Contrary to what many Israelis believe, the Jewish state has many supporters in Europe, "but they are in need of relevant information," says IDSF founder and chairman Brig. Gen. (res.) Amir Avivi.
The lower house of the Italian Parliament passed a multifaceted pro-Israel resolution in July while condemning the surge in global antisemitism following the Oct. 7 massacre in southern Israel.
According to the Israel Defense and Security Forum, a series of meetings between IDSF and Chamber of Deputies officials a few weeks before the vote had a strong influence on the resolution’s wording.
“Over the past year, we have found ourselves getting more involved in educating parliaments throughout the E.U. about the situation on the ground in Israel,” IDSF founder and chairman Brig. Gen. (res.) Amir Avivi told JNS. “Israelis often feel that Europeans don’t like us or don’t support Israeli policy, but I can say that from engagements with high-level officials and army generals, we have many supporters, but they are in need of relevant information to understand the issues.”