Media Analysis

Israel is ‘becoming a full-blown police state,’ Reza Aslan says after interrogation at border

Yesterday Peter Beinart, the liberal Zionist writer, disclosed that he had been detained at Ben Gurion airport on August 12 for an hour of questioning of his political opinions/activities. Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu promptly released an unprecedented statement saying the detention had been a mistake, and Beinart said he would accept Netanyahu’s apology only if he apologized to Palestinians who are subjected to far worse. Many Zionists have responded angrily to the news by saying that the country is damaging itself in the eyes of the world by harassing leftleaning Jews who want to visit. And the Israeli attorney general says she is looking into the detention incidents.  

Today Reza Aslan, the bestselling writer on religion who was born in Iran and lives in LA, was moved by Beinart’s experience to tell his own story on twitter:

Peter’s experience has spurred me to share mine. 2 weeks ago, as I was crossing back into Israel from Jordan, I was separated from my family and detained by Shin Bet. “We can make it so you don’t see your kids for a long time” I was warned. This is what happened next.

The Shin Bet lady, who already knew everything about me and my family’s journey around the world, began with “You think because you’re a public person I can’t do whatever I want with you?” I was floored. This is how interrogations begin in police states.

“Why do you hate Israel?” She asked. “I don’t hate Israel,” I replied. “But you hate our Prime Minister.” “I’m sorry is your Prime Minister Israel?” “He was democratically elected!” (No he wasn’t but let’s just drop that) “So was Trump and I hate him and still love America.”

“Oh I know all about you and Trump,” she spat. I forgot the Israeli Right Wing’s affection for our racist Neo-Nazi loving president. “You don’t think Israel should exist yes?” That’s absurd. I’m against the occupation not Israel. Then the police state part began in earnest.

Write down names of Palestinians you know Write down names of journalists you associate with Write down names of Palestinian organizations you support And constantly, repeatedly, this threat: “if you don’t cooperate it will be a long time before you see your kids again.”

I tried to cooperate the best I could. It was 104 degrees. My wife, my two 6yr olds, my 3yr old, and I my two elderly in-laws had been waiting for me in the sun for hours. But (again the police state tactic): every answer I gave she told me was lie. “Stop lying!” She’d yell.

The questions got dumber and more surreal: “Who did your father work for in Iran?” I don’t know. I was 7 when we left “Oh Mr Scholar! You can tell me everything about the Ottoman Empire but you don’t know your own father’s history?” For the record I am not an Ottoman scholar.

In the end, after hours of this, she warned “I may let you into Israel but, who knows, I may not let you out. I will keep you here and kick out your family. It depends on you. You would miss your kids yes?” That my friends is the classic police state trick. Iran has perfected it.

Her final warning was not to visit the Palestinian Territories. Not to meet with or speak to any Palestinians or any Israeli trouble makers. “We are watching you.” 2 days later I went to Bethlehem, to the wall, and took this picture:

Painting of Ahed Tamimi on Bethlehem wall, photo by Reza Aslan

Two days after that, the Italian artist who painted this portrait of Ahed Tamimi was arrested and deported. This was my 4th trip to Israel in ten years and every time it’s gotten worse. It’s becoming unrecognizable as a democracy. It is becoming a full-blown police state.

When I was released my evangelical in-laws were in shock. “I had no idea it was like this,” they said. Now they do. So do more Americans each day. And if Israel loses them, who will continue to shield it from pressure to change course? The clock is ticking.

Addendum: Beinart managed to get out of detention quickly by calling on human rights attorney Gaby Lasky. Lasky represents Ahed Tamimi, the 17-year-old Palestinian woman in the painting, who lives in the occupied village of Nabi Saleh and spent 8 months in prison recently for slapping an Israeli soldier. It appears that Beinart’s case has already gotten as much attention as hers, and far more outrage; though of course Tamimi’s case is not that unusual. Today Samidoun released a report stating, “In July 2018, Israeli occupation forces arrested 520 Palestinians from the occupied Palestinian territories, including 69 children, nine women and five journalists.”

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The question is ??.

Who is going to flip his lid first.

Trump or Nietanyahu.

Poor Donald has a former aide who taped conversations inside the WH.He has his former Attorney also in possession of recorded conversations.He has a wife who must be on the verge of dumping him.He hasn,t a clue what Mueller has in store for him.His son is in danger of going to prison.

He must be absolutely climbing the walls and abusing all aound him.(Tee Hee, Hee).

Nietanyahu has ciminal investigations hanging over his head and his dear wifey may be going to jail.Palestinians and Jews are protesting in tens of thousands in TA. The international community is pushing back on his racist supremacist Nation State Law.American Jews are increasingly exposing Israel for the rogue entity it is.

Somethings got to give with these 2 evil losers.

It has really only ever been a “police state” and will continue to descend into more darkness as the world watches. Will those complicit in the myriad crimes of Israel continue with their unfettered support of this rogue ‘state’?

“Jerusalem Hostel Booted by Birthright Bans ‘Haters of Israel’

Several celebrities and newspapers, including Haaretz, are featured on the list of banned ‘Haters of Israel’

A hostel in Jerusalem’s Old City published a list of Jewish activists, journalists and celebrities who have been “banned because of crimes committed against the Jewish People.”

The Jerusalem Heritage House’s list, which refers to the people named as “sonei Yisrael” or “haters of Israel,” includes Jewish politicians like Bernie Sanders and Dianne Feinstein; advocacy groups like J Street and the Anti-Defamation League, “all staff” from the Times of Israel, Haaretz, CNN and The New York Times; and celebrities like Jon Stewart, Bette Midler and Natalie Portman.

