Israel derangement syndrome

A mass psychotic epidemic of pavlovian responses targeting Israel and its supporters is currently raging worldwide.

Like its close relative, Trump derangement syndrome, one has only to mention the words Israel, Zionist or Jew, in order for convulsive condemnations to be spewed forth with venomous vitriol.

In many cases, the responses are unhinged and clearly indicate latent prejudices bubbling to the surface.

There’s no cure for this malicious malady because the rot has become incestuous, infecting large swathes of humanity. True facts and logical arguments are of no avail. Appealing to a sense of logic is a lost cause because, like all such derangement syndromes, cures no longer work.

One can only expose and shine a strong light on this pathological phenomenon in the hope that those still resistant to irrational thoughts might be able to wage a counterattack against the disease.

Take the Australian Government’s revoking of a visa for Hillel Fuld as one of the latest examples of this deranged mindset.

This Israeli influencer and advocate had been booked to visit Australia and speak at fundraising events for the national ambulance service, Magen David Adom. His visa had been approved in advance and all seemed in order. Prior to his scheduled departure, some Islamic and anti-Israel groups in Australia got wind that he was arriving. They complained to the immigration authorities that this individual was an “Islamophobic” threat and likely to cause serious problems.

Quicker than you can say “kangaroo court” the Federal Cabinet Minister in charge of immigration cancelled his visa and declared him a “threat to the health, safety and good order” of Australians.

What is his alleged crime?

Obviously, being a Jewish Israeli who articulates uncomfortable truths about jihadist death cults must be one of his original sins.

The fact that his late brother was murdered by a Palestinian terrorist at a shopping centre not far from where we live obviously never resonated with the politician who rushed to ban him.

His opposition to the creation of “Palestine” in the heartland of Israel must be another black mark against him. The fact that this intended fake country would be a terror-supporting entity in our midst is irrelevant to many Israel haters and ignoramuses of history.

That was the same reason that the current Australian Government banned the visit of former Israeli Justice Minister, Ayelet Shaked at the end of 2024. Her crime for articulating uncomfortable facts was a perceived “threat to social cohesion”.

Presumably, the poisonous rhetoric articulated against Jews and Israel by Australian-based Islamic preachers poses no such threat. This must be so because there have been no consequences.

Could the fact that the Minister’s electorate has a large number of voters who identify as Muslims and whose anti-Israel views are no secret, have anything to do with his decision?

I predicted that post election the “chickens would come home to roost” and so it is transpiring. Who would have thought a few years ago that Jewish Israelis would be barred from entering Australia because they had the temerity to point out some basic home truths?

Interestingly, I searched in vain for a comprehensive report of this sordid affair on the website of the Sydney Morning Herald. I could find no mention of this scandalous situation. It may be that something was buried in an obscure part of the site but, if so, it certainly was well hidden.

What I did discover, however, was a headline which read “My grandmother fled the Holocaust. Now it is time for Jews to abandon Israel.” Revealed for all to see is the murky agenda of many in the media. What lies behind this obsessive urge to dig up disaffected self loathers in order to smear Israel?

It is a classic case of an Israel derangement syndrome on steroids infecting the Australian body politic of what was once a safe haven for Jews.

In contrast, SKY Australia has given the subject of Fuld’s banning extensive publicity.

A perfect example of how deranged news and views now dominate the media was recently revealed.

I happened to come across a YouTube presentation which asserted in all seriousness that “the Zionists did not make the desert bloom. The Palestinians did.” Anyone viewing this work of fiction would immediately be brainwashed into believing that the “colonial Jewish occupiers” took over a land which was a verdant paradise. Instead of barren land and swamps, the so-called “indigenous” Palestinians had cultivated the land since the time of the Canaanites. It was apparently the colonial Jewish settlers who falsified history in order to justify their illegal occupation.

That is how lies are sanitised and false revisionist fables multiply, all eagerly embraced by the growing legions of Zionist haters.

SKY NEWS UK provided a gem of tendentious reporting. Its headline proclaimed, “British surgeon maintains that the only people she has ever seen in Gaza with weapons are the IDF.”  There you have it in one sentence. There are presumably no armed terrorists in Gaza. The only people armed are the IDF which “proves” that Israel is engaged in “genocidal” activities.

Welcome to the deranged purveyors of deliberately deceitful news.

Another example of unhinged behaviour could easily be entitled “a life on the ocean waves.”

Starring Greta Thunberg in a leading role, this maritime farce to Gaza was always going to be a media publicity stunt designed with only one aim in mind.

It was never about sending any sort of meaningful aid to the allegedly starving people of Gaza. With less than a truckload of actual aid on board whatever would have been left after a period at sea was hardly likely to have helped more than a handful.

The sole objective right from the start was to create a hoped-for international incident whereby Israel could be pilloried and condemned. What better visuals might there be than the sight of the IDF storming the vessel, causing countless casualties and even better, sinking the boat?

One could almost hear the “humanitarian” crew salivating at the thought of a major media spectacle in the making. The closer they came to the Israeli coast the more frantic and frenetic were their social media performances. It was as though they were daring the Israelis to attack and thereby fulfil their hoped-for expectations.

The international media naturally played along with this pathetic performance. As complicit partners in this comedy of errors they reported each and every act. No doubt, prospective headlines and photos of Israeli “brutal force” to come whetted their appetites for what promised to be front-page news.

After such a build-up, imagine the devastating let-down when Israeli naval personnel calmly boarded and handed out bottles of water and sandwiches. Photos of Greta accepting this food must have been a massive blow to the over-inflated egos of the intrepid crew.

What do you do when your main props and predicted violence fail to materialise?

The fallback position was soon revealed.

Throwing mobile phones and other electronic equipment overboard was swiftly followed by accusations of “kidnapping” and “violations of international law.”  The media, sadly deprived of a spectacle, resorted to the usual misrepresentations and fudged facts.

The Israeli Government assembled the motley mob and screened for their edification a documentary on the atrocities committed by their Gaza terrorist friends on 7 October 2023, in a futile attempt to impart some actual reality. Refusing to be confused by any sort of facts, the intrepid protesters preferred neither to view nor to listen.

This is par for the course and exposes the real agenda of all those pillorying Israel.

Greta has now been flown back into the welcoming arms of all her European and Scandinavian groupies. Those who refused to be expelled voluntarily from Israel are detained and deported later.

It’s a pity that these hypocrites were not made to “walk the plank” and forced to spend the rest of their days in the welcoming embrace of Hamas. Incarcerated in the underground tunnels of Gaza and experiencing jihadist hospitality would have been a fitting conclusion to their juvenile expedition.

At least Israel has declared them “persona non Greta.”

The pathogen of anti-Israel derangement is now rampaging unchecked through the foreign ministries of so-called “friendly” nations.

Stand by for further developments.

Michael Kuttner is a Jewish New Zealander who for many years was actively involved with various communal organisations connected to Judaism and Israel. He now lives in Israel and is J-Wire’s correspondent in the region.