by Deganit Senker, former Director-General of the Ministry of Aliyah and Absorption and current Board Chairperson of Ofek Israeli, dedicated to encouraging and supporting Aliyah, translated by Hillel Fendel.
The murderous terrorist attack in Sydney, Australia last week was not just another "security incident" in a far-off country. This moment of deep crisis for Australian Jewry was another rung up the ladder of anti-Semitic escalation that has accompanied the Jewish people for at least the last decade, and especially since the Simchat Torah massacre over two years ago.
For the State of Israel, it is also a moment of testing: Will the State of Israel realize its responsibility to world Jewry, will it raise the gauntlet of leadership, and will it realize the direction connection between Jewish security around the world and the future of the Jewish national state?
Over the past decade, we have been witness to a steady and troubling rise in anti-Semitic incidents around the world. It has gotten worse over the past two years, to be sure, but the trend started well before. As early as 2015, with the attack on the HyperCacher kosher supermarket in Paris (17 murdered), and in 2017 with the brutal murder of Dr. Sarah Halimi, also in Paris, it became clear that Jews were once again no longer safe, even in the heart of democratic Europe. The Jewish response was swift: In the following year, approximately 7,500 Jews immigrated to Israel from France, compared to a previous annual average of some 2,200.
Nor has there been a shortage of attacks of varying intensity since then. There was the Pittsburgh temple massacre in 2018, the deadly supermarket shooting in Jersey City in 2019, and the fatal stabbing at a Chanukah celebration in Monsey the same year. The Corona plague was known in Jewish circles not only for the deaths it brought in its wake, but also for the anti-Semitic conspiracy theories it aroused. The pattern has become clear: Rising hatred, bursting violence, and then a Jewish arousal as the Children of Israel seek security, identity, and belonging.
Et Tu, Australia?
Even though the format began to become familiar, not many expected it to happen in Australia as well. This far-off, liberal country, with strict weapons laws, and with a healthy Jewish community strongly integrated into society at large, abruptly became an anti-Semitic terrorism arena. As of now, 15 Jews have died as a result of the Bondi Beach mass shooting, and 38 were injured, including children and Holocaust survivors. An incident of this type in a democratic, stable country that has long been considered safe for Jews is a flashing warning light to the entire Jewish world.
Aliyah from Australia is not tremendously dramatic – about 100 to 150 Jews "come home" each year. On the other hand, the Jewish leadership in Australia reports a threefold increase in anti-Semitic incidents in the country – a profoundly troubling trend.
And Australia is not alone. Amsterdam, a city well identified with liberalism and tolerance, has registered of late several violent anti-Semitic attacks that have shaken its Jewish community. In Great Britain, the Jewish population has suffered a clear erosion in personal security over the past two years. Increasingly more British Jews are considering, for the first time, making Aliyah. In fact, the number of olim from England has nearly doubled.
Violence is not the only issue. Lighting Chanukah candles in one's home window has become a hot topic in many places, as has the wearing of yarmulkes. Children wearing clearly Jewish garb on their way to school and Kosher slaughter are often problematic. In general, many Jews around the world are experiencing a shake-up of their sense of identity.
Israel and the Aliyah Question
Where does Israel fit into all this? Some Israelis have long felt that anti-Semitism abroad is a "Diaspora problem," and that Aliyah is a personal choice of the Jews involved. This is a fundamental error. Anti-Semitism and Aliyah are two sides of the same coin. When communal security is shaken, some members react by strengthening their local Jewish institutions and identity, some choose to make Aliyah, and some react, most painfully, by hiding their Jewishness.
It appears that Israel has three roles to play in this crisis. First: defense of Jewish life abroad. Israel has advanced capabilities in the spheres of security intelligence and technology, and is actually an international defense-tech superpower. As such, it can and should be an active partner in protecting Jewish institutions around the world, in cooperation of course with the local governments.
Number two is community strength and resilience. Israel has developed over the past years and decades advanced models for coping with community-wide and individual trauma, as can be seen in the rehabilitation of communities in the western Negev following Oct. 7th. The knowledge and experience gained from the cooperation to this end between the State, local government, and civilian groups and individuals, can be used to serve Jewish communities around the world that have been hit hard by anti-Semitism.
Third, and arguably most importantly, is Aliyah. Israel is far from a beginner in this area. A deep, professional and well-coordinated infrastructure has been built in recent years here to encourage and absorb immigration, led by the Ministry of Aliyah in close partnership with the Jewish Agency and World Zionist Organization. These bodies work efficiently to enhance absorption, employment, housing, and community support for Olim. These ongoing efforts must be redoubled through genuine dialogue with Diaspora communal leaders and local Aliyah-promotion organizations.
Our Common Destiny
The heart of the matter is the sense, both in Israel and abroad, of the common Jewish destiny we all share. There is no longer a substantial difference between what happens in Jerusalem or in Sydney, London, Amsterdam, and New York. Decisions that are made in Israel, whether they concern defense, economics, and even Jewish values, echo directly upon the daily lives of Jews the world over. And by the same measure, the sense of fear in the Diaspora is translated here in Israel into life choices: strengthening of identity, Aliyah, or deep dread of the future.
The expanse between Aliyah and Jewish communal strength does not comprise two different subjects; it is rather one consecutive continuum, in which is tested the State of Israel's ability to be not only a sovereign state, but also the general and ultimate home for every Jew around the world.