“We saw the hatred in his eyes.” Last night in Rome, a young Israeli couple was attacked after a man heard them speaking Hebrew in the streets. Roy and Noya, an Israeli couple in their 20s vacationing in Italy, were assaulted around 10 pm in central Rome after the assailant overheard them speaking Hebrew. He shouted “Free Palestine” at them, then got off his scooter, spat on them, and punched Roy in the face. Noya recounts: “Luckily, my partner managed to pin the attacker to the ground within seconds. Otherwise, who knows how it would’ve ended. We saw the hatred in his eyes.” Eventually, Roy released his hold, and the man fled. The couple added: “We told people about the incident, and in the end we decided not to file a police complaint so we could finish the trip in the best way possible and not deal with it again.” When the words “Free Palestine” are used to murder Jews in DC, rape a Jewish little girl in Paris, and punch an Israeli in Rome, it is clear that this is far from a peaceful movement.

The Rabbi of Park East Synagogue, NY, lived through Kristallnacht. Last night, antisemites were chanting for intifada outside his synagogue. He survived this hatred once. Now, he’s forced to watch it rise again. This was never about Gaza. It’s an attack on the Jewish people.