The list was published on Twitter by Jacob Kornbluh of Jewish Insider. …

The Heritage House, which says it has hosted more than 60,000 people since it opened in 1985, did not respond to a request for comment from The Jerusalem Post.

The hostel came under heavy scrutiny last year after Haaretz reported that a popular operator of Birthright trips run by the Orthodox Union had been referring participants to stay there for free in order to extend their 10-day trip.

While at the Heritage House, residents were encouraged to volunteer in illegal West Bank outposts. Residents also reported seeing pictures and books about Rabbi Meir Kahane, whose political party was banned in Israel for racism and whose Jewish Defense League was classified by the FBI as a terrorist group. …”

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/jerusalem-hostel-booted-by-birthright-bans-haters-of-israel-1.6382894?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

It seems instead that the West is learning from apartheid Israel:

“Home Office stopped author from speaking at UK festival, says publisher

Visa refusals mean Palestinian Nayrouz Qarmout unlikely to get to Edinburgh book festival

“It feels like we’re all sleepwalking into a new age of nativism,” he said. “We’re not just talking about classic, difficult-to-prove institutional racism. We’re talking about quiet, effective cultural censorship. The Home Office is saying, in effect: British readers shouldn’t be hearing from other perspectives at our book festivals; their voices are of less worth; British voices first.”

Speaking before the decision, Qarmout said she had found the visa application process “intrusive” and that the reasons provided for her refusal – one Home Office letter listed her single status as a reason – were “humiliating”.

She attributed irregular payments in her bank statements to bureaucratic problems between the competing authorities in Ramallah and Gaza. “I am supposed to explain myself in the context of the plight of all the Palestinians in order to apply for a visa? Even though I am travelling as a cultural ambassador of my people, it makes me uncomfortable … I am not a terrorist and I am not a threat,” she said.

Two Iranian illustrators, Ehsan Abdollahi and Marjan Vafaeian, are still awaiting updates for their visas a month after applying. Both have been informed by the Home Office that their applications had complications.

Both have been denied visas to attend the festival before, with Abdollahi – who was supposed to be the festival’s annual illustrator in residence this year – eventually having his 2017 refusal overturned after a high-profile campaign …”

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/aug/12/home-office-stopped-author-nayrouz-qarmout-speaking-uk-festival-edinburgh

The US is also barring folks from MENA… places that the US and its ‘allies’ have created refugees from their relentless wars on innocents…

“Saudi Arabia and Israel are killing civilians – and Britain is complicit

The slaughter in Yemen and the Palestinian territories is happening with British arms and support – and media silence …”

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/aug/10/saudi-arabia-israel-civilians-britain-yemen-palestinian-arms

Oh, and this just out:

“Israel Ranked 5Th From Worst of 20 Countries on Detention of Migrants’ Children

The United States was ranked worst while Brazil was ranked best by the International Detention Coalition …”

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-israel-ranked-5th-from-worst-on-migrants-kids-detention-1.6382761?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

Israel views anyone with association with BDS as an enemy. The problem is that some see BDS as “nonviolent” but I think that objectively it is actually violent. The idea that certain deprivations need to occur in Israeli society, say of jobs, or food, or medical drugs seems to me at its essence violent. Of course, cancelling a concert is non violent. However, even that can carry repercussion for someone losing their job and not having money to buy essentials. BDS is a polite name for a blockade which is probably the oldest war tactic (when you can’t invade you starve the enemy). The question is not the effectiveness of BDS but rather the goals. BDS so far has not been effective but that doesn’t make it less desirous of deleterious goals.

RE: “In the end, after hours of this, she warned “I may let you into Israel but, who knows, I may not let you out. I will keep you here and kick out your family. It depends on you. You would miss your kids yes?” That my friends is the classic police state trick. Iran has perfected it.”

Do you mean Israel, or Iran, or both have “perfected it”?

Benjamin Netanyahu is a real setback for the Jewish homeland in Palestine. He might actually be right on certain issues. For example, a radical rejection of the imams of Iran might be the wisest policy for the west, so he might be right in terms of direction. But his rhetoric is a real setback, no question.

It seems to me that Israel should annex the west bank and give the indigenous the right to vote. If I could go back in time and be in control, I would undo the settler movement, so that the west bank would be set aside for a palestinian state, but the time machine has not been invented yet, so moving forward: annex and give citizenship. this is not what will happen in the short term under bibi.

moving further back in time i wonder how to undo the nakba and i haven’t yet figured it out. obviously the complications from the alternate history of no exile for hundreds of thousands of Palestinians is too radically different from the path of the last 70 years and it is difficult to imagine and since the idea of undoing the nakba is not near and dear to the hearts of those in control of border crossings, interrogation rooms, airports and nuclear facilities, so there is a hypothetical aspect to these aspirations that seem quite distant from the reality, a distance that probably won’t be traversed in the short range of my lifespan expectancy.

bradley burston writes glowingly of the partnership of equality minded jews and palestinians. maybe it is a seed that can bear fruit. but it is very far from the corner of israel that seems to win elections.

but back to bibi. even compared to rabin, barak, olmert and sharon, none of whom are/were sweethearts, bibi stands out as particularly pugnacious and annoying. but he’s a smart guy and somewhere i think he even in his own heart knows that action is called for on the gaza front. regarding the west bank he is against giving the Palestinians the vote and he is against ceding control, so the occupation without citizenship is the goal from here to the foreseeable, but regarding gaza there is no such imperative and i bet you he’d like to set gaza in a specific (hamas) direction. but he’s too politically astute to pull something like that now (less than 15 months until the next election, probably closer to 9 months) and one imagines that the habit of following the polls rather than acting in bold strokes might continue to rule his policy until his rule comes to an end.

if the police ever indict him he’ll probably hold onto power at least for a while. he will not let go of the prime minister’s chair so easily.