Pro-Israel Summit in Dallas Canceled Amid Rising Anti-Semitic Threats

Philip C. Johnson,

June 6, 2025

The Israel Summit, a pro-Israel conference scheduled for June 9-11, 2025, in Dallas, Texas, was canceled due to credible threats from American-based, pro-Hamas jihadist groups. Organized by The Israel Guys and HaYovel, the event expected over 1,000 attendees, including former U.S. Ambassador David Friedman and survivors of the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack. The cancellation, driven by overwhelming security concerns despite Texas law enforcement’s support, highlights a disturbing rise in anti-Semitic and anti-Israel extremism in the U.S. This incident connects to recent violent acts, including the murder of two Israeli embassy staffers in Washington, D.C., and a terror attack in Colorado, signaling a growing threat to Jewish and pro-Israel communities.

The cancellation is striking in Texas, a state known for its pro-Israel stance. Organizers Joshua Waller and Luke Hilton cited “escalating violent threats” and security costs in the hundreds of thousands as reasons the original Dallas venue became unfeasible. A second venue near Newark, Texas, secured with help from the sheriff’s department, Texas Rangers, and the FBI, withdrew four days before the event due to “mounting external pressure and safety concerns.” Groups like the Palestinian Youth Movement Dallas and Jewish Voice for Peace, under the banner “Texas un-welcomes the genocide summit,” reportedly exposed the new location, intensifying threats to “attack” the summit. Waller told The Daily Wire, “When 1,000 people can’t safely gather in Texas to support Israel, something is deeply wrong.”

This isn’t the first time pro-Israel events have faced such challenges. The 2024 Israel Summit in Nashville nearly collapsed due to similar threats but was saved when Dave Ramsey hosted it, drawing 800 attendees. The 2025 Dallas cancellation underscores a growing normalization of anti-Semitic intimidation. Former Ambassador Friedman posted on X, “This is America in 2025. A pro-Israel conference was forced to cancel because of threats from violent Jihadists.”

The Dallas incident follows the May 21, 2025, murder of Israeli embassy staffers Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim in Washington, D.C. The couple was gunned down by Elias Rodriguez, a 31-year-old from Chicago, outside the Capital Jewish Museum. Rodriguez, who shouted “Free Palestine” during his arrest, told police he acted “for Palestine, for Gaza.” The FBI is investigating the killings as a hate crime and terrorism. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, “They were targeted for one reason alone – they were Jews.” The attack prompted heightened security at Jewish institutions nationwide.

In another incident that I recently wrote about, an Egyptian man in Boulder, Colorado, threw Molotov cocktails at participants in a walk for Hamas-held hostages, injuring 15. Waller cited this and the D.C. murders as part of an “alarming trend” of anti-Semitic extremism, arguing the summit’s cancellation reflects a broader threat to free speech and assembly for pro-Israel advocates.

These events coincide with shifting U.S. attitudes toward Israel, especially among younger generations. A 2025 Pew Research Center poll shows 53% of Americans hold an unfavorable view of Israel, up from 42% in 2022. Among those aged 18-34, only 29% back Israel, compared to 48% for Palestinians. This shift is fueled by exposure to Palestinian narratives on social media and criticism of Israel’s actions in Gaza, where over 53,000 have died since October 2023, per Gaza’s Health Ministry, though these figures are debated for accuracy. The trends often overlook Hamas’s October 7 atrocities and Israel’s right to self-defense.

Among evangelicals, a traditional pro-Israel stronghold, support is declining. A 2024 Barna Group survey found only 41% of evangelicals aged 18–29 support Israel, down from 67% in 2015, with 31% expressing neutrality. Younger evangelicals are shifting from dispensational premillennialism, which ties Israel to biblical prophecy, toward views emphasizing social justice.

Some evangelicals, particularly dispensationalists, insist God’s covenant with Israel endures, citing Genesis 12:1-3 and Romans 11:26-27, which promise Israel’s future salvation. In Romans 11:1-2, Paul warns Christians, “Has God rejected his people? By no means!” He cautions against arrogance toward Jews in Romans 11:18-21, urging believers not to “boast over the branches” but to remember that they are grafted into Israel’s covenant. They see events like the summit’s cancellation as prophetic, aligning with Zechariah 12:3’s depiction of nations turning against Israel. This view is less common among younger evangelicals and particularly in Reformed churches, which often see the church as Israel’s replacement.

The Dallas cancellation, D.C. murders, and Colorado attack are linked by a surge in anti-Semitic sentiment tied to the Israel-Hamas conflict. Organizers were stunned that a pro-Israel event in Texas required such extreme security, signaling an erosion of safe spaces for such voices. U.S. Ambassador Mike Huckabee blamed media for amplifying Hamas narratives, contributing to this climate of violence.

The Israel Summit’s cancellation is a stark warning that anti-Semitic extremism is a domestic threat, undermining free expression. The D.C. murders, Colorado attack, and summit shutdown demand action to counter this rising hatred. As Hilton said, “We aren’t counting this as a loss.” Organizers plan to reschedule, determined to defend the right to support Israel. These events are a wake-up call: even in America, standing with Israel is under siege.