly sacrifices civilian lives, both Palestinian and Israeli, in pursuit of Jihadist ideological annihilation
Hamas is a hostile, powerful, and cruel enemy. It is not fighting for the freedom of Palestinians. It is sacrificing them in service of its singular mission: the demolition of the State of Israel, and the destruction of Western values.
It is legitimate to question whether those who hold the views reflected in the survey, those who find attacks on Jews “understandable,” who believe they are staged, or who imagine that Hamas is open to peaceful resolution, are likely to reconsider their assumptions. Even so, the survey serves a useful purpose. It exposes how far the conflict has shifted from a dispute over territory or governance to a battle over narrative. In this interpretive struggle, Israel is increasingly portrayed as a global pariah, stripped of historical, legal, and moral context.
One may only hope that the broader public will resist this automatic categorization and remain open to a more honest, and albeit painful conversation — one in which complexities are acknowledged, and empathy is not withheld from one side alone.
If segments of American public opinion now regard this sort of violence against Jews as “understandable,” it may be because this broader context has been obscured. When complex realities are flattened into simplistic narratives, empathy becomes selective and moral discernment implodes. Moreover, such responses reflect a deeper cognitive dissonance, one that confuses political protest with moral justification for violence.
Dr. Daniel Beaudoin is a senior lecturer in political science and crisis management at Tel Aviv University, and the executive director of the European International Society for Military Ethics.
The post Americans Are Turning Against Israel Because the Narrative Is Being Twisted Against It first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Hezbollah Says Lebanon Move on Army Plan Is ‘Opportunity,’ Urges Israel to Commit to Ceasefire
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and members of the cabinet stand as they attend a cabinet session to discuss the army’s plan to disarm Hezbollah, at the Presidential Palace in Baabda, Lebanon, September 5, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir
Hezbollah official Mahmoud Qmati told Reuters on Saturday that the group considered Friday’s cabinet session on an army plan to establish a state monopoly on arms “an opportunity to return to wisdom and reason, preventing the country from slipping into the unknown.”
Lebanon’s cabinet on Friday welcomed a plan by the army that would disarm Hezbollah and said the military would begin executing it, without setting a timeframe for implementation and cautioning that the army had limited capabilities.
But it said continued Israeli military operations in Lebanon would hamper the army’s progress. Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Lebanese information minister Paul Morcos stopped short of saying the cabinet had formally approved the plan.
Qmati told Reuters that Hezbollah had reached its assessment based on the government’s declaration on Friday that further implementation of a US roadmap on the matter was dependent on Israel’s commitment. He said that without Israel halting strikes and withdrawing its troops from southern Lebanon, Lebanon’s implementation of the plan should remain “suspended until further notice.”
Lebanon’s cabinet last month tasked the army with coming up with a plan that would establish a state monopoly on arms and approved a US roadmap aimed at disarming Hezbollah in exchange for a halt to Israeli military operations in Lebanon.
Qmati said that Hezbollah “unequivocally rejected” those two decisions and expected the Lebanese government to draw up a national defense strategy.
Israel last week signaled it would scale back its military presence in southern Lebanon if the army took action to disarm Hezbollah. Meanwhile, it has continued its strikes, killing four people on Wednesday.
A national divide over Hezbollah’s disarmament has taken center stage in Lebanon since last year’s devastating war with Israel, which upended a power balance long dominated by the Iran-backed Shi’ite Muslim group.
Lebanon is under pressure from the US, Saudi Arabia and Hezbollah’s domestic rivals to disarm the group. But Hezbollah has pushed back, saying it would be a serious misstep to even discuss disarmament while Israel continues its air strikes on Lebanon and occupies swathes of territory in the south.
Hezbollah Secretary General Naim Qassem last month raised the specter of civil war, warning the government against trying to confront the group and saying street protests were possible.
