Mainstream Jewish organisations in the UK have reacted angrily to an invitation to Tommy Robinson to visit Israel. The invitation has been extended by Amichai Chikli, a member of the Israeli Knesset and Minister for Diaspora Affairs in Benjamin Netanyahu’s government.

Chikli announced the visit on Friday in a statement saying:

“In the wake of the horrific Manchester terrorist attack, Israel and the Jewish people stand firmly with our allies in the United Kingdom. On behalf of the State of Israel, I am proud to host British patriot Tommy Robinson.

“…Tommy is a courageous leader on the front line against radical Islam.

Leading British Jewish organisations were appalled at the invitation, and the Board of Deputies of British Jews, along with the Jewish Leadership Council issued a blunt, unequivocal statement denouncing the invitation:

“Tommy Robinson is a thug who represents the very worst of Britain. His presence undermines those genuinely working to tackle Islamist extremism and foster community cohesion.

“Minister Chikli has proven himself to be a Diaspora Minister in name only. In our darkest hour, he has ignored the views of the vast majority of British Jews, who utterly and consistently reject Robinson and everything he stands for.”

Labour Friends of Israel, which includes Labour MPs and others, called on Chikli to withdraw the invitation. They pointed to Robinson’s many criminal convictions, adding: “He’s no friend to the Jewish people. Amichai Chikli should withdraw this invitation now.”

Public admiration

However, the invitation has not exactly come out of the blue: Chikli has already made public his admiration for Robinson.

After Robinson’s ‘Uniting the Kingdom’ rally in London on Sptember 13, which attracted around 100,000 supporters, Chakli posted a glowing tribute saying:

“London has not looked so beautiful in a long time.

“I salute each and every patriot who marched today in London, and extend great credit to Tommy Robinson for his leadership…

“We must never surrender our civilisation, nor the religious and national identity built over hundreds and thousands of years.

And in March this year he organised a global conference on antisemitism in Israel, which was stuffed with far-right figures from across the world, including France’s National Rally, Spain’s Vox and the Sweden Democrats.

Many British Jews, including Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis, boycotted the event .

Even before that, Chikli had attracted significant attention and criticism for his vocal support of far-right political movements across Europe, aligning himself with their anti-immigration, anti-EU policies and their efforts to ‘safeguard’ national identity.

Chikli has publicly praised Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, a key figure in European far-right politics, for his staunch opposition to EU-led migration policies and his emphasis on national sovereignty.

In 2021, during a visit to Budapest, Chikli remarked, “Orbán is one of the few European leaders who truly understands the need to defend national borders and cultural identity. His position on immigration and the EU’s overreach is exactly what European nations need.”

Clashes with EU

Orbán’s government has repeatedly clashed with the European Union over immigration and rule of law issues, and Chikli has sided with Orbán’s stance, calling it a necessary defense of national interests.

He emphasized, “The European Union is trying to impose policies on countries that do not reflect the will of their people. Leaders like Orbán are protecting their nations from a tidal wave of immigration that is not only unsustainable but threatens their way of life.”

Similarly, Chikli has expressed support for Poland’s Law and Justice Party (PiS), which has been known for its conservative approach to issues like judicial independence, media freedom, and immigration.

Chikli has defended PiS’s refusal to comply with EU directives, particularly around judicial reforms, stating, “Poland, under the leadership of PiS, is showing Europe what true sovereignty looks like. They are not bowing to the pressures of Brussels, and that is a message Israel and the entire world should support.”

Chikli has framed PiS’s resistance to EU interference as a fight for national sovereignty, aligning with his own political agenda in Israel.

Chikli has also shown admiration for Italy’s far-right leader Matteo Salvini, who leads the League party (Lega). Salvini is a well-known critic of the European Union and has called for stringent measures to stop illegal immigration into Italy.

Chikli has publicly praised Salvini, stating, “Matteo Salvini understands that the future of Italy depends on securing its borders and protecting its citizens.

“His strong stance on immigration is one that all European nations should follow, and I stand with him.”

Hardline policies

Chikli has frequently echoed the far right’s focus on the connection between mass immigration and rising security concerns in Europe, aligning his views with Salvini’s hardline policies on both issues.

Furthermore, Chikli has voiced support for the National Rally (Rassemblement National) in France, led by Marine Le Pen, a figure synonymous with anti-EU, anti-immigration rhetoric.

Chikli has echoed Le Pen’s critiques of the EU’s handling of immigration, stating, “Marine Le Pen has been speaking the truth about the European Union for years.

“The EU is dismantling European cultures, and countries like France must assert their independence. Le Pen’s resistance to Brussels is admirable and necessary for France’s future.”

Chikli has also spoken at conferences organised by the US-based far-right Conservative Political Action Committee, and Spain’s far-right Vox party.

Chikli has consistently been vocal about his opposition to the European Union’s immigration policies, arguing that an influx of migrants from non-European countries is destabilizing European societies and causing social unrest.

In an interview in 2022, Chikli stated, “Europe is facing an existential crisis. The EU’s open-border policies are weakening Europe’s foundation. If they don’t change course, they will see their identity and security further eroded.”

In response to the criticism from British Jewish organisations concerning the Robinson invitation, Chikli doubled down and launched an extraordinary attack on the Board of Deputies, accusing them of being aligned with “left-wing, woke, pro-Palestinian parties”:

What Chikli does not appear to grasp is that the ‘Great Replacement’ theory, which Robinson has explicitly supported and which Chikli himself so glibly endorses, is at root an antisemitic conspiracy theory, blaming Jews for the systematic replacement of indigenous European populations by Muslims.

All of this depends, of course, on whether Robinson is jailed after his next court appearance on13 October.