Historically, Eastertime—which often falls, as it does this year, quite close to Passover—was a season when Europeans circulated rumors about Jews murdering Christian children and repeated the old story that Jews were responsible for the death of the Christian messiah. To Terry Glavin, not much has changed, although the coincidence of Ramadan with both holidays has added something to the mix. The current libel, a mere century old, is that Jews are desecrating the Islamic holy places on the Temple Mount, and plan to displace Muslims there. This calumny spurred Palestinians to throw rocks and attack police officers at al-Aqsa mosque on Friday; politicians from the Canadian Liberal party, meanwhile, are repeating the misinformation that provoked the very violence they wish to abate:

It starts Friday with a milquetoast both-sides-ism from Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly that also contains an instruction to the Israelis to maintain the . . . status quo [which allows Muslims, but not Jews, to pray at the site of the ancient Jerusalem Temple]—which, despite Hamas propaganda, the Israelis have been upholding since 1967: “Violence in & around al-Aqsa is unacceptable. The sanctity and status quo of holy sites must be respected. We call for de-escalation of tensions. Canada stands with the Israeli and Palestinian peoples in their right to peace & security.”

The Pickering-Uxbridge Liberal Jennifer O’Connell begins [by simply blaming Israel]: “I’m gravely concerned with violence occurring in, and around Masjid al-Aqsa. Excessive force used by the Israeli police is unacceptable and takes us further away from peace. I condemn this violence. Everyone, no matter their religion, should feel safe to pray—free from fear.”

So, there you have it. If you are a Liberal in Canada you have been sternly admonished to understand that what happened at al-Aqsa on Friday wasn’t about a bunch of stone-throwing yobs incited by an anti-Semitic conspiracy theory that was already hoary and thoroughly discredited in the time of their grandpappies. It wasn’t about a bunch of vandals setting off fireworks in one of Islam’s holiest precincts preventing Muslims from worshipping in their accustomed ways on one of the holiest days of the year. It was about those mean Israelis, doing what Israelis do, again and again, which is trample on the dignity of innocent Muslims during the Holy Month of Ramadan.

In Canada, the Jewish advocacy organization B’nai Brith recorded 267 anti-Semitic incidents across the country including 61 violent acts—the worst violence ever reported for a single month since B’nai Brith first started tracking anti-Semitic incidents in 1982. . . . That’s something all those Liberals might want to keep in mind the next time some bloodcurdling anti-Semitic hoax threatens to set the Holy Land on fire again.

Below, today’s newsletter will return to some other reflections on the one-year anniversary of the outbreak of the current war, but first something must be said of its recent progress. Israel has kept up its aerial and ground assault on Hizballah, and may have already killed the successor to Hassan Nasrallah, the longtime leader it eliminated less than two weeks ago. Matthew Levitt assesses the current state of the Lebanon-based terrorist group, which, in his view, is now “a shadow of its former self.” Indeed, he adds,

it is no exaggeration to say that the Hizballah of two weeks ago no longer exists. And since Hizballah was the backbone of Iran’s network of militant proxies, its so-called axis of resistance, Iran’s strategy of arming and deploying proxy groups throughout the region is suddenly at risk as well.

Hizballah’s attacks put increasing pressure on Israel, as intended, only that pressure did not lead Israelis to stop targeting Hamas so much as it chipped away at Israel’s fears about the cost of military action to address the military threats posed by Hizballah.

At the same time, Levitt explains, Hizballah still poses a serious threat, as it demonstrated last night when its missiles struck Haifa and Tiberias, injuring at least two people:

Hizballah still maintains an arsenal of rockets and a cadre of several thousand fighters. It will continue to pose potent military threats for Israel, Lebanon, and the wider region.

How will the group seek to avenge Nasrallah’s death amid these military setbacks? Hizballah is likely to resort to acts of international terrorism, which are overseen by one of the few elements of the group that has not yet lost key leaders.

But the true measure of whether the group will be able to reconstitute itself, even over many years, is whether Iran can restock Hizballah’s sophisticated arsenal. Tehran’s network of proxy groups—from Hizballah to Hamas to the Houthis—is only as dangerous as it is today because of Iran’s provision of weapons and money. Whatever Hizballah does next, Western governments must prioritize cutting off Tehran’s ability to arm and fund its proxies.