Israel is a necessary refuge for Jews in the theocratic, hateful and repressive Muslim world
Politics starts with the establishment of the state. The social contract that creates the state is a necessary evil to prevent constant mayhem and chaos. That’s the reason we put up with taxes and laws made by other people. But in many cases not everyone has a role in creating the social contract under which they live. In the case of nearly every Muslim-majority country Jews don’t have a say in the social contract. It’s simply imposed on them from above by an oppressive dictatorship. If that dictatorship will even allow any Jews to live there in the first place.
Israel has a massive monopoly among the countries of the Muslim world on religious diversity and tolerance. There are 49 Muslim-majority countries covering 10,000,000 square miles. Israel is only 1 country covering 10,000 square miles. There are over 10 times as many Muslim citizens of Israel (this excludes the Palestinians living in the West Bank and Gaza Strip) as there are Jews living in all Muslim-majority countries combined! There are over 1,000,000 Muslim citizens of Israel but less than 100,000 Jews among all Muslim-majority countries.
Israel is the only real option for the equality, safety and dignity of Jews in the vast expanse of the Muslim world. For anyone who believes that Jews are entitled to these things in the Muslim world, support for Israel is simply the only game in town.
The norm within the Muslim world is oppressive theocracy. Saudi Arabia is an 830,000 square mile country that only allows Muslims to be citizens. This applies just as much to its native population, who are forbidden to abandon Islam for any other religion. Apostasy from Islam may be punished by death. Non-Muslim non-citizens living in Saudi Arabia are banned from openly practicing their religions. Saudi Arabia is home to Islam’s holiest site in Mecca, a city that is completely off limits to all non-Muslims under all circumstances. This contrasts with Israel, which is home to Judaism’s holiest site in Jerusalem. There are thousands of Muslims and Christians and numerous mosques and churches in Jerusalem. Israel even allows the continued operation of the Al-Aqsa Mosque which sits on top of the holiest site for Judaism!
The largest country bordering Israel is Egypt. It is an officially Arabic country, Islam is its official religion and its civil code is influenced by Islamic law. At the time of Israel’s establishment there were 75,000 Jews in Egypt. Bombings and riots in Egypt at that time killed dozens of Jews and nearly 40% of Egyptian Jews left the country by 1950. After the Suez Crisis of 1956 Egyptian Jews were officially declared by the government to be enemies of the state. 25,000 Jews left Egypt after being forced to sign declarations that they were leaving "voluntarily" and to agree to government confiscation of their assets. The Egyptian Jewish population has steadily declined ever since to the point that there are now only 3 Jews left in all of Egypt!
Syria is the 2nd largest country next to Israel. It’s an officially Arabic country where the President is constitutionally required to be Muslim and Islamic jurisprudence is the main source of legislation. At the time of Israel’s establishment there were 15,000 Jews in Syria. Bombings and riots in Syria at that time killed dozens of Jews. Shortly before Israel’s establishment, the Syrian government barred Jews from government service, owning telephones or driver’s licenses and buying property. In 1948, Syrian Jews were banned from selling property and in 1953 all Jewish bank accounts were frozen. Thousands of Jews left Syria during this time, with only 5,000 left by 1957. Bans on Jewish emigration were turned on and off several times during this period. When the ban was temporarily lifted in 1954, Jews who emigrated were forced to leave all their property to the government. The Syrian Jewish population continued to dwindle over the decades until there were no Jews at all left in Syria by 2020.
Islam is the official state religion of Yemen. Muslims are prohibited from converting to another religion. At the time of Israel’s establishment there were 63,000 Jews in Yemen. Shortly before Israel’s establishment, Muslim rioters assisted by local police murdered 82 Jews and destroyed hundreds of Jewish homes during a riot in the city of Aden. This led to the emigration of almost all of Yemen’s Jews to Israel between 1949-1950. As of 2022 there was reportedly only 1 Jew left in Yemen.