Episode Details

Welcome to The Times of Israel's Lazar Focus. Each Friday, join host diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman for a deep dive into what's behind the news that spins the globe.

It was a stormy week politically in Ireland.

It wasn't over an attempted terrorist attack like we had here in Israel this week.

It wasn't over the rising cost of energy or immigration, like elsewhere in Europe.

It was a soccer match against Israel. That was enough to dominate the country's headlines.

How did Ireland become so focused on Israel, and so hostile to the Jewish state? 

Alan Shatter, a leading Jewish figure in the country and former justice and defense minister, says a pro-Palestine 'cult' has taken over the country's politics.

The country has always had a checkered past with its Jews, he said. The Provisional IRA had deep ties with Palestinian terrorists, and their political movement Sinn Fein 'contaminated' Irish politics by putting the Palestinian cause front and center.

That obsessive focus has spread from politics across Irish society, Shatter lamented, and now trade unions, teachers, artists, and athletes have significant pro-Palestinian movements.

The angst over the soccer match against Israel a new "level of complete and utter absurdity," he said. Now, he said, many Jews are asking whether they have a future in the country in the face of daily abuse online and a toxic environment around Israel.

"There's a deep problem here," Shatter said. "It's one the government refuses to recognize. It's one the government is contributing to."

Lazar Focus is available on all podcast platforms. This episode was produced by Gabriella Jacobs and video edited by Ari Schlacht.

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