This morning opened with profound shock: the horrific murder of two Israeli embassy employees in Washington. Two families whose world has been shattered, and a chilling news story that will echo in every news cycle – for a brief time. But does this really surprise anyone?
The writing, literally and figuratively, was on the wall. The virtual wall of social media, the wall of extremist forums, the walls of vandalized synagogues, and even the wall of the embassy itself. Except instead of reading the writing – we looked away.
This horrifying incident is neither random nor isolated. It is the direct result of relentless incitement, of lost sovereignty of consciousness in the face of extremist anti-Israeli and antisemitic movements. The alleged perpetrator, Elias Rodriguez, has been identified as an active member of the radical Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL) – an extremist group with harsh anti-Israeli positions operating out of Chicago.
And here the real story begins: Already in February 2023, long before October 7th, a poster was published by the PSL movement openly calling: "Exterminate Zionists!" We cannot claim we were "surprised." We cannot argue there were "no indications." Anyone who wanted to see – saw. Anyone who should have acted – remained silent.
A Jewish community member from Chicago wrote an alarming post as early as March this year: "This group has been harassing, stalking and attacking members of the Jewish community for years – and I feared this is what would happen." But nothing was done. Warnings like this arrive daily from Jewish communities across America, yet are repeatedly dismissed with the excuse: "no official recognition," "no organized documentation," "no budgetary response."
A recurring pattern of neglect
This is not the first case. A year has passed since the murder of Dr. Ben Haroni, a Jewish dentist who was stabbed to death in San Diego by an attacker shouting "Allahu Akbar." But this case was never classified as a "hate crime," neither by the United States – nor by Israel's Diaspora Ministry, which refrained from acting without an official stamp from local authorities.
Paul Kessler, who was attacked with a megaphone during a pro-Israel rally in Los Angeles, was also forgotten. Both cases point to the same recurring pattern: unwillingness to acknowledge the ugly truth, so as not to cause offense, in order to "not rush to conclusions."
The deep gap between community cries and the absence of official response costs lives. It's time to remember – every nation is obligated to the security of all its citizens. Jews are not second-class citizens. All the more so when dealing with official emissaries, state representatives, who serve that same host nation.
The failure in this case is not only of forces on the ground, but also of decision-makers – on both sides. In recent years, dozens of discussions on antisemitism have been held in Israel's Knesset. Time and again, harsh data, serious warnings, and intelligence information from private sources – organizations, groups and activists – were presented. But at the end of the day, the information remained on paper. No state body was budgeted to operate in the international arena. No independent intelligence monitoring unit was established. The words remained in the air. And the writing – on the walls of social media.
Time to move from words to mechanism
There is currently no dedicated body – neither governmental nor non-governmental – that consolidates intelligence, monitors antisemitic discourse, identifies immediate threats and refers them to appropriate authorities. The many Knesset discussions on antisemitism will not help if they do not yield a clear operational result: establishing an independent, funded dedicated body with research, intelligence, reporting and advocacy arms.
Such a body could operate in the American and international arena without requiring diplomatic approvals from countries that sometimes prefer to bury their heads in the sand. It would consolidate what is currently scattered among hundreds of Jewish and community organizations worldwide, without authority, without funding, and without political backing.
The clear message
The writing is not just on the wall. It's in the tweet. It's in the post. It's on the poster with the horrifying inscription: "Exterminate Zionists." And today – it's in the blood of two Israeli representatives.
If there is one clear lesson from this horrific case – it is that we can no longer afford to wait. The time has come for an action mechanism, not just an empathy mechanism. Until this happens – more and more writing will appear on the wall. And more and more families will become victims.
If we don't act now, the next victim is already writing their name on the waiting list.
Dr. Raheli Baratz - Head of the Department for Combating Antisemitism and Enhancing Resilience, World Zionist Organization