Israel, Hamas and antisemitism

The CST, or Community Security Trust is a charity that was set up to help protect Jewish communities from antisemitism.  Yesterday they shared this warning on social media.

Sadly, it is true and events over the past couple of days have demonstrated this.  Here are some of the ways in which we’ve seen antisemitism at work.

  1. The ghastly and ghoulish celebration of Hamas atrocities in London with bearing the Palestinian flag, horns being sounded and Jewish members of the community experiencing harassment.
  2. Nick Griffin, former BNP leader describing Rachel Riley as someone with loyalties to another country (i.e. Israel).
  3. Constant suggestions that anyone condemning Hamas or supporting Israel’s right to defend herself were stooges/propagandists for Israel.
  4. One Jewish journalist being told that she should not introduce herself as “A London Jew” but as a Zionist.
  5. People taking to social media to announce that the horrific atrocities on Saturday were a cause for celebration.

I think we can see some further examples of antisemitism at work. First, those who support, speak for, excuse, equivocate and refuse to condemn Hamas evade a crucial point.  Hamas is an overtly antisemitic organisation as I identified here some time back.   Hamas exists specifically in order to annihilate Israel.  Its founding documents say:

Israel will exist and will continue to exist until Islam will obliterate it, just as it obliterated others before it” (The Martyr, Imam Hassan al-Banna, of blessed memory).

and

This Covenant of the Islamic Resistance Movement (HAMAS), clarifies its picture, reveals its identity, outlines its stand, explains its aims, speaks about its hopes, and calls for its support, adoption and joining its ranks. Our struggle against the Jews is very great and very serious. It needs all sincere efforts. It is a step that inevitably should be followed by other steps. The Movement is but one squadron that should be supported by more and more squadrons from this vast Arab and Islamic world, until the enemy is vanquished and Allah’s victory is realised.

It is important that this is recognised and known.  Those who speak up for Hamas who declare Hamas to be friends are not siding with the underdog, they are not supporting those seeking to shake off their shackles and be free. Rather, they are siding with and giving cover for antisemites.

Furthermore, one things that I don’t think we’ve engaged with robustly enough is the way that history is being retold by far too many in order to fit Hamas’ antisemitic propaganda.  Part of the problem is that most of us simply don’t know the history and so we are vulnerable here.  Hamas’ propaganda talks in terms of Israel being imperialist, colonists who oppressed and sought to occupy another country via an apartheid regime for 70 plus years.  Now, as I’ve frequently argued, there have bene many things that Israel has done wrong, this has included discriminatory laws, the behaviour of settlers, the unlawful settlements themselves etc. However, alongside that Israel is the only pluralist democracy in the region with Arabs and Jews, Muslims, Christians and Jews actively participating.

A brief outline of 20th Century history seriously challenges the Hamas narrative.

  1. Until 1918, Israel, Gaza and the West Bank were under the occupation of the Ottoman Empire.
  2. In 1920, the whole area was placed under the British Mandate.
  3. In 1948, Israel was granted independence and the British withdrew. Arab nations refused to recognise Israel and attempted an invasion during the First Arab-Israeli War. A two state solution had been proposed them, accepted by the Zionist movement but rejected by the Arab nations
  4. Egypt and Jordan then annexed The Gaza Strip and The West Bank respectively. 
  5. In 1967, Israel fought a war with Syria, Egypt and Jordan which had bene sparked by tensions on the borders including Palestinian guerilla attacks from Syria, closure of the Suez Canal and mobilisation of armies on the borders with Israel.  The war was won by Israel and as a result she was now in possession of Gaza, the West Bank and the Golan Heights.
  6. There have been frequent attempts to broker a settlement including in 1993 as part of the Oslo process.  In 2005, Israel unilaterally withdrew from Gaza.

None of this means that Israel is perfect or beyond criticism. Nor does it change anything when it comes to the question of whether or not a Two State solution will resolve things.  However, the actual history is very different from the picture of colonizers taking over and suppressing another independent nation.

Now, what is striking is that whenever the historical details are presented, there seems a lack of willingness on the part of those defending Hamas and criticising Israel to even engage on the basis historical facts. 

Now central to antisemitism is an underpinning conspiracy theory that accuses the Jews of being a malign, powerful and controlling force in the world. Part of that conspiracy theory is a spinning of the narrative about modern Israel’s history.  It is crucial that when we do challenge Israel (and there will be times when we should) that we don’t get drawn into those conspiracy theories and so give credence to antisemitism.

Over the next days and weeks, sadly, it looks like members of the Jewish community her ein the UK and around the world will face many examples of antisemitic behaviour. It’s important that we stand with them and against this form of racism.