Reply To: New book – “HaChareidim V’Haaretz”

YYA – We touched on that before. In 1950, I might have agreed with you, probably would have said same myself. But look now at last 80 years of Arab world. This was not all zionist fault. They all went through socialist and islamist dictatorships, all non-Muslims either emigrated or worse, everything not agreeing with regimes tortured and killed en masse. This is all sounds abstract to us, but imagine ISIS taking charge of Aleppo Jewish community; Saddam prosecuting Baghdad Jews; Syrian Jews searching opened prisons in Damascus looking for long-gone relatives.

In 1950, I might have agreed with you

These events happened around 1950. Until then these countries were for the most part better to the Jews than Europe was. At least livable. Whether Jews would have had to flee anyway at some future point is irrelevant. That’s like saying that the arsonist isn’t responsible for his actions because decades later someone else burned down the same building again for a different reason.

They all went through socialist and islamist dictatorships, all non-Muslims either emigrated or worse.

You are again mixing together different things. There were no de jure sovereign Islamist dictatorships anywhere in the Middle East during the last century except for Iran, which had a completely different history and culture. De facto, Hezbollah has been the government of Lebanon for decades, and the few Jews who lived there did flee during the 70s. The other countries, post 50s, became secular dictatorships. They persecuted Jews only on the pretext of being “Zionists” or “Israeli spies”. Assad was actually better for the non-Muslims than most of the rebel groups were.

everything not agreeing with regimes tortured and killed en masse.

Jews learned how to keep their mouths shut under non-democratic regimes. It’s a survival skill that has fallen out of use in America, until the “cancel culture” people get elected.

Saddam prosecuting Baghdad Jews; Syrian Jews searching opened prisons in Damascus looking for long-gone relatives.

Again, this was done under the pretext of them being “Zionists”.

See, as in Europe, arguably questionable actions lead to saving millions of Jews.

You again fail to grasp that the only reason Sephardic Jews needed “saving” in ’48 is directly due to the actions of the people “saving” them… WRT Europe, I don’t even want to go there. הלא הם כתובים על ספר דברי הימים

Do you consider Pharaoh to bear responsibility for his actions, even though Hashem told Avraham ועבדום ועינו אותם? Saying “well it eventually would have happened anyway” is not a valid טענה according to the Torah, and להבדיל probably not according to any legal or ethical system.