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UK Police Arrest Dozens at Latest Protest for Banned Palestine Action
Demonstrators attend the “Lift The Ban” rally organised by Defend Our Juries, challenging the British government’s proscription of “Palestine Action” under anti-terrorism laws, in Parliament Square, in London, Britain, September 6, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Carlos Jasso
British police arrested dozens more people on Saturday under anti-terrorism laws for demonstrating in support of Palestine Action, a pro-Palestinian group banned by the government as a terrorist organization.
Britain banned Palestine Action under anti-terrorism legislation in July after some of its members broke into a Royal Air Force base and damaged military planes. The group accuses Britain’s government of complicity in what it says are Israeli war crimes in Gaza.
Police have arrested hundreds of Palestine Action supporters in recent weeks under anti-terrorism legislation, including over 500 in just one day last month, many of them over the age of 60.
On Saturday, hundreds of demonstrators gathered near parliament in central London to protest against the ban on Saturday, with many holding up signs that said: “I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action.”
London’s Metropolitan Police said officers had begun arresting those expressing support for Palestine Action. Police did not say how many arrests were made but a Reuters witness said dozens of people were detained.
Palestine Action’s ban, or proscription, puts the group alongside al-Qaeda and ISIS and makes it a crime to support or belong to the organization, punishable by up to 14 years in prison.
“I can be unequivocal, if you show support for Palestine Action – an offense under the Terrorism Act – you will be arrested,” Met Deputy Assistant Commissioner Ade Adelekan said on Friday. “We have the officer numbers, custody capacity and all other resources to process as many people as is required.”
Human rights groups have criticized Britain’s decision to ban the group as disproportionate and say it limits the freedom of expression of peaceful protesters.
The government has accused Palestine Action of causing millions of pounds worth of criminal damage and says the ban does not prevent other pro-Palestinian protests.
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Macron’s Meeting with American Jewry ‘Won’t Happen’ Amid Palestinian Recognition Drive, Surge in Antisemitism
French President Emmanuel Macron speaks during a press conference in Paris, France, June 12, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Stephane Mahe
i24 News – French President Emmanuel Macron attempted to set up a meeting with American Jewish leaders later this month on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.
i24NEWS has learned that the meeting won’t happen, firstly because Macron was only available for the meeting ahead of the UN General Assembly during Rosh Hashanah, and yet, a person invited to meet with Macron and who has knowledge of the discussions told i24NEWS the sit-down simply wasn’t going to happen, anyway.
“I think the organizations, for the most part, would not have participated,” the person said, adding that AIPAC, the Anti-Defamation League and the American Jewish Committee would have likely received invitations, among other entities.
“The guy has a 15% popularity rating in France. It’s not our job to help him out,” the person said.
Asked by i24NEWS whether Macron’s push for greater Palestinian state recognition or his lack of action in tackling antisemitism at home led to the stance of organized American Jewry, the person said it’s more of “the climate” which allows one to say ‘Look, the American Jews met with me,’ regardless of the content.”
The person said they are sure, if a meeting would have happened, that everybody in the room would have taken a hard line with Macron, including his “statements on Israel, the failure to respond to antisemitism” and France’s announcement this summer that it will recognize a Palestinian state later this month, and is leading an effort to get more countries to do the same.
But, the person told i24NEWS they are convinced that, in the end, while no final decision actually had to be taken, there was enough pressure that a consensus would have been reached to decline the meeting.
Of the timing of Rosh Hashanah allowing for leadership to not be forced to officially say no to Macron, the person said “G-d saves us every time.”
Another source familiar with the matter noted that it cannot be ruled out that Macron may eventually succeed in arranging a meeting with certain representatives, as the organizations are not a single unified body. However, he is unlikely to be welcomed by the overwhelming majority of groups representing American Jewry.
i24NEWS has also learned that French President Emmanuel Macron explored the possibility of visiting Israel ahead of the convention, but was advised by the Prime Minister’s Office that the timing was inappropriate. The message came as Macron continues to push for recognition of a Palestinian state, a move Israel strongly opposes. Sources further told i24NEWS that Israel is weighing additional retaliatory measures against Macron, including the potential closure of the French consulate in Jerusalem, which primarily serves Palestinians in the West Bank.