“Iran’s useful idiots”

On Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered an impassioned speech before a joint session of Congress. He denounced the horrific actions of Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023, and its aftermath. He singled out Iran for its support of terrorist organizations like Hamas and Hezbollah and expressed his resolve to defeat Hamas and defend Israel. He reiterated the close partnership between the United States and Israel, the only democracy in the Middle East.

Netanyahu also made pointed remarks about anti-Israel protestors, some of whom the U.S. Department of State has confirmed are funded by Iran. He said they should be ashamed of themselves for lacking the moral clarity to discern the difference between good and evil. “They refuse to make the simple distinction,” he argued, “between those who target terrorists and those who target civilians, between the democratic state of Israel and the terrorist thugs of Hamas.”

In perhaps his most pointed comments about the protestors, Netanyahu illustrated the irrationality of intersectional thinking: “When the tyrants of Tehran, who hang gays from cranes and murder women for not covering their hair, are praising, promoting, and funding you, you have officially become Iran’s useful idiots.”

Notably, on the same day Netanyahu delivered his historic address, thousands of protestors took to the streets of Washington, D.C., to criticize the war in Gaza, to demonstrate their support for Palestinian opposition to Israel, and to criticize Netanyahu’s leadership. Of course, those individuals have a right to protest peacefully. But at times, their message was dangerous and their actions crossed a line.

Some protestors chanted, “Bibi, Bibi, we’re not done! The intifada has just begun!” The intifada refers to the now three-decade history of pro-Palestinian terrorists violently resisting the Jewish occupation of Gaza and the West Bank. Whether intended as such or not, these words communicate more than simply a critique of Israel’s policy toward Palestine or solidarity with those Palestinians who desire a different political arrangement. It indicates a desire for the end of a Jewish state—through violence if necessary.

Others chanted, “Netanyahu, you can’t hide. You’re committing genocide.” This claim is patently false since Israel neither intends genocide nor has acted in a manner in which it could result. Regrettably, some innocent Palestinians have been killed unintentionally by Israel’s response to Hamas, which is a lamentable outcome in any armed conflict. But the number of such deaths has been elevated considerably—despite ongoing Israeli efforts to minimize civilian causalities—precisely because Hamas operates from sites such as schools and hospitals. This strategy effectively uses Palestinian noncombatants as human shields whose deaths will provoke international outrage.

The claim of genocide is also breathtakingly hypocritical. While there are significant tensions between Jews and Palestinians, and while Israeli policy toward Palestine is open to critique, it is not Israel that wishes to commit genocide against Arabs and other non-Jews in the region. Rather, it is Muslim extremists like Hamas who want to eliminate all Jews “from the river to the sea”—and ultimately everywhere else, if possible. The protestors are siding with the faction that actually harbors genocidal tendencies.

The actions of many protestors were also appalling. Many of them wore masks while bearing the Hamas flag, showing their support for terrorists. Some burned the Israeli flag or the American flag. A likeness of Netanyahu was burned in effigy, while a likeness of President Joe Biden depicted him with blood on his hands and devil’s horns. A statue of Christopher Columbus was vandalized with the words “Hamas is coming.” A replica of the Liberty Bell outside Union Station was covered with anti-Israel and pro-Hamas graffiti, some of which was vulgar.

Some protestors became violent and disobeyed police orders as they approached the Capitol before Netanyahu’s speech. Police made arrests and used pepper spray to disperse the mob. In what was likely the most widely reported action of the day—and certainly the most symbolic—crowds cheered outside Union Station as protesters removed the American flag and raised the Palestinian flag in its place. Again, this took place in our nation’s capital.

The actions of so many of these protestors—and their counterparts worldwide—illustrated an important dynamic that Netanyahu referenced in his speech. “This is not a clash of civilizations,” he noted. “It’s a clash between barbarism and civilization. It’s a clash between those who glorify death and those who sanctify life.”

Too many of the protestors evidenced a worldview that identifies with terrorist organizations and endorses hateful messages more than it sympathizes with Palestinian concerns. Ironically, the protestors exercised their freedom to assemble, which is a constitutional freedom rooted in Judeo-Christian moral reasoning. Yet, they insulted that freedom by using it to endorse tyranny and celebrate values that directly contradict liberty.

The protestors may or may not be “Iran’s useful idiots,” but they are most certainly a national embarrassment. We should not hesitate to call them such.