In the wake of October 7, 2023, many people—especially outside of the Jewish community—have drawn comparisons to 9/11, calling it “Israel’s 9/11” or “the Jewish 9/11.” It’s an attempt to frame the magnitude of what happened, to create a reference point for those who may not fully grasp the devastation. But while the comparison may come from a place of trying to understand, it ultimately falls short.
October 7 and 9/11 were both acts of terror, designed to inflict maximum horror, pain, and loss of life. Both changed the course of history in profound ways. Both left families shattered, survivors traumatized, and entire nations struggling to make sense of what had just happened. But the nature, context, and aftermath of these attacks were fundamentally different, and calling October 7 “the Jewish 9/11” does not capture the unique horror, betrayal, and existential threat that this day represents.
First, 9/11 was an attack by foreign terrorists on American soil. The United States, for all the shock and grief, was not facing immediate, ongoing existential threats to its survival. It was a catastrophic day, but it was not a question of whether the country itself would continue to exist. For Israel, October 7 was not just terrorism—it was a pogrom. It was the single deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust, and it was a deliberate, calculated act of mass murder, torture, secual assaults and humiliation against civilians, including children and the elderly. Barbaric behavior that is incomprehensible. This was not just about making a political statement or striking fear—this was about dehumanization, destruction, and the infliction of pain for the sake of it.
Second, 9/11, as devastating as it was, was met with overwhelming unity both within the U.S. and around the world. There was no moral ambiguity. The world saw what happened and grieved alongside America. October 7, on the other hand, was followed not by universal condemnation, but by a wave of excuses, denials, and justification. Almost immediately, the massacre of Jews was minimized, dismissed, or reframed as a political act rather than a crime against humanity. The hostages were barely an afterthought in global discourse. The same world that had once vowed “Never Again” seemed, just decades later, to be unbothered, indifferent, or worse—celebratory.
And then there’s what happened after. The days following 9/11 did not bring mass global protests in support of Al-Qaeda. The American people were not asked to justify their grief or prove their victimhood. There were no university campuses where students ripped down posters of the dead, no celebrities or journalists saying that the attack was “complicated.” There was no question that 9/11 was an act of pure evil. But for Jews, October 7 did not just reveal the fragility of Israeli security—it revealed something far darker: that much of the world sees Jewish suffering as conditional, negotiable, or even deserved.
The comparison between 9/11 and October 7 may come from a place of seeking understanding, but it ultimately fails to grasp the gravity of what happened, what it means, and what it revealed about the world’s relationship with Jewish life. October 7 was not just another terrorist attack. It was a moment that reminded Jews everywhere how alone we are in our pain, how quickly history repeats itself, and how fragile the sense of safety has always been.
So no, October 7 is not the Jewish 9/11. It is something else entirely. And its impact will reverberate far beyond this year, shaping Jewish identity, security, and collective memory for generations to come.
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