In about half an hour, my plane to Israel takes off. I’ll spend the next few days in Jerusalem, then a couple of days in Tel Aviv.

Woke up at 4am. Bought an americano from the 24/7 coffee shop across the street. Today is an important day. At 3pm I have a meeting with a lawyer specialised in Aliyah. The process is not stuck, but I’d like to be prepared.

More than 5,000 rockets have hit Israel this morning. Bombardment is ongoing. Hamas claims to have kidnapped five Israeli soldiers. Prime Minister Netanyahu has said Israel is at war. A sad day.

And more than 100 Israelis have been kidnapped. This according to the latest reports from the Times of Israel.

Many leftist Swedes have expressed support for Palestinian terrorism in the days following Hamas’ mass murder of civilian Israelis and kidnapping of children from their homes. Most of these terrorist supporters spread their anti-Semitism through anonymous social-media profiles. However, a few are open with their identities. One such person is Susanna Lundberg, who goes by the name Sanna on Facebook. Lundberg is a senior lecturer at Malmö University. Today, she added to her open support for Hamas by making a Palestinian flag her profile photo.

It’s one thing that leftist trolls hidden behind anonymous profiles infect social media with their racist venom, but it’s something altogether different for a person who is likely to meet Jewish students in her profession.

I’m appalled by the flood of support from Swedish leftists on social media. Palestinian flags are put on display and they are accusing Isreal for the murdering and kidnapping of Jews. Today I have blocked several people I thought were friends who shared my opposition to racism and racism. Now I have realised that this is only the case as long as the victims are non-Jews.

Hussein Aboubakr Mansour in Tablet Magazine:

“Free Palestine”—the slogan, the fantasy, and the policy—has always consciously implied the mass murder of Jews in their towns, streets, shops, and living rooms. Few are willing to say so openly, but in many intellectual, professional, and popular circles in the Middle East and the West, the idea of Palestinian national liberation has long been framed in terms that condone or necessitate the indiscriminate killing of Jews.

Yesterday I talked to friends and family in Israel. I had a meeting with some over Zoom, and it’s apparent that Saturday’s Hamas terror attack and mass murder of civilians has had an effect on everyone.

Meanwhile, I read a flood of Hamas apologists on social media. Most of them from people on the political left. All this resulted in me having to block and unfriend some people I thought were sincere in their opposition to violent racism. But too many of my “friends” turned out to make an exception for Jews. To some, it’s perfectly fine to blame Israel and even write that Jews are acting deplorable because we learned how to do so from the Nazis during the Holocaust. There’s no excuse for such anti-Semitism.

These are sad days indeed. So much hatred and malevolence from people who wouldn’t accept the same rhetoric had it been an Islamophobic rants from the Sweden Democrats. But if I had sensed it before, this has proven that anti-Semitism is to Swedes on the extreme left what Islamophobia is to Swedes on the extreme right.

A week ago today, I left Israel in a happy mood. I had had a great week, meeting old and new fiends in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. Little did I know that Israel, only a few hours later, would be attacked by Hamas, resulting in the deadliest day in Jewish history since the Holocaust. Nor could I have imagined that some Swedish friends would put Palestinian flags on display and, when I criticised them for it, said I must respect their political opinions. In other words, I must respect their need to publicly celebrate those who killed my people.

No, I refuse to accept that Jews are inferior to all other people, that we must respect activists that make the choice to side with the killers, rapist, and kidnappers under the false assumption that the Jewish victims are somehow to blame because Israel occupies the West Bank.

I remember when Russia attacked Ukraine. The Ukrainian flag was put on nearly every social-media profile. No one raised the Russian flag and pretended that this was not a statement of support for Putin. Now it’s different. Now the victims are Jews, and the millennia old anti-Semitism runs deep in Europe. So deep, in fact, that many people—especially on the political left—don’t even realise that they are walking in the steps of Tiberius, Bernardine, Luther, and Hitler.

This will be a sad Shabbat. God is putting us to test.

This is not unlike the nutjobs who blame Jews for the Holocaust.

Ace of Spades tells it like it is.

Thunberg went on Twitter with her anti-Israel message and has now been removed from the Israeli school curriculum. Rightfully so. The left’s blatant ignorance and complete lack of empathy for killed and kidnapped Jews is disgusting.

Two days ago, I saw a concert with Madonna for the first time. Her Celebration Tour came to Copenhagen. I can’t compare to earlier tours, but I was quite impressed. The concert got some bad reviews in Danish newspapers, noblest for the many interludes with lengthy dance numbers. I don’t know if it bothered me much, Madonna was a dancer before she moved on to music, so I guess it comes natural for her. Besides, having seen previous concert by her on film, dancing has always been a big part of her live performances. Anyhow, it was fun to see her live. Who knows how many more tours she has in her. She is, after all, a 65-year-old woman by know. On the other hand, Cher is still going strong at 77.

I haven’t written anything the past few days. Feel empty and sad. Not only for what happens in Israel, but for what’s happening to Jews in the Diaspora, too. Medieval anti-Semitism has come to life—reminding us that it never really died. And today, I read about rioters storming a Russian airport in hunt for Jews aboard flight from Israel. It’s all too depressing. I want a blanket to hide under.

David Horovitz has written a great article in the Times of Israel, echoing my own bafflement.