Netanyahu, Orbán, and the Resurgence of Antisemitism: Lessons of the Last Century

Abstract

Benjamin Netanyahu and his allies have recently embraced ethnonationalists and even outspoken antisemites such as Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán as friends of the Jewish state and opponents of antisemitism, and they have even engaged in antisemitism themselves. This has deep roots in Zionist history but is expressed today in radically new ways. This article concisely explicates the nature of modern antisemitism, its relationship to earlier forms of anti-Jewish animosity, and documents how Orbán and Netanyahu are promoting antisemitism today while cynically redefining the term to exculpate themselves and condemn their political opponents on the Left as the real antisemites.