Category Archives: Politics

Jeffress at Embassy Opening

Christian Churches, Jerusalem, Politics

Yesterday’s terrible events on the border with Gaza, in which 58 were killed and 2,000 injured – events which Haaretz termed a “predictable disaster” – have caused even some strong supporters of Israel to be critical. All of this came on the day that the new US embassy in Jerusalem was officially opened.

Given the dramatic events at the border, the presence of Christian leaders at the embassy opening seems like a small detail in a tumultuous day. However, this should not pass unnoticed. One of those present was Pastor Robert Jeffress, a Southern Baptist who claims that you cannot be saved by being a Jew and who has a history of making derogatory comments about other faiths and the Catholic Church.
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Why I’m becoming a Jew and why you should, too

Anti-Semitism, Politics

One of the finest contemporary commentators, Nick Cohen, looks at antisemitism on the left. From the Observer:

It took me 40 years to become a Jew. When I was a child, I wasn’t a Jew and not only because I never went to a synagogue. My father’s family had abandoned their religion so he wasn’t Jewish. More to the point, my mother and my grandmother weren’t Jewish either, so according to orthodox Judaism’s principles of matrilineal descent, it was impossible for me to be a Jew.

All I had was the “Cohen” name. I once asked my parents why they had not changed it. After saying, quite rightly, that you should never seek to appease racists, they confessed to thinking that antisemitism was over by the 1960s. After Hitler, humanity would surely see where the world’s most insane hatred led and resolve to put it to one side.

Bertolt Brecht said: “Do not rejoice in his defeat, you men. For though the world has stood up and stopped the bastard, the bitch that bore him is in heat again.”

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Co-Chair of Oxford University Labour Club resigns over its endorsement of Israel Apartheid Week

Anti-Israeli Action, Anti-Semitism, Politics

From Labour Friends of Israel:

Co-Chair of Oxford University Labour Club resigns over its endorsement of Israel Apartheid Week; reveals evidence of antisemitic discourse; LFI Vice-Chair Louise Ellman MP “deeply disturbed” by reports

The Co-Chair of Oxford University Labour Club resigned this week following its endorsement of Israel Apartheid Week.

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EU Blacklists Hezbollah

Politics

Monday 22nd July 2013, the European Union takes the unanimous decision to proscribe the military wing of Hezbollah. Britain and the Netherlands had been pressing EU partners to act against Hezbollah following the terror attacks against Israeli tourists in Bulgaria in July 2012.

Israel, the United States, Canada, the Netherlands and Britain had previously added Hezbollah to their lists of designated terrorist groups.

The EU’s decision is symbolic and largely superficial but opens debate on Hezbollah’s role in Lebanon, Syria and across the Middle East.

An AFI Spokesperson said:

The European Union has finally acted to  proscribe the military wing of Hezbollah. Although this is a welcome development, the practical impact will be marginal.

The political wing, assuming one accepts the description of Hezbollah as being so sub-divided, does not fall within the bounds of this sanction and will continue to receive funds and political legitimacy from within some European states.

Many will view the timing of this decision to be rather cynical. The European Union did not act following the terrorist attacks against Israeli tourists in Bulgaria. The EU’s disinclination appears to have been diminished by Hezbollah’s significant military support for Bashar al-Asad.

The Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed the news and praised EU leaders for the decision. He pointed out that Hezbollah “has imposed terrorist rule on wide sections of Lebanon, has converted them into an Iranian protectorate and is stockpiling tens of thousands of rockets”, a continuing threat to Israeli security.

Sanctions Against Ward are ‘Soft Option’

Anti-Semitism, Politics

Anglican Friends of Israel welcomes the news of the removal of the Liberal Democrat Party Whip from Bradford East MP David Ward.

Ward made comments in the run up to Holocaust Memorial Day in January 2013 which caused significant revulsion:

Having visited Auschwitz twice -– once with my family and once with local schools -– I am saddened that the Jews, who suffered unbelievable levels of persecution during the Holocaust, could within a few years of liberation from the death camps be inflicting atrocities on Palestinians in the new State of Israel and continue to do so on a daily basis in the West Bank and Gaza.

Ward made further comments on Twitter earlier this month:

Am I wrong or are (sic) am I right? At long last the #Zionists are losing the battle -– how long can the #apartheid State of #Israel last?

Following a meeting with Party officials (including the Deputy Prime Minister and Chief Whip Alistair Carmichael), Ward received written notification of a 2-month suspension.

An AFI spokesperson said:

We broadly welcome the news of Mr. Ward’’s sanction although this appears to be a very limited gesture. The removal of the whip during the summer recess and expiring the day before the Liberal Democrats Autumn Conference is a soft option. We take some solace from the fact that the Liberal Democrats have informed Mr. Ward that he should use balanced and proportionate language in future discussions of Israel/Palestine.

Given the potential for renewed peace talks we especially urge him to heed Party advice and to consider the responsibilities he has as an elected representative.

The Liberal Democrats are no strangers to dissention and fall-out over Israel. Baroness Tonge courted controversy for many years. finally resigning the Liberal Democrat whip in 2012 having received an ultimatum from party leader Nick Clegg to do so or to apologise for inappropriate comments she made at an event at Middlesex University.