Netanyahu tops JPost's list of 50 most influential Jews. In the introduction , Herb Keinon writes that "there is no Jew alive who has greater influence on current international events than Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu."
"No Jew really holds a candle to the influence that the 62-year-old Netanyahu – by virtue of his position as the leader of the sovereign Jewish state, a position he solidified recently by significantly expanding his government – wields over world affairs."
"Netanyahu, a student of Zionism and of history, understands well the transformation the Jewish people has undergone since the advent of Israel, and even since the dawn of Zionism.
Ideally, he says during a conversation with The Jerusalem Post discussing the paper’s decision to name him the world’s most influential Jew, he would like to use his enormous influence “to ensure the security and future of the Jewish state, which I believe ensures the security and future of the Jewish people.”The long sweep of Jewish history, he acknowledges, impacts on his day-to-day decision-making “on those matters that have pivotal importance.” Iran, and how to ensure it does not obtain nuclear weapons, is obviously one such pivotal matter. No one would doubt that the threat to annihilate the Jewish people, at least that part of the Jewish people congregated in the Jewish state, is real, Netanyahu says. “This is not an imaginary fixation of mine or anyone else’s,” he declares. “You can hear it directly from the leaders of the Iranian regime, and you can see the actual steps they are taking to create the weapons of mass destruction for that end.That is what is similar between today and previous ages where the hatred of the Jews permeated parts of humanity.” But the difference between the ages, he continues, “is that today we have a state to protect ourselves. This is what has changed and been transformed in the Jewish condition. For generations we were totally helpless against this kind of incitement, hatred and violence. Today we are not helpless.” Netanyahu says the overall task of ensuring the Jewish people’s “odyssey through time” continues unabated.And, he adds, making sure the Jewish people grows “even more prosperous, numerous and more secure is the job of each generation, and those who lead it. “I am very happy to represent Israel and the Jewish people on the world stage,” he says. “Our people have had our share of miracles, but there is only a finite number of miracles that history will provide even a believing people. So we have to make sure that we protect our present and our future, and that to me is the supreme task of any prime minister of Israel.”
