Chloé The Shepherdess Gathers Her Flock For Israel

"Israel is far from the isolated and cast-off state it is made out to be. On the contrary, Israel is actually at the height of its global integration, increasingly enmeshed across diplomatic, economic and cultural fronts. Settlement construction may indeed spark outrage in European capitals and angst in the White House, but it has not stood in the way of Israel’s greater inclusion in the global economy and international institutions, as well as increased normalized diplomatic relations."

That's the upbeat message from Gabriel Scheinmann, who's a visiting fellow at the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs in Washington, DC, in his recent, example-packed, worth-reading account here.

And to continue the theme of the isolation trend bucked, although Israel is demonised on so many campuses in the English-speaking world, it's delightful to see a student, and a non-Jewish student at that,  organising a fightback.  Here's an interview with 19-year-old Chloé Valdary, a Christian African-American sophomore at the University of New Orleans,concerning her ardent support of Israel:

And here (hat tip: readers Ian and Shirlee) is a heart-warming article focusing on the valiant Chloé, who has formed the group "Allies of Israel" since, as she so feelingly put it in her rousing speech,

”anti-Semitism is rising, ladies and gentlemen. Jew-hatred is spreading. That thing we said would never happen again is happening. In Europe, in Hungary, Britain, Spain anti-Semitism has increased. Last year there were 386 anti-Semitic acts in France alone. Up 45 per cent from the previous year. In the Middle East Mein Kampf is a bestseller, and Hitler is routinely praised...."

All praise and gratitude to Chloé (the name of a shepherdess in celebrated pastoral poetry, of course) and her flock as they counter the BDS movement and other manifestations of Israel-hatred on campus.