AIJAC Rambam program

Journalists share insights from Israel visit

“In none of the warzones I have been in before have I seen anything so vicious, so determinedly barbaric,” says Daily Telegraph columnist Piers Akerman.

The destruction caused by Hamas terrorists in Kibbutz Nahal Oz, near the Israeli-Gaza border, in southern Israel, October 20, 2023. (The Times of Israel: Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
The destruction caused by Hamas terrorists in Kibbutz Nahal Oz, near the Israeli-Gaza border, in southern Israel, October 20, 2023. (The Times of Israel: Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Recent returnees from the Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC) Rambam study program to Israel addressed an AIJAC luncheon last week about their impressions from their respective trips as well as related issues, such as the danger of a war with Hezbollah in Lebanon, antisemitism in Australia and the overarching, pivotal and threateneing role of the regime in Iran.

Sean Gordon, a Wangkumarra/Barkindji man, strong indigenous advocate and managing director of the Gidgee Group spoke of his appreciation for the Jewish community who “have done more to advance our cause as Aboriginal people than any other group in the country.” He asserted that the progressive fringe of indigenous anti-Israel activists do not represent the attitudes of indigenous communities across the country and that regarding Israel, he found the resilience there “truly inspiring”.

Fiona Buffini, editor of the Australian Financial Review,said that she went to Israel partially to try and understand what she called the “moral inversion” in the West since October 7, with some, primarily on the progressive side of politics, “openly siding with Iran and with its proxies, rather than the country that’s trying to fight them.” Also remarking on Israel’s resilience and the relative normality of life, Buffini further noted that “It’s only when you start talking to people…that you realise that everyone has someone who’s fighting in this war.”

Ellie Dudley,the legal affairs correspondent at The Australian, spoke about visiting the massacre sites and speaking with survivors of the Nova festival and the families of the hostages, as well as meeting various legal and security experts and ordinary Israelis, saying the most eye-opening part of the trip was the uncensored video of October 7.

“Before I left for Israel, I knew October 7 was horrific. I had read the articles, I had watched the news and I’d spoken to journalists who had been on the ground,” she said. “But it wasn’t until that video that I got a much better understanding of the massacre that saw hundreds of men, women and children slaughtered, families ripped apart and people taken from their homes, perhaps never to be seen again…images that might never leave me.”

Sky News digital presenter Gabriella Power said that, when visiting the site of the Nova massacre, “it was as if I could still feel parts of the shock and the trauma and the grief that was still there. I’ve never in my life felt anything like that,” and that it was “such an honour to meet some of the survivors of that festival. It was incredible to hear their experiences first-hand, and so inspiring.”Power also said she’s working on a special report for Sky News based on her experiences during the trip, which will include interviews with some of the people she met.

Commenting on the explosion of antisemitism in Australia since October 7, Power said, “I’m as appalled as you all are to see antisemitism that feels like it has come out of nowhere.”

Daily Telegraph columnist Piers Akerman, who had been to Israel before, including during the Second Intifada right after the Sbarro suicide bombing in Jerusalem, said that despite his experience with terrorist attacks and warzones, “on this trip, I experienced the most [confronting] scenes that I’ve had in 55 years of journalism.”

“In none of the warzones I have been in before have I seen anything so vicious, so determinedly barbaric,” he said, referring to the IDF’s uncensored video of October 7.

Akerman also mentioned that, despite severe internal political divisions, the Israeli flags waved by all sides everywhere reflect “deeply held patriotism” that “can’t be eradicated”.

Akerman further lambasted the lack of domestic action on antisemitism in Australia and the failure to crack down on Islamist extremism.
“We have to drive home the notion that it’s not just the Jewish people” being threatened by Islamist and jihadist ideology. “It’s the whole of the non-Islamic world,” including moderate Muslims, he said.

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