Why I'm a Zionist but on the fence on Greater Israel

On the 7th of October 2023 a grotesque Islamic terror attack took place across various sites in Israel. More than 1200 died, countless injured and hundreds of Israelis taken as hostage. What followed, was a war that Israel declared on the terror group responsible for the attack, Hamas. The war and the consequences of it have been brutal - not only for the Israelis but also the Palestinians where the latter are currently facing displacement, deaths in the tens and thousands along with a humanitarian crisis.

While I am writing this post, it is being reported that the remaining living hostages taken by Hamas have been released. There will be a search for the dead Israeli hostages among the rubble and tunnels in Gaza (and maybe West Bank). A fragile ceasefire is currently in place even though the US President Trump has declared the war to be over. 

While we should rejoice that there is some sort of cease in hostilities, a lot of work is left to do. Apart from the reconstruction of Gaza, rehabilitation of people from both sides that have survived the ordeal will remain a mammoth task to complete also. However, one critical aspect that must not be forgotten is Israel and her security and existence as a nation. I am in no way advocating for ignoring the plight of Palestinians but in order to establish lasting peace, we need to put certain things into context.

Seeing the Arab-Semite, Israeli-Palestinian, or whatever hyphenation you please, without the lens of religion will make things pointless. This conflict, no matter how you twist and turn, is partly an ethnic conflict but without doubt, primarily religious in nature. 

This blog post will not be deep diving into this conflict but rather aims to give some context and food for thought - especially when it comes to the schisms between Judaism and Muslims. Remember, even the main (human) protagonist of Islam, prophet Mohammed, said, in the Quran, that he and all the Arabs are the descendants of Ismael, the son of Abraham who is the main (human) protagonist of Judaism. In my simple mind, the matter should stop there.

Muslims, more specifically Arabs in the context of this conflict, as per their prophet whom they are commanded to love more than their mother, father, spouse, children etc, tell them in their holiest book that they are from Abraham. You share countless of customs and similarities with the Jews, but yet, Zionism, Zionist media etc is the threat to all of mankind and main blocker of peace in the Middle East? Every university in the developed world are occupied by individuals glorying and romanticising the Intifada, stone pelting, terror attacks and have made Zionism into a front to hate Jews. Sure, don't get me wrong, in the process of maintaining the Zionist state, Israel's actions can be criticised for many things. However, we should be careful in allowing people questioning the existence of a Jewish homeland getting off the hook without a debate.

Today, there are 22 Arab League of Nations occupying 13 million km2 of land mainly across North Africa, Arab peninsula and the Levant. These 22 states are included in the 57 Organisation of Islamic Nations (OIC). The OIC covers a total of around 32 million km2 of the planet. Israel is around 20,500 km2 - this number excludes the Golan Heights, Gaza, West Bank and East Jerusalem. Let this sink in a bit. Is the Zionist state really the issue or are we dealing with a stingy Arab Muslim?

Arabs and Muslims are killing each other in Yemen, Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq etc etc. Let us not talk about Islamic terror and its victims. We can surely blame the gringo (white man) for many things across the world but that would not complete the full picture given the history of Islam. While it has became fashionable to blame "Zionist Jews" for all the world's ills, do we ever hear about Black Sunni Muslims killing each other in Sudan and the subsequent plight of Sudan's 30 million people facing essentially the same humanitarian crisis as Gaza. Or are they too black and their beards and eyebrows not groomed well enough for the camera as the Arab Muslims in the Levant? Same, are the voices of black Christian women in Nigeria, constantly violated and abducted by Islamic terror groups roaming freely in Sub-Saharan Africa not worth some screen time either?

We need to grow up and get real. I am neither Arab nor Semite. I am not Muslim or Jew (or Christian) and do not trace my lineage back to Abraham. I also refuse to live under the paradigm of these religions and constantly having to look over my shoulder for my survival because a bomb might explode anywhere over a land dispute in the Middle East or because I didn't convert to your way of life. However, a Zionist state known as Israel is nevertheless fair. I mean if Muslims owe their heritage and lineage from the greatest Jew that ever lived, Abraham, then what is wrong with honouring him with allowing the Jews to live in peace and freedom in Israel? Now, for Greater Israel, where are the Armenians, Mandaeans, Assyrians, Yazidis etc. Their voices need to be heard too.