From Bondi Beach to MIT, Incitement Kills

Over the past weeks, we have witnessed a terrifying pattern: Jewish and Israeli lives targeted across continents, in places that should be safe.

A Jewish home in California, decorated for Hanukkah.

An Israeli professor at Brown University.

A Jewish, openly Zionist scientist at MIT.

A mass shooting at Bondi Beach in Australia that took the lives of 16 innocent people - and would have taken many more if not for the heroism of a Muslim bystander, Ahmed El-Ahmed, who showed us that courage and justice exist in every part of society.

The mourning Jewish community in Bondi Beach. The writing was on the wall.

These are not isolated incidents. They are part of a global wave of violence directed at Jews and Israelis - at homes, campuses, workplaces, and public spaces.

It is critical to be clear about the source of this violence. These attacks are not the result of Israeli government policies, even when many of us as liberals oppose those policies.

They are definitely not a response to Jews’ political views.

They are the direct consequence of relentless, dehumanizing incitement - online, on campuses, in protests, in public discourse, and by far too many leaders - that normalizes hatred and legitimizes violence against Jews and Israelis, often disguised as being “pro-Palestine.”

The writing was on the wall. When Jews are portrayed as villains scheming against society (“Jews are the reason the minimum wage is too low,” as I recently saw in an Instagram video), when Israelis are stripped of their humanity (“bloodthirsty monsters”), when violence is justified (“by all means”) or excused as “resistance,” the outcome is tragically predictable.

Across the United States and around the world, Jewish communities are being forced to increase security, question whether they can celebrate openly, and live with fear simply for being who they are.

This is unacceptable.

No minority - Jews included - should have to wonder whether their identity makes them a target.

LIBRAEL stands in full solidarity with the victims, their families, and the Jewish and Israeli communities affected by these atrocious attacks.

But solidarity is not enough. We demand action. Governments, institutions, platforms, and leaders around the world must take incitement seriously - before it turns into violence.

This means: enforcing existing hate-speech laws, expanding protections for targeted communities, holding those who spread hatred accountable, and drawing firm red lines against rhetoric that glorifies or excuses harm.

No ifs, no buts, no nothing.

As we light the candles, we are reminded that it takes only a small light to dispel great darkness. In times like these, let our commitment to our communities, our values, and our identity be the light we so urgently need.

With respect,

Rotem Oreg-Kalisky

Founder and Director, LIBRAEL