This Is More Than Simple Slogans And Reckless Journalism - This Is Inciting Violence
In the years since the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel in 2023, we have seen something deeply unsettling unfold across the West: a surge in protests that, while framed as support for Palestinian rights, increasingly flirt with, and often outright embrace, violent rhetoric. These protestors have been fuelled by a steady stream of bias reporting and misinformation by segments of the Western media, which is often too quick to act as the propaganda arm of the Islamic regime that currently rules Gaza by parroting their casualty figures and reports without question.
Chants like “From the river to the sea” and “Resistance by any means necessary” are now common at rallies across the globe. But among the most troubling is the phrase “Globalise the Intifada.” It is shouted on university campuses and waved on placards as if it’s a call for liberation. In reality, it is a call loaded with historical violence which evokes the memory of the violent uprisings that occurred from 1987-1990 and again in 2000-2005.
For those who do not remember, the First and Second Intifadas were not peaceful civil disobedience campaigns. They were violent uprisings that included suicide bombings, shootings, and attacks targeting Israeli civilians.
One of the most notorious examples is the 2001 Tel Aviv Dolphinarium bombing, where 21 young Israelis, most of them teenagers, were killed by a Hamas-affiliated bomber. So, when activists chant “globalise the Intifada,” one wonders if they are aware of what they are asking? And more importantly, are they prepared for what that means in the real world?
On May 21, that question was no longer hypothetical. Outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C., two young Jewish diplomats, Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Lynn Milgrim, were shot and killed after attending an event aimed at helping civilians in Gaza. The attacker, according to reports, shouted “Free Free Palestine” and “I did it for Gaza” as he was placed under arrest.
Although some in the media downplayed the motivation behind this attack, like the BBC, whose headline read: “Two Israeli Embassy Staff killed and suspect in custody in Washington DC shooting”, it is clear this was a racially motivated attack on Jewish targets leaving a Jewish event.
This shows the true meaning of “globalise the Intifada” – violence against Jews outside the land of Israel. Therefore, it is imperative that we stop pretending this is just rhetoric and sloganeering. Words have consequences, sometimes tragic consequences.
Antisemitic attacks are on the rise globally. The Combat Antisemitism Movement reported that there has been a 107% spike in global antisemitism. Many of these incidents are tied to the same slogans and ideologies we see on placards in these protests.
Historian Paul Johnson warned in A History of the Jews that: “One of the principal lessons of Jewish history has been that repeated verbal slanders are sooner or later followed by violent physical deeds. Time and again over the centuries, antisemitic writings created their own fearful momentum which climaxed in an effusion of Jewish blood.”
Unfortunately, it seems the Western World has failed to learn this lesson and we are watching history repeat itself. Only this time the slanders are dressed up in the language of justice and resistance, garner popular support, and appear across the mainstream media of supposedly civilised democratic nations.
It is entirely possible to support the rights and dignity of Palestinian civilians without glorifying violence, delegitimising Israel’s right to exist, or demonising the Jewish people. But when the lines are deliberately crossed and even encouraged by those who should know better, then we need to speak up. This is no longer just about a conflict in the Middle East, it is about the safety of Jewish communities everywhere.
“Globalise the Intifada” is not a call for peace. It is a call for blood. And tragically, it is already being answered.
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