Israel Has Weathered the Worst of the Storm of Anti-Israel Hysteria

Israel’s diplomatic position is improving: “Israel’s global standing slowly recovers as diplomatic tsunami begins to recede,” by Herb Keinon, Jerusalem Post, December 12, 2025:

And Colombia, long Israel’s closest ally in South America, severed relations after Gustavo Petro – a former Marxist guerrilla – took power in 2022. Elections there in 2026 could dramatically alter the trajectory once more….

Gustavo Petro’s initial popularity has plummeted. His approval rating hovers around 25%: His disapproval rating is climbed to 66%, or two-thirds of the population. 72% of Colombians now believe that the country is headlined in the wrong direction. The left-wing Petro is almost certain to be voted out of office this coming year, and a center-right replacement will reverse his anti-Israel policy that was a natural result of his leftist worldview.

The prime minister highlighted his upcoming meeting with Trump on December 29 in Mar-a-Lago and his regular conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying the latter were critical for safeguarding Israel’s interests in the north. He pointed to this, as well as Merz’s visit and his calls with Modi, as evidence of ongoing engagement with the world’s “great powers.”

And he noted that the government had just approved more than NIS 2 billion for the Foreign Ministry to fight anti-Israel propaganda.

Netanyahu is determined to keep lines of communication open to Putin, because the Russians still have two military bases in Syria, and have some ability, therefore, to influence Ahmed al-Sharaa’s policy toward the Jewish state.

Israel’s international standing reached its nadir last summer. Slowly, it has been recovering. The Americans have stood solidly with their Middle Eastern ally, joining in the bombing last June of Iran’s nuclear facilities. The International Atomic Energy Agency has been issuing statements about Iran’s refusal to cooperate, keeping some sites completely off limits to IAEA inspectors. Iran itself has announced that it is restoring its nuclear program, which has alarmed Europeans and Arab states in the Gulf, who are grateful for the IDF’s setting back Iran’s program for at least several years, and instead of berating Israel, they now realize that Israel is the only military force both willing and able to prevent Iran from achieving a nuclear bomb, or bombs, that could be used to threaten them.

Chancellor Merz, in his recent visit to Israel, made clear that the brief embargo on export licenses for German weapons to be sent to Israel has now been lifted, and will not return. He re-emphasized how important it was for Germany to continue supporting Israel at every forum where it is under attack. This means, among others, the UN, the ICJ, and the Eurovision Song Contest.

In Latin America, the Argentinian President, Javier Milei, has given Israel a foothold in the southern part of the continent. The outspokenly pro-Israel president of Paraguay, Santiago Peña, has in speeches repeatedly stressed his administration’s exceptionally strong and unwavering support for Israel. His pro-Israel stance has become a cornerstone of Paraguay’s foreign policy, distinguishing the South American nation as one of Israel’s staunchest allies on the global stage. Peña moved Paraguay’s embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem on December 12, 2024.

Things are looking up for Israel diplomatically, as it has weathered the worst of the storm of anti-Israel hysteria that, having reached a fever pitch last summer, ever since the ceasefire was declared in October has been decreasing. It will continue to go down slowly, if the Gaza ceasefire holds and the IDF does not feel compelled to re-enter all of Gaza to finish off what remains off Hamas. Now the media have begun to report on the many people in Gaza who hate Hamas for the way it has terrorized them for so long, and brought destruction down upon the Strip, while the terror group’s four senior leaders have stolen fourteen billion dollars in aid between themselves — aid meant for everyone in Gaza. Some of those Gazans have lost their fear, and denounced Hamas on camera. Another new development is the appearance of local, often family — or clan-based, militias whose members have been able to take on Hamas, and push it out of the neighborhoods where these militias are based. That has allowed the world to understand that Hamas is a group of killers, not just of Israeli Jews, but of Gazans who simply want to get the terror group’s boot off their necks, and stop its stealing of food aid and money.