Gen Z’s views on Israel and Jews are a disturbing betrayal of their own values

On the morning of Shabbat, Oct. 7, Hamas terrorists invaded Israel, murdering, torturing and raping more tha⛦n 1,200 men, women and♛ children, including babies, and kidnapping 240 more.

The tragic events reminded the world♑ ofꦯ the existential threats Israel faces.

Speaking as the spokesperson for the Israeli consulate in New York, these ꦿattacks were pivotal in shaping my perspective on America’s current and future public opinion toward Israel.

The scale and brutality of Hamas’ Oct. 7 actions have made it unmistakably clear to the world the grave dangers ♛Is💝rael contends with.

The attacks hav🐲e garnered widespread condemnation of Hamas and bolstered support for Israel from democratic natio♏ns, notably the United States.

Leaders from the president to members of Congresꩲs to local officials have unequivocally supported Israel’s right to self-defense and hostage-rescue efforts.

In contrast, authoritar🔥ian regimes like Iran and Russia have, predictably, shown s😼upport for Hamas.

But as Israel began its justified ꦕand globally backed mission to remove those seeking to commit a second Holocaust, a concerning shift in the narrative, esp🎀ecially among young Americans, became apparent.

Accusations of disproportionate response and even g꧑enocide surfꦫaced, overlooking Israel’s extensive efforts to avoid civilian casualties — efforts unparalleled in military history.

These include disseminating millions of leafꦦlets to warn civilians of impending attacks and establishing evacuation routes.

Ground🧸 operations, preferred over airstrikes to minimize civilian harm, have tragically resulted in more than 100 Israeli soldier fatalities.

While these efforts cꦿan’t erase the sorrow of civilian losses in Gaza, Hamas’ tactic of integrating military assets within civilian areas plays a significant role in this tragedy.

Discussions about Israel’s tactics are neces🍌sary, but labeling them ge♚nocidal is baseless and harmful.

Disturbingly, a recent Harvard poll reveals an unsettling change in young Americans’ perceptions: 🌺A ൩majority now believes Israel should be dismantled in favor of Hamas.

Even more troubling is the larger pꦰroportion — more than two-thirds of those aged 18 to 24 — that views Jews globally as “oppressors.”

This trend, where anti-Zi😼onism frequently serves as a façade for anti𒁏semitism, is gaining ground.

Increasingly, young activists are rallying behind Hamas’ harmful propaganda, often without fully grasping the gravity of th✨eir words.

Their chant “From the river to the sea” reflects either a worrying ignorance of the historical and geographical context of this slogan or, more alarming, a deliberate endorsement of its underlying intent to erase the world💯’s only Jewish state.

This moral lapse extends bey♐ond Israel and Jewish issues.

Platforms like TikTok often feature content supporting enti༺ties antagonistic to American values, including authoritari☂an regimes and terrorist groups.

Some even go so far as justifying Osama bin Laden’s 9/11 attacks.

It reflects a broader issue: a lack of understanding and ♌coherence🅠.

Many young Americans champion causes for sexual, racial and religious minorities yet overlook ꧒that regimes they support o𝕴ften oppress these same groups.

Conversely, Israel is a beacon foꦆr LGBTQ+ rights, racial diversity and religious freed😼om.

But the pursuit of viral content on 🃏social media often trumps coherence, and your best chance of going viral is saying something s✤hocking. Incoherence is almost the point.

While some of these messages may stem more from genuine ignorance than opportunistic clout-chasing, the ridiculousness of saying “Cease-fire now” today and “Globalize the intif🌄ada” tomorrow is clear to almost everyone.

Contributing to this disconꦍnect among young Americans is their lack of historical knowledge, especially about events like the Holocaust, skewing their perception of conflicts like Israel’s situation in Gaza.

This issue is exacerbated by their rel💫iance on social-media platforms, where simplified, sometimes biased presentations lead to misinformation.

The academic shift toward intersectionality further influences young minds, emphasizing victim-oppressor narr🍬atives that oversimplify complex issues — as seen in university presidents’ recent congressional testimonies, reflecting a reluctance to address serious issues like the call for the genocide of Jews.

The 𝄹emerging blindness of American youth toward Israel and Jews is alarming.

If young Americans hoℱld such views about one of America’s closest allies and the only democracy in the Middle E🦩ast, it signals a shift away from the values of freedom and liberalism that define America.

Israel’s story is one of self-reliance, democracy and ♉moral integrity amidst immense challenges.

Yielding to moral relativism endangers not only Israe﷽l but all Western societies founded on these principles.

Cultivating an informed understanding of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is cr༒ucial for American youth.

The enduring alliance between the United States and Israel, founded on shared values of democracy and human rights, necessitates in🍸formed engagement from the next generation of American leaders.

In an era whe⛄re social media often reduce complex issues to simplistic narratives, it’s imperative that young Americans seek deeper, more accurate insights.

Fostering educated, open dialogue is vital for the strength of the US-Israel relationship and for upho🅘lding the core valu💛es of American society.

Itay Milner is consul for media affairs and spokesperson at the consulate general of Israel in New York.