Storm over Israel

From tech to politics to war to the weather, a lot is happening here

Apologies for all the weather themed posts, last week fog over Europe and now storm here in Israel, but the opportunities to name an update just keep presenting themselves and they are hard to resist. It was brutal yesterday in Tel-Aviv, like Vancouver-type weather with endless rain and pretty low temperatures, even strong winds. But it is great to be back here after three years. Not a real break, lots of business activity and of course the tech-venture extravaganza in Jerusalem ten days from now. On the latter, not a lot of people took notice of the event until one of the speakers was announced last week. Yes, Netflix and Fauda aficionados, the one and only Lior Raz aka ‘Doron’ will address us all shortly, in person. Can’t wait.

All of that said, Israel has indeed been in stormy waters recently. On the domestic side a real political battle is underway over Nethanyahu’s new government’s plans to override Supreme Court rulings. This is a fairly complicated debate and for those interested, it is very well explained by Daniel Gordis here. ‘Overrides’ are not unprecedented in functioning democracies - Canada actually has this principle in law too - but it is the way they are defined and legislated that makes all the difference. The current plans in Israel may be a tad aggressive and that has been bringing out protests and public anger here.

On the other side there has been a spate of terror attacks and we have to go back to 2008 to see comparable violent attacks on ordinary Israeli citizens. The new governing coalition is being put to the test to its fullest, in particular as the new prime minister is always keen to label himself as the man who can deliver security, which indeed he can point to for the second period he governed from 2009 to 2021. He is now going into his third stint, and things may look different with a changing power dynamic on the Palestinian side and a western world that is taking a less supportive stance towards Israel. And it is an active situation, only last night Israeli airstrikes took out some Hamas weapon production sites in Gaza.

But apart from all this, what stands out for me is how Israel is still a high energy multi-cultural Middle Eastern nation that in its progression is embracing more traditional and religious attitudes in general. It no longer is the project of liberal and secular Jews who survived the Holocaust, no, the preservation of what they had created is increasingly being handled by politicians and community leaders with far more conservative instincts. After my last visit it occurred to me how the science driven tech sector and religion live comfortably together here, with some notable Israeli founders and VCs talking not only tech, but also God.

The direction that Israel at large is taking has driven a bit of a wedge between the Jewish diaspora in North America and Europe on the one hand and Jews living in Israel on the other. The homeland still sees a steady influx of Jews that do ascribe to a more conservative view of the world as a means to preserve Jewishness in a state, whereas your average Jew in California is now secular and thinks nothing of intermarrying with non-Jews. I hope that puts the contrast somewhat into focus. It may not sound like a big deal to outsiders, but it is a trend that can in time really dilute Western and overseas support for Israel, which in turn will have an impact on the country's overall security and position in the world. Continued American support for Israel is not a given. So it is important to note that the Abraham Accords were not a Trump engineered stunt, but a smart Israeli move to secure its place in a region where alliances are rapidly shifting.

Walking around the lively and messy streets here I always find myself taken by the wave of a dynamic and open society where Jews of all backgrounds, Druze, Arabs, Russian immigrants and Ethiopian Jews intermingle, work and progress together. All the while enjoying life: even with the cold weather the patios are full until late, and it has been a long time since I have seen so many smokers on the streets, notably and interestingly, women.

What I experience every time here is a society that may be wrestling, but is taking the negative, the politics and the terror in stride in search for a better life. In that Israelis know full well that life is imperfect, but they are more than willing to fight for it. Contrast that with North America and Europe where people expect perfection, but can’t bring themselves to fight for it.