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Watching movies at UQAM’s now-dismantled pro-Palestinian encampment leads McGill student Ben Wexler to reflect on the protesters’ success—and the message for Jews
UQAM’s pro-Palestinian encampment was scheduled to come down on June 6, after protesters reached a resolution with university administration. McGill student Ben Wexler visited the site on its final weekend… I promised myself I would watch more films this summer. So when I saw that the al-Aqsa encampment at the Université du Québec à Montréal […]
The post Watching movies at UQAM’s now-dismantled pro-Palestinian encampment leads McGill student Ben Wexler to reflect on the protesters’ success—and the message for Jews appeared first on The Canadian Jewish News.
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Liberation Day Postponed

A damaged building, following an Israeli attack on Hamas leaders, according to an Israeli official, in Doha, Qatar, Sept. 9, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa
There is still confusion about the ultimate result of Israel’s strike in Doha, which struck a meeting of Hamas leaders. Israeli government sources have said they are “not optimistic” about having decapitated the terror chiefs. Qatar and the allies it pays for are moaning about Israel’s “war crime.” Two things to note:
- Even if Hamas leaders survived, they are now aware that there is no safe haven. The rules have changed.
- If you didn’t wail about France’s strike in Mali that killed 16 people at a wedding, or the US strikes against Osama bin Laden and Qassem Soleimani, don’t start now. It is not a violation of international law to strike terrorists hiding in third countries – the third countries assumed the risk; Qatar rather publicly.
Equally important, consider the strikes in relation to the condition of Palestinians actually living in Gaza — imprisoned there by the “leaders” living in the luxury of Qatar. Check voices NOT funded by Qatar.
Start with Kareem Jouda, a Palestinian resident of Gaza, posting on X:
What makes me happiest about what happened in Doha is that the Qataris and those living there have tasted, even for a moment, what is called the “fire belt” — those successive explosions that we lived through every day.
I am glad the fire has reached Qatar. For two whole years, the media backed by Doha did nothing but silence my voice, promote the war, support its continuation, and give legitimacy to the parties that destroyed our lives. They turned our blood into material for their propaganda shows, and our suffering into fuel for their false narratives.
He was talking about Hamas and rightly so. Early in the war, Moussa Abu Marzouk of Hamas’s “political bureau” was recorded by MEMRI.org:
We have built the tunnels because we have no other way of protecting ourselves from being targeted and killed. These tunnels are meant to protect us from the airplanes. We are fighting from inside the tunnels. Everybody knows that 75% of the people in the Gaza Strip are refugees, and it is the responsibility of the United Nations to protect them. According to the Geneva Convention, it is the responsibility of the occupation to provide them with all the services as long as they are under occupation.
In other words, it’s not our problem if they die. The opposite. On Lebanese television, Ghazi Hamad, again of Hamas’s “political bureau,” said:
We will do this again and again. The Al-Aqsa Flood [the Oct. 7 atrocities] is just the first time, and there will be a second, a third, a fourth, because we have the determination, the resolve and the capabilities to fight. Will we have to pay a price? Yes, and we are ready to pay it. We are called a nation of martyrs, and we are proud to sacrifice martyrs.”
Not him, of course — Palestinians living above the massive Hamas tunnels in Gaza, more than 500 miles under mosques, schools, homes, and hospitals. Palestinians not permitted to leave the battle zone when Israel provided the warning and the means to escape. Palestinians deprived of food when Hamas stole international aid either to sell it at exorbitant prices or feed its terrorist troops.
All funded by Qatar.
Dahlia Ziada of The Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs points out on X:
Qatar’s Al Jazeera yesterday was celebrating the Jerusalem bus attack, and the leaders of Hamas residing in Doha made statements applauding the attack as “a heroic act” and calling for more similar attacks! If Qatar hosts Hamas terrorists, funds Hamas terrorist operations, whitewashes their crimes with its mighty media machine, and rigs “ceasefire deals” to throw them lifelines… Then, don’t preach sovereignty, now, or act surprised when the state you enabled these terrorists to attack responds inside your own territory.
Israel is the opposite of Hamas, which uses its own people as human shields. Perhaps because of that, 900 Israeli soldiers have been killed in Gaza — as Bernard-Henry Levy wrote in The Wall Street Journal, “A genocidal army doesn’t take two years to win a war in a territory the size of Las Vegas.” John Spencer, chair of urban warfare studies at the Modern War Institute (MWI) at West Point, noted that:
Israel has taken extraordinary steps to limit civilian harm. It warns before attacks using text messages, phone calls, leaflets, and broadcasts. It opens safe corridors and pauses operations so civilians can leave combat areas. It tracks civilian presence down to the building level. I have seen missions delayed or canceled because children were nearby. I have seen Israeli troops come under fire and still be ordered not to shoot back because civilians might be harmed.
