Labour MPs blast through the smears to condemn Israel’s latest bloodshed
Labour MPs have ignored the smears to condemn Israel’s latest bloodshed against Palestinians.
“Senseless killings”
Lisa Nandy MP condemned Israel’s military for murdering Sajid Muzher, an 18-year-old Palestinian medic who was wearing a bright orange paramedic vest:
The shooting of teenage Palestinian medic Sajid Muzher by Israeli soldiers is shocking, dangerous and must be widely condemned. For as long as we fail to ensure those responsible are held to account, these senseless killings will continue https://t.co/pvwclhxE6t
— Lisa Nandy MP (@lisanandy) March 28, 2019
In response, pro-Israel hardliner David Collier accused Nandy of ignoring Hamas violence. But the 18-year-old has just been killed against a backdrop of extreme state violence from Israel.
Since Palestinian protests began in March 2018, Israeli forces had killed at least 214 Palestinians and injured more than 18,000 by November that year. On 28 February 2019, a UN Human Rights Council inquiry found that Israel’s military may have committed “war crimes” through killing the demonstrators. Yet Israel appears unconcerned with the allegation.
On top of the 18-year-old medic, Israel’s military reportedly murdered another 17-year-old Palestinian and injured around 200 more on 30 March. Tens of thousands of Palestinians gathered along the border fence between Israel and Gaza to mark the anniversary of last year’s Great March of Return.
On social media, Labour MP Richard Burden also condemned Israel for killing the teenage medic:
Medics are protected persons under international law so the use of live fire agains them is therefore illegal. Time for accountability. UK must back International community telling Israel its forces do not have impunity to commit war crimes https://t.co/vhMYPUPsXn
— Richard Burden (@RichardBurden27) March 27, 2019
These Labour MPs are speaking out despite the risk of political attacks. But they are right to ignore smears and condemn Israel. With the crisis heating up again in Gaza, criticism must not be silenced.
Featured image via Lucy Hadley/ Youtube and Sky News/ Youtube
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A brutal question in dire need of an honest answer:-
Genocide as defined by Lemkin, the term’s originator and adopted as definitive in the Nuremberg trials defines Israel’s treatment of Palestinians…?
1944 Raphael Lemkin, Polish Jewish jurist; By “genocide” we mean the destruction of an ethnic group…. Generally speaking, genocide does not necessarily mean the immediate destruction of a nation, except when accomplished by mass killings of all members of a nation. It is intended rather to signify a coordinated plan of different actions aiming at the destruction of essential foundations of the life of national groups, with the aim of annihilating the groups themselves. The objectives of such a plan would be disintegration of the political and social institutions, of culture, language, national feelings, religion, and the economic existence of national groups, and the destruction of the personal security, liberty, health, dignity, and even the lives of the individuals belonging to such groups…. (Axis Rule in Occupied Europe ix. 79)
Or historian John Cox’s, 2016 definition:
Genocide is the attempt to destroy any recognised, stable, and permanent group as it is defined by the perpetrator: [It] is a concerted effort to eliminate its individual members and to destroy the group’s ability to maintain its social and cultural cohesion and, thus, its existence as a group. The perpetrators’ genocidal goals — i.e., intent, which is central to the 1948 UN definition but is often analysed too legalistically and narrowly, can be uncovered by examining policies, actions, and outcomes.
If Germany had won WW2 and invaded Britain, then occupied it, kicked Brits out, I should think they would be doing a lot more than the Palestinians to resist & eventually defeat the Invading thieves & murderers. I know I would be arming myself to the teeth to take back my lands, my home & my freedom. The question then is, why should the Palestinians be berated for doing far less than I would have done? Israel is a thieving, murdering, terrorist, rogue state by any sensible benchmark, so why do our government ministers cower in fear of unkind and nonsensical words or concocted re-interpretations of anti-semitism. It’s well past time to call Israel out and all those politicians defending the indefensible, especially Labour who are only just realizing that the membership is totally brassed off with their obsequious deference to the Zionist Lobby. There may be anti-semitism among those who lean toward bigotry & discrimination, certainly Islamaphobia far exceeds the traces of anti-semitism and those of us who are Labour can and do tell them ever so impolitely to eff off and join the BNP or whatever other racist & bigoted organisations are out there. I stand with the Labour Jews who are labelled “the wrong kind of Jew” simply because they are neither pro Zionist nor pro Israel & speak out for the Palestinians – such Jews are my kind of people & I’d be proud to call them neighbour or friend.
Israel is a pariah state protected by the known war criminals the USA. Until the UN grow a pair States like Israel and the USA will continue to abuse and murder.
