Israel must not only ask the Diaspora what it can do for the Jewish State but also must help other Jews fight antisemitism, Anti-Defamation League (ADL) director Abraham Foxman told Arutz Sheva.
He spoke in an interview during a break in a session at the Israeli Presidential Conference: “Facing Tomorrow” 2012 entitled: “What Does World Jewry Expect from Israel?”
“This is the first time [the Diaspora-Israel relationship] is reversed. It is a very interesting approach… It is a mutual relationship and is not a one-way street. How far we will go? Time will tell.”
Foxman added, “Antisemitism still exists…. We have not developed a vaccine against it, and it morphs in different ways. Today Israel has become the Jew in the international community.”
He said that trying to make Israel appear illegitimate “smacks of antisemitism” and that Israel must join the struggle against hatred of Jews, without any political implications.
Asked about the connection between hatred of Jews and aliyah, Foxman hedged, explaining that aliyah must be for “positive reasons” and not because someone “does not like it somewhere else” although Israel must always be haven for Jewish refugees.
