One of the most important questions facing Israel today is not military.

It is not economic. It is not even political. It is a question of legitimacy.

A recent Substack article by Andrew Fox argued that the Jewish state’s most dangerous enemy may not be Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran, or even terrorism. It may be the gradual erosion of Israel’s legitimacy in the eyes of the world.

Source: https://mrandrewfox.substack.com/p/israels-greatest-threat-isnt-hamas

At first glance, that sounds exaggerated.

Israel is stronger than ever. It possesses one of the most sophisticated militaries in the world. It is a global leader in technology, innovation, agriculture, medicine, cybersecurity, and artificial intelligence. It has survived wars, intifadas, terrorism, and repeated attempts to destroy it.

Yet increasingly the battlefield is shifting.

The question is no longer:

What is Israel doing?

The question is becoming:

Should Israel exist at all?

That is not a military challenge.

It is a legitimacy challenge.

And that is why Parshat Korach feels so contemporary.

Most people remember Korach as a rebellion against Moses. But if we read the text carefully, Korach was not arguing about policy. He was not proposing a different route through the desert, a different military strategy, or a different economic plan.

He was challenging legitimacy.

His question was simple:

“Why do you elevate yourselves above the congregation of God?”

Who gave Moses the right to lead?

Who gave Aaron the right to serve as High Priest?

Who decided they were special?

Korach understood something profound. If you can undermine legitimacy, you do not need to defeat the leader. You simply convince people that the leader has no right to lead. The struggle shifts from actions to existence, from policy to identity, from performance to legitimacy.

For decades, Israel’s enemies attempted to defeat it militarily. They failed.

In 1948, they failed. In 1967, they failed. In 1973, they failed. The intifadas failed. Repeated wars failed.

The military destruction of Israel proved elusive.

So the battlefield changed.

The argument increasingly became

Not: “Israel is wrong.” But: “Israel is illegitimate.”

Not: “Israel made a mistake.” But: “Israel should never have existed.”

Not: “Israel’s policies should change.” But: “The Jewish state itself is the problem.”

That is a Korach argument. The challenge is no longer behaviour.The challenge is legitimacy.

The consequences of this shift can be seen across the international landscape.

When five Western foreign ministers recently announced coordinated sanctions against Israeli ministers, the justification was concern over extremist violence and the erosion of prospects for a Palestinian state. Violence should always be condemned, and the rule of law should apply equally to everyone. Yet many Israelis and Jews around the world cannot help but notice the imbalance. The same urgency is rarely directed toward Hamas,........

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