Are there Palestinians who sympathized with, worked with, and applauded Hamas and its atrocities? Yes, and they are paying. And there are Palestinians who did not; they are paying as well. But, in the end, the horror of October 7th is on Hamas. The horror of Palestinian civilian victimization is on Hamas. And Hamas will pay.
September 9th might have been Liberation Day for Kareem Jouda. If it wasn’t, one can pray it will come.
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Self-Defense: A Pillar of Our New Jewish Life

Elion Even-Esh, who served in an elite unit in the Israeli Defense Forces where he learned Krav Maga (an IDF-developed style of self-defense) and later served as a captain in the US Marine Corps, has made it his mission to “instill strength and confidence” in the Torah-observant communities of the United States. Photo: Courtesy.
The fact that the Jewish people are a minority brings with it unique and inherent risks. That minority status exposes us to dangers that others can afford to overlook.
The question is not whether Jewish communities need to protect themselves — the question is how.
October 8, 2023 — and every day since — has reminded many Jewish people around the world that these threats are very much a part of our modern reality. It’s not to say that violence against Jewish people is ubiquitous, but rather, it is a serious and ongoing threat that must be considered and dealt with.
Solutions applied to the 1990s do not necessarily apply today. Leaders of communities have a responsibility to prepare their constituencies for all eventualities. This includes the need to defend themselves collectively — but also individually — from physical harm. This is a very hard realization to internalize, but nonetheless, people who ignore this do so at their own peril.
A confident and healthy Jewish community — one that knows how to defend itself — is a community far less likely to be bullied.
Jewish institutions must integrate this mindset into daily life. Schools, synagogues, camps, and community centers should treat self-defense as part of Jewish education, no less important than Hebrew, history, or math.
Training in self-defense should be as normalized as attending a Shabbat service. It should be woven into the fabric of our institutions so that young Jews grow up with both a strong Jewish identity and the confidence to defend it. School principals, religious leaders, and youth group leaders are the ones with the responsibility to lead this charge.
There are four pillars of protection that every Jewish community should embrace.
First is advocacy — engaging elected officials, decision-makers, and civic leaders to ensure Jewish concerns are heard and addressed.
Second is influence — which comes through culture, media, and interpersonal relationships that shape public opinion.
Third is security — which is provided by law enforcement, private protection, and community-based security networks.
But there is a fourth pillar that is too often neglected: personal self-defense.
If and when the first three pillars fail, the fourth pillar — the pillar of self-reliance — should be strong.
Jewish people are not necessarily known for being “tough guys,” but maybe it’s time for that stereotype to change. The best way to deal with a bully is to confront them and let them know that there’s a consequence to their action.
Realism demands we confront the fact that not all threats can be reasoned with. Individuals and groups who harbor open hostility toward Jewish people will act on it when they believe they can do so with impunity. The only effective deterrent is strength — physical, communal, and psychological.
Options include firearm ownership where permitted by law, but it must also include physical preparedness — training in Krav Maga, boxing, judo, karate, or other disciplines that instill both skill and confidence.
Videos surface almost daily of Jews being harassed, attacked, or intimidated on the streets of major cities. This is not a call for radicalism or violence — but a call for level-headed realism.
New realities call for a new game plan. People learn self-defense so that they never have to use it. Moving forward, young people should walk with confidence through their lives. The great Hasidic Rabbi Nachman of Breslov once said, “The whole world is a narrow bridge and the most important thing is to not be afraid, it’s to not be afraid at all.”
Through defense education, this teaching will move from being just an inspirational saying to becoming a lived reality.
Daniel Rosen is the Co-founder of a Non-profit Technology company called Emissary4all which is an app to organize people on social media by ideology not geography. He is the Co-host of the podcast “Recalibration.” You can reach him at drosen@emissary4all.org
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The Anti-Israel Contradiction Machine: Where Every Lie Cancels the Last

Palestinian Hamas terrorists stand guard on the day of the handover of hostages held in Gaza since the deadly Oct. 7, 2023, attack, as part of a ceasefire and a hostages-prisoners swap deal between Hamas and Israel, in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, Feb. 22, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Hatem Khaled
It’s remarkable. The same activists who shout themselves hoarse at Western protests, who flood social media with memes and reels, somehow manage to hold two (or three, or ten) contradictory claims in their heads at once without blinking.
Like Soviet propagandists or Goebbels’ Ministry of Public Enlightenment, they rely on volume, not consistency. Because in propaganda, coherence is optional — but outrage is mandatory.
As Joseph Goebbels infamously put it: “If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it.” That is the strategy: not persuasion through reasoning, but relentless repetition.
