WE CANNOT STAND BY IN SILENCE AND ALLOW JUSTIFIED CRITICISMS OF THE ISRAELI GOVERNMENT TO BE CONFLATED WITH ANTISEMITISM
Comment by Carrie Harper, Plaid Cymru Councillor for Wrecsam.
It seems odd to me, and stating the obvious, to say that criticism of the Israeli Government is not Antisemitic, any more than criticising the American Government could be regarded as anti-Christian.
Whilst genuine Antisemitism is a very real and a vile part of our reality that must of course be called out, we start on a very dangerous road when attempts are made to place the actions of any Government above scrutiny or beyond reproach.
I worry that of late, those lines are sadly becoming increasingly blurred, particularly as regards the Israeli occupation of Palestine. There would seem over recent years to be a determined attempt by the right in both the UK and US in particular, to label anyone who criticises this Israeli Government policy as Antisemitic. More generally it is in my view, often a rather sinister example of a smoke and mirrors tactic designed to shut down discussion and debate about very real human rights violations.
The story about Rebecca Long Bailey’s re-tweeting of an interview with actor Maxine Peake last week has brought this issue into the spotlight once again and sent out wider political tremors when it comes to the conflation of criticism of the Israeli state and Antisemitism.
Long Bailey was sacked for re-tweeting an article that included a claim that the US police tactic of kneeling on someone’s neck was taught by the Israeli secret service. This claim was subsequently denied by Israel and retracted by the article’s original author.
Channel 4’s fact check website examined the claim in detail and concluded that while a conference was hosted by the Israeli consulate for US police officers in Minneapolis in 2012, there was no evidence to suggest that ‘neck kneeling’ specifically was taught.
However the claim also appeared in an article in the Morning Star on June 1st, including a statement from a Palestinian activist, Neta Golan, who made the comparison:
“When I saw the picture of killer cop Derek Chauvin murdering George Floyd by leaning on his neck with his knee as he cried for help and other cops watched, I remembered noticing when many Israeli soldiers began using this technique of leaning on our chest and neck when we were protesting on the West Bank sometime in 2006”.
Although it is of course important that information on this issue is accurate, it seems a giant leap to insinuate that Long Bailey is in any way Antisemitic, yet the conversation is firmly back on the agenda, even here in Wales.
Nation.cymru recently published an article about Plaid Cymru candidate Sahar Al- Faifi, who had been criticised by a fellow member for a tweet which she published on June 1st. The tweet – since deleted – contained four images of Israeli security forces kneeling on the necks of Palestinians, with the following text:
“If you wonder where did these American cops trained, look no further than #Israel . Oppression is one and the struggle is transitional. We stand with Palestinians & with #GeorgeFloyd #BlackLivesMatter we are ONE!”
The nation article included a quote from the member complaining which said: “Antisemitism should not have a home in Plaid Cymru”.
Whilst Sahar Al-Faifi was indeed suspended from the party for Antisemitic tweets she’d posted in 2014, (she has since apologised and undertaken Antisemitism training), it seems to me to be a leap to brand this particular tweet as Antisemitic.
American police do train in Israel and are taught various techniques by Israeli security services.
An article by Amnesty International in 2016 criticises US police departments using public funds to send hundreds of US officers for training in Israel on crowd control, use of force, and surveillance techniques. The article describes Israel as a “chronic human rights violator.”
It goes on to state that “many of the abuses [by US police forces] documented, parallels violations by Israeli military, security and police officials.” So whilst accuracy is of course important, it’s also vital not to simply dismiss genuine concerns as Antisemitic.
The wider point being made here – about a government with an awful human rights record and its relationship to the international nature of racism – is being lost. As a result, we’re not talking about what is clearly a vital issue.
This week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu plans to illegally annex a third of the West Bank, an area Israel already occupies. The timing is relevant in the sense that the Israeli Government see the Trump presidency as a one off opportunity for action that would have been condemned by previous US administrations.
Some, such as Labours Lisa Nandy, have called for sanctions if such a move goes ahead, she’s called for a ban on the imports of goods from illegal settlements.
Opposing the annexation plan and proposing sanctions is not nearly enough. We must also demand a complete end to the illegal occupation, the withdrawal of illegal settlements and the recognition of the state of Palestine if we want to promote lasting peace.
The plight of the Palestinian people is one close to my heart and to the hearts of many members of Plaid Cymru. In 2014, we held a rally in my home town of Wrecsam to oppose the unlawful bombing of Gaza by Israel, which left 2,200 people dead, including hundreds of children and thousands more were injured. It also left an estimated 20,000 homes uninhabitable.
The unlawful killings continue to this day, checkpoints and roadblocks restrict freedom of movement and last year 900 Palestinians were displaced by Israel due to home demolitions and the expanding of illegal settlements. Israel’s illegal blockade of the Gaza strip continues to devastate Gaza’s 2 million inhabitants and discriminatory policies leave Palestinians without access to safe and clean drinking water.
Of course I couldn’t hope to sum up a 50 year occupation in a few short paragraphs but it’s a fact to say that the oppression of the Palestinian people is very real. It’s also key to differentiate between the Israeli Government and the people of Israel, many of whom oppose the occupation.
But if we have any sort of moral compass at all, we cannot stand by in silence and allow justified criticisms of the Israeli Government to be conflated with Antisemitism unchallenged.
We cannot forget about Palestine, we cannot turn a blind eye to apartheid, we cannot turn our backs when a subjugated people reach out to us for support.
Otherwise, from my heart to yours, what are we for?
Carrie Harper is a Plaid Cymru Councillor for Queensway ward, Wrecsam
