Mid-Day Opinion: We should be a more welcoming city

There has been a lot of negative chatter over the past few weeks about the presence of people from Israel in some parts of India Questions are being raised mostly by young Indians who can read about why soldiers who spend time in the Israel Defence Forces feel the need to detox in Asian countries like ours Much has also been written about a route known as the lsquoHummus Trailrsquo where small Indian towns have been catering to these travellersI donrsquot have anything to add to these complaints except for one about why Bombay is losing out as a potential tourist destination by not being welcoming enough to these special tourists from a foreign land Where I ask is the spirit of kindness and hospitality that we were once renowned forIt doesnrsquot make much sense for Indians to have a problem with soldiers from another country just because they may or may not have killed people If we really had a problem with anyone accused of murder we all know how different our own Parliament would be today This brings me to the conclusion that these complaints come either from misinformation or just bigotry Take Kasol for instance a small village in Himachal Pradesh that is popular among young Israelis who like hanging out in lsquowhiteonlyrsquo restaurants Several of these establishments allegedly refuse to serve local Indians which has upset a few of them I donrsquot see this as a problem because it makes perfect sense for soldiers to feel comfortable among other soldiers who have been through a traumatic experienceConsider that in February this year a study by The Lancet Global Health medical journal declared that more than 75000 Palestinians had been killed in the first 15 months of Israelrsquos military assault on Gaza The peerreviewed study also found that women children and the elderly comprised 562 per cent of violent deaths during that period It stands to reason that the people responsible for all these deaths will only find comfort in the company of other murderers The presence of innocent Indians will only put them off and compel them to take their Shekels to another country A Shekel is worth approximately 3162 rupees today so this isnrsquot something to sneeze at because if therersquos one thing Indians have been known to value more than morality or humanity itrsquos moneyItrsquos also important to remember that these lsquowhiteonlyrsquo spaces could be a cultural thing reminiscent of settlements on the West Bank where Israelis have long grown accustomed to claiming other peoplersquos homes as their own It all seems perfectly harmless and I think we should look at it from that perspective instead of creating posts about lsquoracism against Indiansrsquo on RedditThis sort of rhetoric is also starting to appear in Goa where Indian tourists are annoyed about the increasing number of Israelis taking over beaches or opening cafeacutes for their countrymen I believe itrsquos a missed opportunity for Bombay because if 80000 Israeli tourists visit India every year shouldnrsquot a few thousand of them spend their money and time in our city too The government of Maharashtra has a budget allocated for the development of tourism and I think it would do well to portray Bombay as a kind of wellness retreat where soldiers recovering from war crimes can find peace kindness and pav bhajiWe need to keep in mind that in May 2026 the Israeli military was held responsible for the killing and maiming of Palestinian children with UN agencies documenting incidents that included children being shot stabbed beaten and peppersprayed If India canrsquot offer these poor traumatised soldiers relief from these horrific acts that they are undoubtedly being forced to commit through no fault of their own who willBy now more than 50 countries have explicitly accused Israel of war crimes crimes against humanity or genocide at international tribunals If a country is increasingly isolated by every other country on Earth it is important for India and Bombay in its own way to step up and stand on the right side of historyOur honourable Prime Minister has pointed us to the side he prefers and it is our duty as patriots to follow him with our eyes and mouths wide shut In the years to come I look forward to more soldiers from the IDF turning to Bombay as a safe haven a place of rehabilitation where they can recover and go back refreshed to doing what they do bestWhen he isnrsquot ranting about all things Mumbai Lindsay Pereira can be almost sweet He can be contacted at wwwlindsaypereiracomSend your feedback to mailbagmiddaycomThe views expressed in this column are the individualrsquos and donrsquot represent those of the paper