This was Netanyahu’s Holocaust day speech, highlighted by Nir Hasson, tweeted out by journalist Gregg Carlstrom, and sent to me by Max Blumenthal.
The speech, given yesterday at Yad Vashem (and translated), approaches lunacy. Notice how he repeatedly equates Iran with the Nazis in its aspirations to “establish a master race” that would control the world and in its “plans to exterminate six million Jews.” Notice how he hammers away at the Iran deal the west has negotiated, as if it’s appeasement of the Nazis: “the superpowers back down… the civilized world is lulled into slumber on a bed of illusions.” And we let this man anywhere near our foreign policy? Netanyahu:
There are many around the world who claim that the lessons learned then are still valid today. They affirm: “Never again!” They declare: “We will not turn a blind eye to the expansion intentions of a violent tyranny.” They promise: “We will oppose evil things as soon as they begin.” But as long as these announcements are not backed with practical actions – they are meaningless. Did the world really learn a lesson from the inconceivable universal and Jewish tragedy of last century? I wish I could stand here and tell you that the answer to this was yes.
Today, ever more threats challenge the human civilization. Radical Islamic forces are flooding the Middle East, destroying remnants of the past, torturing the helpless, murdering innocents. They hope to establish caliphates, more than one, like in the Middle Ages. At the same time, the extremist regime in Iran is oppressing its people; it is rushing forward and submerging the Middle East in blood and suffering – in Yemen, in Syria, in Lebanon, in Iraq, in Gaza and across the border of the Golan.
Just as the Nazis aspired to crush civilization and to establish a “master race” to replace it in controlling the world while annihilating the Jewish people, so too does Iran strive to gain control over the region, from which it would spread further, with the explicit intent of obliterating the Jewish state. Iran is advancing in two directions: the first is developing the ability to arm itself with nuclear weapons and accumulate a stockpile of ballistic missiles; and the second – exporting the Khomeinist revolution to many countries by heavily using terrorism and taking over large parts of the Middle East. Everything is out in the open – it is all taking place in broad daylight, in front of cameras. And yet, the blindness is immense.
“For, behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the peoples,” said the Prophet Isaiah. The determination and lessons that were acquired in blood seventy years ago are now dissipating, and the darkness and fog of denying reality are taking their place. The bad deal that is being made with Iran demonstrates that the historic lesson has not been internalized. The West is yielding in the face of Iran’s aggressive actions. Instead of demanding a significant dismantling of the nuclear program in Iran – a country that clearly states its plans to exterminate six million Jews here and elsewhere, to eradicate many countries and many regimes – the superpowers back down. They are leaving Iran with its nuclear capabilities, and even allowing it to expand them later on, regardless of Iran’s actions in the Middle East and around the world.
As the civilized world is lulled into slumber on a bed of illusions, the rulers of Iran continue to encourage subversion and terrorism, and disseminate destruction and death…
Distinguished guests, Israeli citizens and representatives of other countries who are with us, the bubble of this illusion is going to burst. Democratic governments made a critical mistake before World War II, and we are convinced – and I must say that many of our neighbors are too – that they are making a grave mistake now too.
I don’t understand why this type of rhetoric doesn’t make huge headlines in the United States. His closing is his second quotation from Isaiah:
“Shake thyself from the dust; put on thy beautiful garments, my people.” The nation of eternity has shaken itself from the dust, returned home, stood tall, established an outstanding country and an outstanding army, the Israel Defense Force, in which our brave and courageous sons and daughters serve.
So religion is used to justify militant nationalism. This is why David Shulman and others are using the word fascism to describe currents in Israel.
So which part of what Netanyahu said is wrong, Phil? Has Iran not threatened to annihilate the Jewish state repeatedly? Has it not held Holocaust denial conferences? Have there not been moments in the past when do-gooders have valued paper agreements over common sense? Iran is a totalitarian state ruled by a cleric. It funds terrorist groups and terrorist attacks around the world. Why is that reality absent, completely, from your analysis? Because it’s too hard for you to contemplate? Because you hate the United States more than you hate Iran? Because you think your Judaism requires you to support Iran? These are questions you should answer, rather than reverting to silly accusations of fascism.
One doesn’t need to agree with Netanyahu to understand his argument. I don’t agree with him, but I don’t think opposing the Iran deal is fascism.
Somehow I knew that Nir Hasson’s graphic and Carlstrom’s translation would land here at MW. It’s powerful.
Netanyahu has only one meme, and it’s wearing terribly thin. When will the American people recognize that they’re being played?
You rightly ask: “And we let this man anywhere near our foreign policy?”
He and Israel have more than one “army”. They are legion.
“At the same time, the extremist regime in Iran is oppressing its people; it is rushing forward and submerging the Middle East in blood and suffering “.nietanyahu.
I was out in the garden until a few minutes ago and quite relaxed and then I had to go and spoil it all by reading something stupid like this interminable nonsense from nuttyahoo. The man is unquestionably insane and should be locked up for our security.
By the way, if Iran is going to obliterate the Jewish State , why does he (nietanyahu) keep telling all Jews to move to said Israeli state.Is he not playing into Iran,s hands by in-gathering all Jews into to one place.
I disagree with Netanyahu’s logic in comparing Iran with Nazi Germany. This web site would have more credibility condemning Netanyahu if you would admit that there is something for Israel to fear. Netanyahu takes a reasonable fear and pumps it into unreality. This web site treats a reasonable fear as if it were paranoia.
Clearly, Israel regards Israelis (not Jews, but for rhetorical convenience called Jews) as a master race. And it has already obliterated 6 million Jews, some of them merely people called Jews (from USSR/Russia), but not killed them, rather turning them into Israelis, a “race” or “nation” which has replaced human decency and morality and respect for human rights for all people with a rather contradictory doctrine and learned/taught master-race doctrine. Just as centuries of the practice of slavery and master-racism readied the white people of the American South for Jim Crow and the very harsh (Israeli-like) master-race practice of lynching, so 100 years of living/planning/hoping/fighting-for Israel — and many more years living under the system of antisemitism/pogroms/Nazis/etc. in Europe — has transformed the often rather nice people/society who moved to Palestine from Europe into the “we-give-ourselves-permission-to-be-monsters that we see today and which, with any luck, Americans beyond the small cadre of pro-Palestine folks will soon come to see.