Members of the Israeli delegation to the United Nations wore yellow Stars of David on their chests, pledging not to remove them until the UN Security Council condemns Hamas. The yellow star has historical roots in Germany, specifically during the Nazi era from 1939 to 1945, when Jews were forced by Adolf Hitler to wear this symbol to distinguish them from other segments of German society, such as Christians and Roma, as a mark of shame for being Jewish.
It is noteworthy that for over ten centuries, Jews were marked in various ways across Europe to differentiate them from other groups, as part of antisemitic measures aimed at isolating them and reinforcing their marginalized status within those societies. With the onset of the French Revolution in the 18th century and the emergence of what became known as "Jewish emancipation" in the 19th century, the "Jewish badge" disappeared in Western Europe. However, it resurfaced between 1939 and 1945 during the Nazi period, where this practice was implemented systematically to deport Jews to ghettos and extermination camps in German-occupied Europe, aimed at suppressing and annihilating them.
Recently, the Israeli delegation at the UN Security Council highlighted this star, asserting that they "will not remove it from their chests until (Hamas) is condemned," claiming that it committed a massacre against them in the attack on October 7th. This gesture by the Israeli delegation serves as an attempt to liken the movement to "Nazi Germany," applying psychological pressure on the Security Council to condemn it and justify the ongoing Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip.
Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid criticized Israeli Ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan for wearing the yellow star. In a post on X, Lapid stated, "What is happening in Israel is not a Holocaust; it is a war. The year is not 1943. The year is 2023."
