Daniel Finkelstein

Latest from Daniel Finkelstein

When people call for jihad or advocate globalising the intifada – believe them

Our resolve to defend a safe Israel and Jews around the world is strong. Our determination has only got stronger. But enough now, with death.

3 min read

A pro-Palestinian protester holds a "globalise the intifada" sign near during an anti-Israel protest near Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's hotel at the 80th session of the UN General Assembly on September 25, 2025 in New York City (Image: Getty Images)

Israel's National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir who was sanctioned by the UK government this week (Photo:Getty Images)

When Israel’s government uses extreme rhetoric, it tests the faith of its backers

2 min read

The Liberation of Bergen-belsen Concentration Camp, April 1945 (Getty)

To the servicemen who liberated Bergen-Belsen, my letter of gratitude

2 min read

Britain's King Charles III lays a candle during commemorations at Auschwitz-Birkenau in Poland to mark 80 years since the liberation of the concentration camp on during commemorations on the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the German Nazi concentration and extermination camp Auschwitz-Birkenau by the Red Army, in Oswiecim, Poland on January 27, 2025. (Photo by Aaron Chown / POOL / AFP) (Photo by AARON CHOWN/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

It’s wrong to say Holocaust Memorial Day has been diluted. We must back it

3 min read

We all need to know about Santa – even the Charedim

People who are born here and who will become citizens should receive an education that equips them for that role as well as for their role as Jews.

2 min read

December 24, 2024 10:26

Exclusive Royalty Free Image Nashville Stock Photographer Dieter Spears Inhaus Creative for Istockphoto.com

I made the mistake of offering a factual comment on Israel

Elon Musk is right to defend his social media platform as a bastion of free speech, but a dark undercurrent has developed since October 7 which affects Jewish users more than most

3 min read

October 30, 2024 11:20

With Hamas, freeing the hostages will not be the endgame

Awful as Israel’s dilemma now is, history has shown repeatedly that ceding to Hamas’ demands will simply prompt it to take more captives and commit more atrocities

2 min read

September 4, 2024 09:33

Israelis holding photographs of abducted and missing family members protest outside the Knesset (Photo by Yonatan Sindeli/Flash90)

Under Labour, the debate on Israel is only just beginning

We will need to find a way to have a conversation both within the community and with the government about the Jewish state in which not all mainstream Jews take the same position

2 min read

July 8, 2024 15:00

Attorney General Richard Hermer KC makes his way to Number 10 for his first day as a cabinet minister on 6 July (Photo by Alex McBride/Getty Images)

Despite it all, modern Britain remains one of the best places for Jews to live in history

As my mum put it: ‘Don’t only see the holes in the Emmental’

3 min read

May 16, 2024 10:28

Pro-Palestinian supporters shout slogans and wave Palestinian flags during a demonstration in central London on January 6, 2024, calling for a ceasefire now in the war in Gaza. Thousands of civilians, both Palestinians and Israelis, have died since October 7, 2023, after Palestinian Hamas militants based in the Gaza Strip entered southern Israel in an unprecedented attack triggering a war declared by Israel on Hamas with retaliatory bombings on Gaza. (Photo by HENRY NICHOLLS / AFP) (Photo by HENRY NICHOLLS/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel’s critics aren’t interested in dialogue or compromise, they just want to hate

Without dialogue, how can there ever be progress toward peace?

3 min read

March 19, 2024 17:45

Protesters hold placards and chant slogans during a rally in support of Palestinians, outside of the Houses of Parliament in central London on November 15, 2023, to demand Members of Parliament vote for a ceasefire in Gaza. (Photo by Ben Stansall / AFP)

My family now have a lasting memorial in Amsterdam

Deciding where to put the Stolpersteine, a plaque on the pavement marking the last place my grandmother lived in freedom before her captivity, was a journey of its own

3 min read

February 1, 2024 10:50

Gunter Demnig, founder of the Stolpersteine project, cleans freshly placed Stolpersteine ('stumbling stones') in commemoration of the Gutmann family (Photo by THOMAS KIENZLE/AFP via Getty Images)

Why people refuse to see Jews as an ethnic minority

The BBC’s mistake is another example of the Baddiel hypothesis

3 min read

December 14, 2023 13:59

Police officers stand by as workmen clean off red paint from the windows at the entrance to the BBC building in central London on October 14, 2023. (Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP) (Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP via Getty Images)

Urging Israel to 'use restraint' is to deny Gazans their only escape from hell

A long as Hamas terrorists dominate there can be no liberty, freedom or security for anyone

3 min read

October 26, 2023 10:55

TOPSHOT - A fireball erupts during Israeli bombardment in the northern Gaza Strip on October 14, 2023. Thousands of people, both Israeli and Palestinians have died since October 7, 2023, after Palestinian Hamas militants entered Israel in a surprise attack leading Israel to declare war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip enclave on October 8. (Photo by Aris MESSINIS / AFP) (Photo by ARIS MESSINIS/AFP via Getty Images)

Israelophobia review: As original and necessary as Baddiel’s Jews Don’t Count

Jake Wallis Simons' argument that Israelophobia should be added to the lexicon should be listened to

2 min read

September 15, 2023 13:44

Israelophobia review: As original and necessary as Baddiel’s Jews Don’t Count

How I learned to fill in the gaps in my family’s Shoah story

Even with the stash of records my relatives kept, I still found dead ends — then I realised that there are ways to use other people’s experiences to build on what knowledge I did have

3 min read

September 7, 2023 16:00