#Amnesty falsely labelled #antisemitic over report on #IsraeliApartheid
Israeli apartheid: this barrier separates Israelis from Palestinians, who are treated as a lower class of human being by the government of Israel.
There is no way that Amnesty International is an anti-Semitic organisation. It simply is not possible when one considers the composition and purpose of that organisation.
The world’s largest human rights organisation, it has just published a report labelling Israel as an apartheid nation and demanding change:
It’s official. Amnesty has concluded that Israeli occupation authorities are enforcing a system of apartheid against ALL Palestinians living under their effective control – whether they live in Israel, occupied Palestine, or in other countries as refugeeshttps://t.co/TspoveeqNt
— Rachael Swindon (@Rachael_Swindon) February 2, 2022
You can read the full report by following the link at the bottom of this article. It is sensible and balanced.
But when UK-based organisations that claim to represent British Jews caught sight of it, they made fools of themselves by denouncing Amnesty:
We have seen a copy of a report due to be released by @AmnestyUK tomorrow. We are shocked but not surprised by the content given the history of AI UK’s one-sided positioning on Israel. @bodpres and @JLC_uk Chair Keith Black have issued the following statement: pic.twitter.com/0X7NHzBxNd
— Board of Deputies of British Jews (@BoardofDeputies) January 31, 2022
Statement from @JLC_uk and @BoardofDeputies on Amnesty International UK's report. pic.twitter.com/ZtSCAXhTy0
— Jewish Leadership Council (@JLC_uk) January 31, 2022
The joint statement says:
“The report is completely biased and applies standards to Israel that are not applied to any other country.”
A lie.
“The emotive term “apartheid” against Israel is a preposterous slur.”
Another lie. Israeli apartheid is well-documented – not least in the Amnesty video that appears above.
“Despite AI UK’s claim to recognise the Jewish claim to self-determination… it does not support that right.”
A lie. Amnesty does not suggest that Jews should not have that right.
“It chooses to focus on demonising the one Jewish state, holding it to clear double standards.”
A lie. Amnesty’s report attempts to hold Israel to the same standards as any other nation.
“The situation for the Palestinian people is indeed distressing; this will not be alleviated by destroying Israel.”
There is nothing in the Amnesty report that even remotely suggests dismantling Israel.
“This is a bad faith report hostile to the very concept of Israel.”
I think we can all see who is acting in bad faith!
Like all controversial acts, the Amnesty report has attracted detractors (who follow the BoD/JLC attack line) and supporters. Let’s focus on the supporters because they are right:
Today Amnesty International published a report detailing what they describe as 'Israel's apartheid.'
This must be a wake-up call for leaders across Britain, Europe, and the United States.
It’s time to face up to the reality of the injustice suffered by the Palestinian people.
— Zarah Sultana MP (@zarahsultana) February 1, 2022
Amnesty International says Israel's treatment of Palestinians is a crime against humanity and is illegal under international law — adding that Israel's "domination" of Palestinians amounts to apartheid.https://t.co/op6YYaUilZ
— NPR (@NPR) February 1, 2022
The Labour Muslim Network welcomes today's report 'Israel's Apartheid Against The Palestinians' published by @Amnesty.
Muslims throughout the UK will be looking to @UKLabour to do what is right and add our voice to the global call for freedom and justice.
Full statement: pic.twitter.com/3FLasgzJvV
— Labour Muslim Network (@LabourMuslims) February 1, 2022
And if it is right to support Amnesty, then it is also right to criticise the BoD and the JLC:
I see Israel is trotting out the anti-Semitism trick again. This time the target is Amnesty International.#FreePalestine
https://t.co/ddUTOQmTvb— Chris Williamson (@DerbyChrisW) January 31, 2022
The response by the Bod and the JLC has also led to another conclusion:
If the Board of Deputies and the Jewish Leadership Council are prepared to falsely and maliciously accuse Amnesty International of "antisemitism" in order to discredit their report, isn't it just possible their accusations against Jeremy Corbyn were equally false and malicious?
— Frank Owen's Legendary Paintbrush🥀🇵🇸🇾🇪 (@OwenPaintbrush) February 1, 2022
The response from the Board of Deputies and the Jewish Leadership Council to Amnesty International's report declaring Israel an apartheid state is a million times worse than anything Jeremy Corbyn said in response to the EHRC report into Labour's "antisemitism crisis".
— Frank Owen's Legendary Paintbrush🥀🇵🇸🇾🇪 (@OwenPaintbrush) February 1, 2022
It’s a fair point, which leads to a further issue: Keir Starmer’s support for apartheid Israel.
So come on, @Keir_Starmer, famous lawyer, explain forensically why you disagree with Amnesty International's finding that Israel's treatment of Palestinians amounts to apartheid.
— Glenn Milieu (@leftnotlabour) February 1, 2022
We shouldn’t hold our collective breath waiting for a response. Starmer is a coward and will run away from a challenge like this.
While we do wait, we can all read the Amnesty report.
this report will be ignored and the usual suspects will be given air time be the media! fascism has many allies in the establishment.
Zionism should have no place in the UK. It is a poisonous, insidious, racist and fascist dogma, that no decent person should bother with! Starmer is in full support of the zionists and their atrocities against the Palestinians. He and his fake Labour party are a disgrace.
Anti-Semitism, used as a political weapon to silence genuine concerns about how Israel treats Palestinians. I’m absolutely appalled at how, with after the way the Jewish people were treated during WW11 that they can’t see what they are doing. Anti-Semitism is used as a tool to silence and too many people are willing to jump on that bandwagon.
It was disproved about Jeremy Corbyn and his leadership but nothing was made of that truth, the right wing press totally ignored his innocence, it doesn’t suit the agenda, Anti-Semitism is a powerful political tool and used to great effect to silence anyone who disagrees with how the Israeli government goes about treating other human beings they don’t like. The truth won’t matter anyway, the right wing will make sure of that.