Countries, like people, need friends.
Those friendships are most often based on economic or military needs or the need for resources. Rather than calling them friends, however, when it comes to countries, they are referred to as allies.
Israel has, with the use of the Abraham Accords, amassed a group of allies that once upon a time seemed an impossible group of friends, and the US, under the presidency of Donald Trump, is a catalyst for big deals.
Then there are those alliances built purely on the basis of geography and religion – such is the case in the world of Islam.
Iran, which hopes to dominate the Muslim world, is the prime example. Masoud Pezeshkian, the President of Iran, made that Iranian attitude perfectly clear. The president recently declared, “We are in a state of total war with the US, Israel, and Europe. They do not want our country to stand on its feet … If they attack us again, they will receive a harsher response. The unity of Iranian society will foil all enemy plots.”
There is an often-quoted ancient proverb, most often incorrectly attributed to the Italian philosopher, historian, and diplomat Machiavelli, that declares: The enemy of my enemy is my friend. By that rule, the US, Israel, and Europe, the ones listed as enemies by Iran, should all be friends. But the truth is that they are not all friends.
US and Israel are allies on many fronts
The US and Israel are certainly openly, publicly, and historically the best of friends on the international stage. They are allies on many fronts – “besties” if you wish. The two nations, as exemplified by their superbly coordinated attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities, see eye to eye on the threat to the region and the world of a nuclear Iran.
It is Europe that is the problematic part of the equation.
Iran does not, as evidenced by the president’s statement, lumping it together with Israel and the US, understand Europe. And it should.
The Iranian President does not have a proper understanding of Europe. Europe is not merely moving further and further away from the US and Israel in terms of diplomacy, doctrine, and politics, but also because Europe is moving closer and closer towards Iran.
Europe has fallen into an abyss. Europe has become a branch, an extension, of Islam – and it has a name. Today, there is a phenomenon that is referred to as European Islam. Islam has begun to cover Europe.
While it is true that several European countries are trying to fight this new phenomenon, trying to hold on to their long-held ways. They seem to be losing the battle. Europe is more and more rapidly, and more and more evidently, shifting away from alliances with the US and, even more so, with Israel. Because their population is shifting toward Islam.
The US is also shifting. The obvious example is the American political stage. What began with the election of several openly pro-Islam members of Congress blossomed into the election of New York City’s Democratic Socialist Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
The election of Mamdani is a classic example of not just a shift in American politics, but also of the move away from Israel. Mamdani – as we all know by now – has not just criticized Israel’s policies, but he has refused to condemn Hamas and their brutal October 7, 2023, massacre.
When the population shifts, so too will a country’s attitude toward Israel. While most European nations do not conduct their census based on religious affiliation, these are common knowledge, guestimates for significant
European cities.
The metropolitan area of Paris is estimated to be around 10–15% Muslim, with higher concentrations in certain suburbs.
London is estimated to be around 12–15% Muslim, with much higher percentages in the areas of Tower Hamlets and Newham. Birmingham is estimated to be 20–22% Muslim. Manchester has about 15–16% Muslims.
Brussels is estimated to be around 20–25% Muslim.
Marseille is about 25–30%.
Rotterdam is about 20–25% Muslim.
Amsterdam has around a 15–25% Muslim population.
The Hague & Utrecht have around a 13–15% Muslim population.
Berlin is around 9–12% Muslim. Cologne is around 10–12%.
Vienna around 10–12%.
Copenhagen is about 10%. Stockholm & Malmö each have around 15–20% Muslims.
While Iran was pretty good at understanding the Western world until now, in this case, they are totally off.
The dream of Muslim revolutionaries is to generate influence in the West and then take over. They want to flip the world into a Muslim oriented society. The fulfilment of that dream necessitates a shift away from the US and especially away from Israel.
That explains the burgeoning business of organized pro-Hamas rallies on campus. What began on US campuses has taken hold in Europe. And there are no better recruits for a new revolutionary cause than restless – often disenfranchised, college and university students.
While Iran has not yet realized how successful they have been in swaying support their way, we realize it. Now the hard work is ours.
Israel and the US must find much more effective ways to change the tide and bring Western and Israeli contributions to the forefront of every student and every citizen, not just in the US but also in Europe.
The writer is a columnist and a social and political commentator. Watch his TV show, Thinking Out Loud, on JBS.