Amid efforts to isolate Israel in Europe, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a prominent critic of radical Islam, on Sunday defended the Jewish state in a speech in Amsterdam, where she noted that the Jewish state has many supporters among minority groups.
Hirsi Ali, a Somalia-born writer and Dutch former lawmaker, made the remarks during a symposium in The Hague celebrating the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Center for Information and Documentation in Israel (CIDI,) the main pro-Israel advocacy group and antisemitism watchdog in the Netherlands.
The day before she spoke, anti-Israel activists poured red paint on the venue, the KIT building in the city’s east. Dozens of them protested outside the symposium on Sunday, which also featured author Douglas Murray, former Israeli lawmaker Einat Wilf and Amos Yadlin, a former director of Israel’s military intelligence directorate.
“Beyond the Palestinians, there are minorities seeking self-rule that are not negative at all vis-à-vis Israel,” said Hirsi Ali. Part of the reason is that “Islamism isn’t only an enemy of Israel but of the whole Muslim world and the West,” she added.
Yadlin was the first speaker, following an introduction by CIDI Director Naomi Mestrum. He assessed the geopolitical situation following Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas attacked Israel, murdering some 1,200 people and abducting 251. The attack prompted Israel to invade Gaza and launch an ongoing military campaign to dismantle the terrorist group. Hezbollah in Lebanon attacked Israel the following day, leading to fighting that ended in November with a ceasefire.
The terror group’s heavy losses had a knock-on effect on Syria, where rebels toppled the regime of former president Bashar Assad, leading neighboring Turkey to take up positions in Syria to solidify its allies among the rebels, and to curtail the activity of some Kurdish groups.
Hamas’s surprise attack was a “failure in policy, operative preparedness and of intelligence,” said Yadlin, whereas Israel had improved its position dramatically as a result, he added, calling it one of three winners from the war, together with the United States and Turkey.
In his speech, counterterrorism expert Matt Levitt warned against complacency following Israel’s achievements.
“Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis and Iran are already preparing for a new chance to destroy Israel. They are patient and have time. They look at the concept of time differently than we do. The fact that it is quiet now does not mean that nothing is happening beneath the surface,” he said.
