DelegitimisationThe Delegitimisation of Israel as a Jewish State
Some call it the "Third Intifada"; some say it has been going on since well before the existence of the State of Israel; some ignore it and hope it will go away. But it won't - the ongoing, vicious and often vitriolic campaign to render Israel illegitimate as a state in the eyes of the world is relentless. And one of it's chief worldwide hubs is London!
Anyone wishing to see the Middle East conflict treated in a balanced and reasonable way needs to take note of what is going on right here and now, in Britain, to demonise Israel and lower her in our estimation.
To help counteract this campaign we have produced a report examining it and its methods, particularly as it manifests itself here in UK. You can download the full article as a pdf file (338kb) or read each section using the links on the right (Notes and references are on the main pdf article).
Summary
The accusations against Israel are serious indeed. But how does the evidence match against these accusations?
No other nation has had to combat, since its birth as a state, the perpetual, aggressive attempts by Muslims to annihilate it that Israel has. The PLO, the Muslim Brotherhood and their offshoot, Hamas, and more recently President Ahmadinejad in Iran, have all sworn publicly that their ultimate purpose in the Middle East is to destroy the ‘Zionist presence’ and to rid the whole of the land west of the Jordan River from the ‘infidel usurpers’. More recently hostile campaigners have focused their resources on trying to delegitimise Israel politically in the world’s opinion. Isolation spells disaster for Israel - its survival and prosperity depend on its relations with the world in trade, science, arts and culture – all of which rely on its legitimacy in the world's eyes.
Some would argue that this is only the mind-set of extremists, but when these ‘extremists’ become the spokesmen for the whole Palestinian people, supported by delegitimisers in the west, and when Hamas and Fatah, sporadically in coalition, adamantly refuse to recognise the right of Israel to exist, then the world must judge aright in its dealings with the situation.
From the post-World War One San Remo Declaration to the State of Israel's acceptance into the UN in 1949, history shows the complete legitimacy of Israel as a Jewish state. Her compliance with the controversial UN Resolution 242 and her willingness repeatedly to offer 'land for peace' in binding treaties reveals Israel's heart to maintain peace and her standing in the world by peaceful means. Her record on human rights and integration of minority groups into a tiny landmass alongside her own people displays a tolerance and humanity often found lacking in neighbouring nations. Israel needs not to prove any further her legitimacy in the community of nations; her neighbours should accept and recognise this and make serious moves towards a lasting peace in the Middle East.