The Muslim population in Western countries, such as Germany and France, is growing and changing. In Germany, there is a shift from a predominantly Turkish population to people with roots in Syria, Iraq, and historically anti-Israel areas. France, on the other hand, has the largest Muslim and Jewish populations in Western Europe, with its own history of Islamist terrorism and conflicting views on America and French colonialism. In the US, younger generations are less supportive of Israel and more sympathetic to the Palestinians, due in part to a binary ideology emerging from American universities. This ideology simplifies complex issues and grants virtue to those who pick the perceived 'right' side. The gap in sympathy between generations in the US is widening, as this ideology gains popularity.
Online and on-screen reactions to the conflict reflect a subtle but important shift in Western attitudes, driven by three related forces: technology, demography and ideology. Britain’s King Charles is visiting Kenya—and will have a harder time navigating historical tensions than his mother ever did (09:56). And sleeping less tight: Paris is not the only place bedbugs are on the rise (18:24).
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