We, Jewish groups and individuals from across the globe, applaud the recent powerful statement and set of principles signed by 122 Palestinian and Arab academics, journalists, and intellectuals regarding the definition of antisemitism by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) and the way this definition has been applied, interpreted and deployed.
As the letter states so compellingly: ” The fight against antisemitism should not be turned into a stratagem to delegitimise the fight against the oppression of the Palestinians, the denial of their rights and the continued occupation of their land.”
It avers: “Antisemitism must be debunked and combated. Regardless of pretense, no expression of hatred for Jews as Jews should be tolerated anywhere in the world. We also believe that the lessons of the Holocaust as well as those of other genocides of modern times must be part of the education of new generations against all forms of racial prejudice and hatred.”
And it also makes clear: “The fight against antisemitism must be deployed within the frame of international law and human rights. It should be part and parcel of the fight against all forms of racism and xenophobia, including Islamophobia, and anti-Arab and anti-Palestinian racism. The aim of this struggle is to guarantee freedom and emancipation for all oppressed groups. It is deeply distorted when geared towards the defence of an oppressive and predatory state.”
See the full statement from Palestinian and Arab academics, journalists, and intellectuals here.
Signatories:
Anya Topolski Een Andere Joodse Stem, Another Jewish Voice, Belgium
Hilla Dayan Academia for Equality, The Netherlands
Wieland Hoban Jüdische Stimme für gerechten Frieden in Nahost Germany
Dror Feiler European Jews for a Just Peace (EJJP) Sweden
Dr. Itamar Shachar Belgium / Israel
Ofer Neiman, Boycott from Within Israel
Donna Nevel, Jews Say No! USA
Alan Rückert Z. Chile
Sheryl Nestel, Independent Jewish Voices Canada Canada
David Comedi, International Jewish Anti-Zionist Network-Argentina Argentina
Marilyn Garson, Sh’ma Koleinu – Alternative Jewish Voices New Zealand
Vivienne Porzsolt, Jews against the Occupation Australia
Rina King, South African Jews for a Free Palestine SAJFP South Africa
Ronnie Kasrils South Africa
Liliana Cordova-Kaczerginski, International Jewish Anti-Zionist Network Spain
Alejandro Ruetter, International Jewish Anti-Zionist Network Spain
Guy Bollag Switzerland
Richard Wagman, UJFP (French Jewish Peace Union) France
Eyal France
Corey Balsam, Independent Jewish Voices Canada
Rowan Gaudet, Independent Jewish Voices Canada
Itay Sapir, Université du Québec à Montréal Canada
sue goldstein, International Jewish Anti-Zionist Network Canada
Haim Bresheeth, Jewish Network for Palestine UK
David Cannon, Jewish Network for Palestine UK
Mike Cushman ,Free Speech on Israel UK
Leah Levane, Jewish Voice for Labour UK
Michael Kalmanovitz, International Jewish Anti-Zionist Network–UK UK
Rob Ferguson, Steering Cttee Free Speech on Israel & SocialistWorkers Party UK
Rachel Lever, Labour Party UK
Dorothy M. Zellner, Jews Say No! USA
Stefanie Fox, Jewish Voice for Peace USA
Lesley Williams Jewish Voice for Peace, USA
Ivan Strasburg, International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (ATSE) USA
Rachel Giora, Boycott From Within Israel
Anat Matar, Tel Aviv University Israel
Haley Firkser Israel
Shir Hever, Jüdische Stimme für gerechten Frieden in NaHost. e.V. Germany
The Board A Different Jewish Voice, Amsterdam Netherlands
Michal Sapir Israel
Rebecca Vilkomerson United States
Ofra Ben Artzi Israel
Dr Les Levidow UK
Angie Mindel UK
Yehuda Aharon Australia
Heather Mendick UK
Angie Mindel UK
Professor Jonathan Rosenhead UK
Sue Rabkin South Africa
Motti Shimoni USA
Mike Simons United Kingdom
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20201211-ihra-definition-of-anti-semitism-has-been-weaponised-warns-lead-drafter/
IHRA definition of anti-Semitism has been weaponised, warns lead drafter…The man who took the lead in drafting the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of anti-Semitism, Kenneth Stern, has warned the incoming Biden administration not to adopt it. In a sensational article in the Times of Israel, Stern claimed that pro-Israel lobby groups have weaponised the definition in an attempt to silence critics of Zionism.
