From anti-Semitism to Hamas, a discussion on Israel's challenges

Earlier last week, SGT University, in collaboration with the Central Coordination Cell and the American Jewish Committee (AJC), convened a high-level seminar titled "Bridging Horizons" to examine India-Israel relations in the context of global geopolitics, disinformation, and cultural diplomacy.

- TIKAM SHARMA

The panel brought together Arjun Hardas, India Representative of AJC; Sandeep Unnithan, Editor-in-Chief of Chakra Newz; Manjari Singh of the Centre for Joint Warfare Studies (CENJOWS); and Abhijit Iyer-Mitra of the Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies (IPCS).

The discussion, moderated by Joyeeta Basu, Editor of The Sunday Guardian, looked into both the opportunities and vulnerabilities facing Israel at a time of heightened tension in West Asia.

Arjun Hardas set the stage with a sobering reflection on the Jewish community's demographic fragility. He noted that before the Holocaust the global Jewish population stood at around 18 million, yet nearly eight decades later it remains below that figure, at approximately 16.5 million.

Of Israel's 10.5 million citizens, 8.5 million are Jewish.

"The fact that even in 2025 the number has not returned to pre-Holocaust levels reflects the immense devastation caused by that tragedy," he said, underlining how history continues to shape Jewish consciousness.

Hardas traced the roots of anti-Semitism across centuries, pointing to the scapegoating of Jews during times of war, famine, and plague, and the long-standing role of religious institutions in perpetuating bias.

For nearly two millennia, the Catholic Church held Jews collectively responsible for the death of Jesus—a teaching only officially revoked in the 1960s.

While anti-Semitism receded briefly in the immediate aftermath of World War II, the reprieve proved short-lived as prejudice soon resurfaced.