Sports seems so, so far off from what really needs to be important right now in Israel. I wanted to write an analysis of Maccabi Tel Aviv’s loss Wednesday night at Valencia as I usually do after Eurolegaue games, but it just seems so frivolous right now to do so. The Yellow & Blue played like a team that hasn’t played or practiced properly for some time and that is exactly what it was with the foreigners in Cyprus and the Israelis at home only joining up a couple of days before the game in Spain.

So instead of breaking down what went wrong (Lorenzo Brown’s almost triple double of 13 points, 11 assists and 7 turnovers) and what went right (Bonzie Colson’s 20 points) in the shadow of war, I will share with you some of my thoughts and feelings as to what has gone on in Israel and its impact worldwide.

The nation is still grieving the loss of over 1,400 Israelis from the brutal massacre committed by Hamas on Simchat Torah, we are concerned for the well being of the over 200 hostages being held by the terrorist group in Gaza and we are also still reeling at the staggering amount of those injured which has reached an unprecedented 4,000.

Hamas dealt us a massive blow on a peaceful Shabbat morning, a blow to the government, a blow to the Israel Defense Forces and a blow to the fabric of the Israeli society. Where was the army to protect us? Where were our leaders? Where was our intelligence? There will be plenty of time to answer all of those questions, but right now the most important thing is the survival of the country.

There have been comparisons to the events of 9/11 that I lived through in New York City, that this is 10 times the amount of innocent lives that were lost compared to that in the United States.

However, I am not here to compare and contrast. We have suffered unimaginable losses where every single family in the State of Israel knows someone who has been killed, kidnapped and/or injured or a combination of all three. Funerals and Shivas are taking place across the country as sirens still go off to warn us that a salvo of missiles is on its way from Gaza. Hezbollah sits on the northern border taking pot shots for now waiting to strike at the heart of the Jewish people.

There is fear, there is uncertainty, there is concern that Israel is facing some of its most critical and difficult hours yet to come. Pogroms against are taking place around the world and demonstrations against Israel and the Jewish people be it in New York, London, Paris or my hometown of Montreal. It is not safe to be a Jew in any part of the world it seems.

The world has long forgotten the slaughter that took place less than two weeks ago, two long weeks that have felt like two years. Those who have always preached that being Anti-Israel or Anti-Zionist doesn’t mean that you are Anti-Semitic, Jew and non-Jew alike have quickly understood that Israel and the Jewish people are one and the same.

You can’t take Israel out of the Jew and you can’t take the Jew out of Israel.

Some Jews may want to deny that fact and criticize Israel, but the bottom line is the world sees one thing and one thing only, the Jews are at fault. Whether it was the hospital in Gaza that Islamic Jihad’s missile hit and the world was ready to hang Israel in minutes or the loss of life as Hamas and others use civilians in Gaza as human shields, we are immediately to blame.

We did not ask for this confrontation, it was brought upon us by Hamas and the other terrorist groups who have one goal and one goal only, to murder Jews and take the land of Israel.

While the United States and President Joe Biden has been the best friend one could ever ask for right now and that goes down to the many, many sports teams and leagues who are supporting Israel, taking a moment of silence and reflection or raising money during baseball games, football games and other sporting events, America is in the minority.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was quick to lay the blame on Israel for the hospital bombing, demonstrations calling for the destruction of Israel took place in Ottawa, Toronto and Montreal as well as many, many cities throughout Europe and the world.

As a Jew, I looked on in horror as a synagogue in Tunisia was destroyed, as college campuses across the United States have become a cesspool of hate and a very scary place to be Jewish, as the Israeli Embassy in Jordan was under threat by thousands as the list goes on and on.

It’s as if Europe of the 1930’s has returned with a vengeance. There will be many more difficult days to come in the Holy Land. We have an obligation as Jews and Israelis to never, ever allow another Holocaust to happen.

Israel is and will always remain open to any Jew who seeks refuge. We will not be destroyed despite the constant threats from the likes of Iran. We will be a light onto the nations as they come under those same threats from Hamas and other terrorists.

Just as the European sanctioning body of UEFA couldn’t come out with a straight statement about the tragedies that befell its member nation of Israel after the Hamas massacre but quickly went to bat for the two Swedish nationals that were killed in Belgium. Or just like the English Premier League who hemmed and hawed as well and then came out with a half baked statement that equates the slaughter of Jews those in Gaza, Israel and the Jews need to show all of these organizations exactly what they have cultivated in their own countries.

The seeds of hatred for freedom and a normal way of life. Israel is at the forefront of this war, a war that has been brewing in the free world. We have no choice but to be a light upon the nations, Israel and Jews around the world.

You can’t separate the two, Israel and the Jews, the Jews and Israel.

We are one and the same, now and always.