In the wake of the stabbing in Marseille of a Jewish teacher, the leader of the Jewish community has cautioned against wearing kippot in public. Citing this episode, Elliott Abrams recalls George Washington’s letter to the Jews of Newport in which the president expressed his hope that “the children of the stock of Abraham who dwell in this land continue to merit and enjoy the good will of the other inhabitants—while ‘every one shall sit in safety under his own vine and fig tree and there shall be none to make him afraid’ [Micah 4:4].”

These sentences struck me today because they were true then for Jews in America and are true today, but were not true then for Jews in Europe and are not true [for them] today. . . .

Across Europe, Jews are being told by their own community leaders and rabbis to avoid showing any sign of their religion in public: no prayer shawl, no head covering, no Star of David necklace. Nothing. [It’s] too dangerous. . . .

It is in that context that Washington’s words are so striking. Two-hundred-and-twenty-five years later, Jews in Europe do not have the safety that America’s first president promised Jews in the United States in 1790. Nor is there much reason to think that the predicament of European Jews will be solved; indeed logic suggests that it will worsen. . . . “And there shall be none to make him afraid” is a promise that still eludes Jews in Europe.

On Tuesday, a Hizballah drone attack injured three people in northern Israel. The next day, another attack, targeting an IDF base, injured eighteen people, six of them seriously, in Arab al-Amshe, also in the north. This second attack involved the simultaneous use of drones carrying explosives and guided antitank missiles. In both cases, the defensive systems that performed so successfully last weekend failed to stop the drones and missiles. Ron Ben-Yishai has a straightforward explanation as to why: the Lebanon-backed terrorist group is getting better at evading Israel defenses. He explains the three basis systems used to pilot these unmanned aircraft, and their practical effects:

These systems allow drones to act similarly to fighter jets, using “dead zones”—areas not visible to radar or other optical detection—to approach targets. They fly low initially, then ascend just before crashing and detonating on the target. The terrain of southern Lebanon is particularly conducive to such attacks.

But this requires skills that the terror group has honed over months of fighting against Israel. The latest attacks involved a large drone capable of carrying over 50 kg (110 lbs.) of explosives. The terrorists have likely analyzed Israel’s alert and interception systems, recognizing that shooting down their drones requires early detection to allow sufficient time for launching interceptors.

The IDF tries to detect any incoming drones on its radar, as it had done prior to the war. Despite Hizballah’s learning curve, the IDF’s technological edge offers an advantage. However, the military must recognize that any measure it takes is quickly observed and analyzed, and even the most effective defenses can be incomplete. The terrain near the Lebanon-Israel border continues to pose a challenge, necessitating technological solutions and significant financial investment.