Here’s a sampling from the Hamas-friendly, Israel-hating narrative machine:
Before October 2023, Gaza was an “open-air prison” or even a “concentration camp.” But also, before October 7, it had many wonderful features — including being a “beautiful Mediterranean beachside paradise” — that Israel supposedly destroyed. Which is it? Concentration camp or paradise? Apparently both, depending on which slur works best.
Contradiction #2: Statehood or Extermination?
“Israel is a racist ethno-state.” But the same activists chant: “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” — and in Arabic, “Palestine will be Arab.” Destroying Israel and denying Jews the right to live on the land, in order to establish a 23rd Arab ethno-state is fine; but Jewish sovereignty in any form is racism.
Contradiction #3: Hostages? What Hostages?
“There were no hostages taken on Oct. 7.” Yet also: “Look how well Hamas treats the hostages!” So which is it — none taken, or proof of Hamas’ supposed hospitality?
Contradiction #4: Peace or Perpetual War?
“Ceasefire now!” they scream. But even in the same demonstrations: “Long live the Intifada!” and “Israel will soon be destroyed.” So, do they want peace — or endless war until Israel no longer exists?
Contradiction #5: Starvation Theater
“Israel is starving Palestinians.” Yet also: “Look how humiliating it is to make Palestinians line up for food.” And all the while, Gazan TikToks in the past few months have shown crowded restaurants, buzzing bakeries, and delicious dessert spreads.
Contradiction #6: The Civilian Shield Shuffle
“Hamas doesn’t target civilians.” Yet also: “There are no Israeli civilians — every Israeli is a settler and fair game.” Translation: all Jews, from babies to Holocaust survivors, are targets — but don’t you dare notice.
Contradiction #7: Holocaust Gaslighting
“Your Holocaust victim card expired long ago.” Then: “The Holocaust never happened.” Then: “Hitler was right.” And somehow also: “What’s happening in Gaza is worse than the Holocaust (that didn’t happen).”
Contradiction #8: October 7 — Didn’t Happen, But Totally Justified
“The October 7 massacres didn’t happen.” Or: “Israel killed its own citizens.” Yet Hamas literally filmed its murders. And when confronted: “All resistance is justified by any means.” Some even add: “Yes, but those women deserved it — they were dancing near Gaza.” Denial and justification in one grotesque package.
Contradiction #9: Weak, Strong, or Both?
“Hamas are just freedom fighters with rifles.” Yet also: “Hamas is winning the war and will wipe Israel off the map.” Powerless victims and unstoppable conquerors — simultaneously.
Contradiction #10: Hospitals or Tunnels?
“Hamas builds schools and hospitals.” Yet also: “Hamas dug 700 km of tunnels” defended as vital for defeating Israel. If they can dig almost twice the New York City subway underground, why not more trauma wards? Because tunnels are for terrorists, rockets, and hostages; hospitals are militarized props for propaganda — not places to make sure civilians get help above all else.
Contradiction #11: Genocide Math
For over 15 years, activists claimed Israel was committing genocide. Yet Gaza’s population nearly doubled during that time, and since 1967 has grown six-fold — from 400,000 to over 2.2 million. Now, post-October 7, they cry “genocide” again. Civilian deaths are tragic, but they stem from a war Hamas started, while hiding under and next to ordinary Gazans.
Yesterday’s lie ignored population growth; today’s ignores Hamas’ responsibility and the relatively low civilians to combatant casualty ratio in this war. Both are hollow slogans, not facts. There is also data strongly suggesting that the Gazan population has not decreased overall during the war. That doesn’t happen in actual genocides.
Contradiction #12: Ancient or Modern?
“Palestinians are Canaanite.” Or: “Palestinians are an ancient people.” Yet no Arab person self-identified as Palestinian before the 19th century. Palestinian culture, language, and religion are Arab, not Canaanite. Jews, by contrast, have 3,000 years of ancient coins, inscriptions, and prayers tying them to the land. And Jews have never left the land for thousands of years. Even Hamas admits this fight isn’t about Arabs being Canaanites — it says openly its goal is a global Islamic caliphate.
What These Contradictions Really Show
This dizzying list isn’t a bug — it’s the strategy. Like every totalitarian movement, Hamas and its defenders know the trick: don’t persuade, overwhelm. Flood the zone with lies faster than they can be debunked. As Goebbels taught, repeat them until they feel true.
And once you see it, the whole anti-Israel narrative collapses. It’s not a movement for peace or justice, but a noise machine of lies and contradictions. It’s not about protecting Palestinians, but about demonizing and erasing Jews — and not about truth, but about rage.
Micha Danzig is a current attorney, former IDF soldier & NYPD police officer. He currently writes for numerous publications on matters related to Israel, antisemitism & Jewish identity & is the immediate past President of StandWithUs in San Diego and a national board member of Herut.