ExIsraeliAnarchist

It’s disingenuous to post those wikis without also posting these

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Jews_and_Judaism_in_the_Land_of_Israel

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jewish_diaspora

and because people can’t separate acknowledgment of reality from support of it - I don’t support Israel, which is occupying some Palestinian lands, and is undeniably oppressing Palestinians who deserve to be free. At the same time, other parts of the land are the ancestral land of the Jewish people, they didn’t just “decide” this or “turn up one day” out of nowhere, it’s historical fact. But you know what? Both can be and are true, and ignoring history doesn’t change that, it only makes your position weaker because you’re clearly speaking from ignorance, deliberate or otherwise, and don’t (or refuse to) understand the true complexity of this conflict and the history of the region.

Oh, my criticism wasn’t of you, but of the person who replied to you with a load of nonsense. People tend to ignore/simplify/skew the history to fit their agenda (or are too lazy to make the kind of effort you are to understand), so it’s good to look at the actual documented history.

As for the Hagia Sophia comparison, I can see where you’re coming from, but this is all on a much bigger scale, which by default makes it much more complicated t figure out. But the first step is wanting to know, and you’re there, so good job!

That person really doesn’t seem to know what they’re talking about (Jews did not originate in Egypt, the UN didn’t “shove” anyone to the land, Jewish settlement has been continuous in the region, and after decades of pogroms which culminated in the Holocaust, many who were in the diaspora ended up returning since they didn’t feel safe anywhere else, but more importantly, like so many fleeing war and genocide today - were simply not welcomed by the “allies”. There is also no such argument that anyone who lives on that land qualifies as Jewish, that’s not how Judaism works, there are Israelis and Palestinians of all and no religion), I recommend reading some actual sources for yourself if you want to know more:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Origins_of_Judaism
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judaism
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Jews_and_Judaism_in_the_Land_of_Israel
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jewish_diaspora

And of course I have to defend myself in advance - despite all of the above, I am not denying that the state of Israel is occupying some lands illegally, and is oppressing and ethnically cleansing Palestine.
Both peoples have a rightful claim to parts of that land (and will, eventually, have to share other parts, or all die trying to be the only ones in control), and all deserve to live peacefully side by side on their homelands.

a functioning government

Tell me you know nothing about Israeli politics without saying you know nothing about Israeli politics (the country is run by a bunch of literal criminals. Do they care about the Palestinians? No. But do they care about the Israelis who aren’t directly related to them, and even then not always? Also no. If someone told you “Israel the only democracy in the middle east” you’d call bullshit, and you’d be right, so don’t pull out a “functioning government” when it’s convenient. they are run by fascists, standing up to those in power is becoming harder and harder, just look at the last few elections and the reactions to protests)

I do think there can be legitimate criticism of Israel and zionism that is not antisemitic (like accepting that Jews deserve a safe place to live on our ancestral land, but also that ethno-states are a bad thing), but I do agree that, especially online almost all anti-zionism comes from an antisemitic place, or at least an ignorant one.

It’s interesting how often people who oppose the existence of Israel (not to be confused with being rightfuly critical of its actions) are the first too make us feel unwelcome and tell Jew who facing antisemitism outside of Israel, that we just need to deal with it (and even expect it, acording to you), and if we don’t like it, we should just leave… But where is it we should be going…?
It’s almost as if what you really want is for Jews to just not exist.