Says Israel not helping refugees

In the ongoing debate over how to best address the Syrian refugee crisis, one obvious player is conspicuously absent from the discussion: Israel.

Here is a country that would not exist in its present form if other nations hadn’t accepted Jewish refugees fleeing the Holocaust, so it seems unbelievably sad that Israel can’t reciprocate when others are in need.

In fact, Israel is the only country bordering Syria that has refused to accept persons fleeing for their lives. While Europe, and in particular Germany, have stepped up to help with this humanitarian crisis, three-quarters of the Syrian refugees have gone to either Turkey or Lebanon. Even Canada has pledged to take 25,000.

Yes, there may be security concerns; but must this paranoia even extend to even children under the age of 5?

Surely a nation as powerful as Israel isn’t frightened by few hundred orphans? If not, it must be something else.

Costs? Israel is a wealthy country and the largest recipient of U.S. foreign aid. It receives billions of U.S. tax dollars a year, and is currently requesting a 40 percent increase. (In comparison, Turkey doesn’t even rank on the top 10 of U.S. aid recipients.)

Apparently, the adage of “to those to whom much is given, much is expected,” does not apply to the Israelis. I can only hope that if Israel ever needs the help of others, the world will be able to forgive, but never forget.

This story was originally published November 1, 2015 at 4:01 PM with the headline "Says Israel not helping refugees."