October 7 and Netanyahu
The Atlantic published an article titled “How Netanyahu Destroyed Israel’s Standing in the United States,” by Franklin Foer, a well-known American Jewish journalist. Foer noted that in 1982, while working as a sales representative for a Jerusalem-based furniture company, Netanyahu was approached by Israel’s ambassador to Washington, who persuaded him to join him in promoting Israel to Americans. Netanyahu quickly became Israel’s media face on American television screens, dedicating himself since then to the task of advocating for his country. Yet, after forty years, he has failed in that mission.
Solidarity with Israel, once a rare issue on which Democrats and Republicans agreed, has been undermined by the repercussions of the October 7 attacks and Israel’s subsequent crimes in Gaza. Two years ago, 19 Democratic senators voted against selling arms to Israel; last April, that number rose to 40 out of 47, including presidential candidates. A Muslim, anti-Zionist figure was elected mayor of New York, the city with the largest Jewish population in America. Furthermore, a pro-Palestinian candidate is certain to reach Congress. Criticism of Israel has become a central theme on the agendas of senior liberal senators.
As Vice President Vance, the likely presidential candidate in 2028, previously stated, the financier and sex crimes defendant Jeffrey Epstein had ties to Israeli intelligence. He accused Israel of conspiring against his diplomacy with Iran. Such comments, according to the author, would have led to any Republican being expelled from the party just a few years ago.
In Foer’s view, Netanyahu could have halted this collapse in Israel’s reputation had he made an effort to respect Obama, or at least shown a willingness to pursue a fair and just solution to the Palestinian issue—even if he personally believed Palestinians were uninterested in such a resolution. Instead, he acted with clear arrogance and insincerity.
Then came President Trump, whom Netanyahu viewed as “Israel’s greatest friend,” seeing in him a golden opportunity. Netanyahu’s subservience went beyond mere flattery; Trump rewarded him by moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem and canceling the nuclear deal with Iran. Meanwhile, the number of lawmakers refusing to accept funds from AIPAC increased. Democratic presidential candidates absorbed these new calculations and attempted to draw attention to themselves through prominent confrontations with Israel. This division exposed Netanyahu, who had long insisted that no one understands Americans better than he does.
Then came the U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran and its proxies, with the stated goal of eliminating the world’s only Jewish-majority state. Netanyahu confronted military threats fiercely, but he lost on the battlefield that made his career. He rose to power by convincing Americans of the righteousness of his cause, but he governed as if their conviction no longer mattered—or was even irrelevant.
The author believes Netanyahu never realized that his past successes occurred under favorable conditions, backed by decades of American sympathy for the Israeli cause. When circumstances changed, Netanyahu did not adjust his argument; instead, he concluded that there was no room for changing opinions, assuming that hatred of the Jewish state was entrenched and immutable.
Netanyahu’s disregard for global public opinion was evident in his selection of the most controversial figures for his government and his refusal to criticize extremists’ statements and policies. He also failed to present a clear plan for Gaza and rejected U.S. normalization efforts so as not to anger the right wing. In the end, Israel will regret the extent of American political support it lost during Netanyahu’s tenure. Independents have become more sympathetic to Palestinians than to Israelis, 60% of American adults hold a negative view of Israel, and a majority of Republicans under 45 oppose renewing military aid packages to it. Support among young Evangelicals, once a solid bloc backing Israel among voters, is also declining.
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All these profound changes could not have occurred without the “Al-Aqsa Flood” operation on October 7, 2023, which was deadly. Regardless of our very negative view of those who carried it out, reclaiming rights and achieving revolutions require bloodshed.
Ahmed Al-Sarraf