On Facebook no one is allowed to be critical towards Israel, a state which is not only of one faith, a state which is run by a far right party as happens in many other states where abuses of human rights and bigoted hatred is rife. Why is it Facebook allows people to be critical of these states yet NO-ONE but NO-ONE are allowed to be critical of the day in day out murders of innocent kids. This is twice I have been banned from Facebook for 7 day stretches, my crime, I called Israeli Government murderous and look like terrorists when they intentionally take the live of a young lad who was showing he was there in an medical aid capacity. Why is it when we change the name of the state & Gov and talk about murderous acts and looking like acts of terrorism it is accepted as rightful criticism, the minute anyone puts “Israel” then it is seen as antisemitic. This is a sign to come, Israel and US wanting to basically rule the planet and the people in it. Our future looks very worrying as this unfolds more and more, other Nations being interfered with from the tentacles of Israel in my opinion and its even been caught on video as such.
I’m not Labour, I’m SNP though was 40 years Labour and I never once experienced or heard ANY antisemitism in Scotland and for most of my many decades of age have stood up for the persecuted like many other decent human beings, I have spent each anniversary of the Holocaust hoping and praying that such an act will never again be committed yet I see what Israel is doing to Palestine and I then wonder why we are not allowed to be angry and critical of the acts of Israel against Gaza but we are allowed to still be angry and critical of the events that led to so many European Jewish murders. I know many Jews stand up against the acts of Israel, do they get banned for being antisemitic, of course NOT! Long may peace loving Jews in Israel (yes there are a few) and around the world speak out against Israeli Government brutality and abuse of human rights against the people of Gaza and the continued building illegally on the West Bank regardless that UN has said its illegal. All the world can see is Israel is happy to oppress and occupy Gaza and to me, it is an insult to all the many deaths during the Holocaust, I would like to think those poor Jewish souls would be horrified that their descendants would want such harm to come to another people, another faith, Islam or Christian in Gaza. Facebook is being deeply biased. When Saudi Arabia murders innocent Yemenis as if their lives are irrelevant and using British made weapons, I shout loud against SA and UK in absolute disgust, yet Facebook is fine with that, no banning for 7 days and called anti Muslim or anti British, I shout against the needless deaths and a feeling that Israeli Gov is actually trying to get rid of all young Palestinians so they will eventually die out with no births because of no young people…….does anyone blame me for thinking this.
Nonsense! Of course you are allowed to be critical of Israel on Facebook. Of course you are allowed “to be angry and critical of the acts of Israel against Gaza”. And if Israel is “actually trying to get rid of all young Palestinians”, how do you account for the growth of the Palestian population?
I meant “Palestinian population”, of course.
If the Palestinian population are actually increasing in numbers it reflects badly on the efficiency of Benjamin Netanyahu. Trump’s ostentatious signature on Israel’s annexation of Golan will soon fix that and he (Netanyahu) can get on with his Palestinian project with renewed vigour.
In case you are wondering I am not an antisémite,
I am an anti Netanyahu. And anti genocide too.
Are you anti-Hamas?
Why should he be anti-Hamas? They are resisting an occupying force and as such have some international law on their side, in terms of using violence to try to remove these occupiers. They also have been democratically chosen by the occupied population.
I comparison, Israel *is* an occupying force attempting to colonise other people’s land and regularly breaks international law by killing hundreds of civilians, children and even the occasional clearly-marked medic (an actual war-crime).
The difference in death toll, between the two sides is truly shocking, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israeli%E2%80%93Palestinian_conflict#Fatalities_1948%E2%80%932011
From 2000 – 2011 , Palestine children killed 1,331
Israeli children killed 129
So talk of “but but what about Hamas” does not cut it for me.
Nonsense yourself. Criticising zionists and ‘Israel’ on Facebook is to risk a ban.
Zionism is racism.
Can you give me an example of someone who has been banned from Facebook for criticising Zionists and Israel?
I suspect that you can’t.
Well, DWPVictim, Hamas were “democratically chosen” in Gaza in 2006. They haven’t held another election since then for some reason. They have brutally suppressed opposition in Gaza through systematic torture, arbitrary arrests and extra-judicial executions. They have committed war crimes. They are openly racist and have explicitly genocidal goals. They are viciously and lethally homophobic. I could go on.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whataboutism
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whataboutism#Criticism
You have come to 2 different threads on Israel’s bad behaviour and effectively posted up
When challenged, on the first occasion you tried to claim that this was not in defence of Israel’s actions. If your comments are not connected to the article’s points then why are you posting them? They seem like a classic case of deflection. (whataboutism)
If you feel that your comments on Hamas are somehow relevant to the points in the article then say how that is the case. To just post up a link to an article about Hamas’ bad behaviour or ask “are you anti-Hamas” with no information about how it is relevant to the argument about Israel, is Whataboutery 101.
It’s almost as if you have no defence of Israel’s behaviour and have to resort to that.
You have come to 2 different threads on Israel’s bad behaviour and effectively posted up “But whatabout Hamas”
Edit for 1st paragraph above (weirdly did not show it all)
good on Lisa Nandy but don’t give her too much credit for her condemnation when she’s one of those New Labour/Tony Blair cult following apologists who doesn’t support Jeremy Corbyn’s mandate for socialist reforms at home and anti-imperialism abroad and has I believe joined the smear campaign against him and party members over the anti-Semitism smear campaign.