Antisemitism is hitting the streets of London. Christians must be vocal in their opposition

Around 100,000 protestors are said to have attended a pro-Palestine rally in London on Saturday.

While there, many chanted the slogan, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free”.

That might sound innocuous, but to anyone who has looked at a map and knows where the (Jordan) River and the (Mediterranean) Sea is, it’s incredibly incendiary. If this version of a "free Palestine" were to take place, the world's only Jewish state would have to be entirely erradicated. Home Secretary Suella Braverman was correct in her description of the slogan as a call for the “destruction of Israel,” and said it, “remains a staple of antisemitic discourse”. She added, “To hear it shouted in public causes alarm, not just to Jews but to all decent people.”

That wasn't all. Another protestor on Saturday was pictured with a placard reading “I fully support Hamas” – that’s the terrorist organisation which is responsible for kidnapping, raping and murdering civilians. The victims of the October 7 massacre included babies, children and elderly Holocaust survivors. 

Another placard read, “There is blood on your hands”, but replaced the “a” in ‘hands’ with a star of David. Another man was filmed shouting “God’s curse be upon the Jews” and “God’s curse upon Israel” in Arabic.

If people are literally walking around with signs saying they support terror organisations, and the Met still can’t nab them, that does not exactly fill me with confidence… https://t.co/cXwkazo7J9

— (((Dan Hodges))) (@DPJHodges) October 22, 2023

 

Then, during a demonstration outside the Egyptian embassy, members of the extremist group Hizb ut-Tahrir, were filmed repeatedly calling for “Jihad” and holding a poster reading “Muslim Armies! Rescue the People of Palestine.”

Hizb ut-Tahrir is banned in almost all Arab countries, and yet is openly demonstrating on the streets of London.

"jihad has a number of meanings... [we] have assessed this video, filmed at the Hizb ut-Tahrir protest in central London today, and have not identified any offences" – This pathetic cop-out would be SLIGHTLY more convincing if they hadn't explicitly called for armed conflict. https://t.co/VUw16R48BW pic.twitter.com/8UDNCsaJRy

— Jack Montgomery (@JackBMontgomery) October 22, 2023

 

The Metropolitan police has reported a 1,353 per cent rise in antisemitic hate crimes since the Hamas massacre. Meanwhile a prayer walk organised by Christian Action Against Anti-Semitism was called off after police warned that participants could be “injured or intimidated.” Another group, Campaign against Antisemitism were told by police to stop displaying images of Israeli children kidnapped by Hamas for their own safety.

And so it seems we have now reached a situation where protests in support of a government proscribed terrorist organisation are allowed to go ahead, and antisemitic slogans can be chanted on our streets, while protests against terrorism are stopped by the police.

Can you imagine how all this makes Jews feel?

They're fearing for their safety, and sadly with good reason.

This weekend we saw hate on our streets.

Calls for Jihad are not only a threat to the Jewish community, but to our democratic values.

We will never tolerate antisemitism in our country.

And we expect the police to take all necessary action to tackle extremism head on. pic.twitter.com/ET3ZouqwUj

— Rishi Sunak (@RishiSunak) October 23, 2023

The uncomfortable truth

Surely a lesson that we should all have learned from history is that we cannot stay silent in the face of antisemitism? Christians must vocally oppose any form of racism, including antisemitism.

That should go without saying. But we must say it nonetheless. 

We also need to recognise the Islamist nature of this antisemitism. This isn't a conversation many people want to have, but if we are to address antisemitism, we need to understand where it is coming from. What motivates it.

Hamas is an explicitly Islamic organisation. Article Eight of the Hamas Charter reads: “Allah is its goal, the Prophet its model, the Qur’an its Constitution, Jihad its path and death for the case of Allah its most sublime belief.”

The charter also explicitly states: “There is no solution to the Palestinian problem except by Jihad. The initiatives, proposals and International Conferences are but a waste of time, an exercise in futility.”

It is shocking and disturbing to see such open support for the terrorist organisation Hamas on the streets of London. But we need to face the uncomfortable truth. A recent survey found much higher prevalence of antisemitic attitudes among Muslims than amongst the rest of the population. This reality should be provoke an urgent and important conversation about the influence of Islam in the UK.

It should be no surprise to Christians that as we have turned away from being a self-consciously Christian nation, by flagrantly defying God’s laws, that society would start to break down. This is what we are seeing today.

Our hope and prayer has to be that the many problems in society will cause people to question their values and to turn to Christianity. This is God’s purpose in allowing these things, and there are signs that this is happening in some areas. It is never too late for repentance, both at a personal and at a national level. Here is opportunity for bold and courageous witness to the love and forgiveness that can only be found in Jesus.