Denmark's Jewish community leaders had some reservations upon hearing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu say that the murder at the Copenhagen synagogue on Saturday night demonstrated once again that the home of the Jewish people is in the Land of Israel, and not in the Diaspora. It is the prime minister's right and duty to repeat this Zionist truth directly after an incident of Islamic terrorism, as well as at any other time. Europe is closing its eyes to Islamic terrorism. After condemning Arab terrorism on the continent, European leaders rushed to say that they were not talking about Islam. So what then were they talking about? The next stage will only be harder, because when it finally clicks for the Europeans (way too late) that this terrorism is radical Islamic terrorism, there will be further self-deception: If we just abandon the Jews, tranquillity will return to this ailing continent. The Jews of Europe also take part in that self-deception. They also want to believe this is a passing nightmare. After all, even in the 1930s, the Jews refused to face the emerging reality of rising Nazism. This internal debate is an ancient one. It has led the people of Israel all throughout history. Even in the ancient world there were angry confrontations between the two centers, in Israel and in Babylonia. In the early years of Israel's establishment, American Jews managed to pressure a needy Israel to stop encouraging aliyah (immigration to Israel). Unfortunately, Israel does not dedicate enough effort to encouraging aliyah, and it should fix that mistake, especially when terrorism is targeting Jews. This effort is carried out from a position of disadvantage. European Jews are apparently enjoying the protective flak jacket of enlightened personal security legislation and a formidable police presence. But this is a mirage; guards and police cannot constantly secure the freedom of the Jewish community in every country. The ingathering of exiles is a supreme value in Jewish history and in the Zionist worldview. There is no need to complain to Netanyahu for asking the Jewish community in Copenhagen to do some deep thinking after the pain it endured. On the contrary, he should be even more vocal, including on days when bullets are not flying through the streets of Europe.