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“Unlike the U.S. & Israel and some other countries like Russia, Iran has never attacked its neighbors, invaded another country, or conspired to overthrow another legitimate government. Yet this has not stopped Zionists & Western conservatives from portraying Iran as an existential danger & from engineering punitive policies against Tehran.
“A recent instance of this occurred on 27 November 2020. On that day, Israeli agents, or those in the pay of the Zionist regime, assassinated Iranian nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh. Fakhrizadeh was a senior nuclear scientist retired from active research ever since Iran shut down its military nuclear program in 2003. His death, one in a long line of such assassinations, will have no impact on the nation’s nuclear program. Then why murder him? There are perhaps two reasons: (1) his violent death was a message to other Iranian researchers to avoid government nuclear programs, lest they too be killed, & (2) it was also an attempt to bait Iran into an equally violent response that would, in turn, complicate any effort by the incoming Biden administration to resurrect the 2015 JCPOA nuclear deal.
“Upon his election as president of the United States in 2016, Donald Trump, urged on by both Israel and Saudi Arabia, sabotaged that agreement. None of those involved in this subversion appeared to care for the fact that the JCPOA was a model treaty that made the world a safer place.
“Part III—The Source of Much Suffering
“At least in terms of recent history, the entire Middle East has suffered due to the strength of the Israeli lobby & the aggressive behavior of the U.S. in the region. Back in 2003, the George W. Bush administration decided to invade Iraq based on fabricated ‘evidence’ that it sought nuclear weapons. Bush had initially been urged on by deceitful Iraqis in exile, but Israel also saw an opportunity to have Washington do damage to a regime it saw as hostile.”
I join these fine people in applauding a long overdue statement that differentiates, and explains what anti-semitism really is. Not the convenient tool it has become to silence criticism, that all other nations often get.
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Not precisely on topic, but most relevant:
“International Law vs. Eternal Recurrence—An Analysis (11 December 2020) by Professor Lawrence Davidson” http://www.tothepointanalyses.com
EXTRACT:
“Things look much dimmer for the future of international law. The events that spurred on the present manifestations of such law were the wars & genocides of the first half of the 20th century, particularly the Nazi Holocaust, which was directed primarily against Europe’s Jews. That catastrophic event ended in 1945. What followed was a heightened concern for human rights reflected by treaty prohibitions on, among other things, crimes against humanity.
“Meaningful memories of these wars & genocides, & the progressive regulatory impulses they engendered, have lasted less than two generations. They are now ebbing, & in their place we have a resurgence of the aggressive nationalism, ethnic exclusivity, & state-sponsored criminality—all of which promoted much of the 20th century’s horror in the first place. Is this the result of humanity’s chronic short-term memory leading, in the long-term, to a disregard for lessons of history? Or are we caught in what the philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche called ‘eternal recurrence,’ repeating the same damn thing, over & over again?
“Part II—Recent Disregard for International Law
“However you want to explain it, recent disregard for international law has once more shown just how precarious human decency is at the state level. Take the rise in state-sponsored terrorism in the form of assassination & sabotage. You might have thought this sort of criminal behavior was the province of al Qaeda or the infamous ISIL (Islamic state.) Not so. Among others, the United States now behaves this way, & so does Israel.
“For example, take the treatment rendered by Western countries & their Middle East surrogate, Israel, on the Shiite nation of Iran. Whatever one might think of Iran’s present religious government (which certainly could improve its own human rights record), & despite endless allegations of Iranian aggression coming from Western & Zionist sources, contemporary Iran’s military policies have long reflected a basically defensive posture. Thus, its invited intercession in Syria & Iraq was aimed at the defeat of ISIL. (cont’d)
How can we add our signatures?