
“It was as if the media were altogether so eager to find reason to criticize the IDF that they pounced on one discussion by nine soldiers who met after returning from the battlefield to share their experiences and subjective feelings with each other, using that one episode to draw conclusions that felt more like an indictment. Dogma replaced balance and led to a dangerous misunderstanding of the depth and complexity of Israeli reality. The individual accounts were never intended to serve as a basis for broad generalizations and summary conclusions by the media; they were published internally, intended for program graduates and their parents as a tool to be used in the process of educating and guiding the next generation.”
So writes Major Danny Zamir, laying to rest claims that the IDF engaged in planned, coordinated war crimes in Gaza. Emphasis added. In any case, read the rest.
Thanks to Petra for bringing this to our attention.

1.
There has been much talk in the press in recent days relating to “revelations” about the behavior of some members of the IDF in Gaza. I put the word revelations in brackets above because nobody who knows anything about warfare can have imagined that sending large numbers of well-equipped combat troops to fight against irregulars in built up areas was going to produce anything but a significant number of civilian deaths.
Continue reading ‘Jews Behaving Normally Redux:the IDF in Gaza’

The Institute for Global Jewish Affairs has published a fine study on the upsurge in antisemitism which followed the recent Gaza war, authored by Manfred Gerstenfeld and Tamas Berzi.
Continue reading ‘Gaza and the Surge of Antisemitism’

Vilified is a new short film which I wrote and directed for AJC, the organization which sponsors Z Word. Exposing the lies and libels which target Israel, you can watch it here on YouTube.

This article by AJC’s Doug Lieb appears in the latest issue of Tikkun, as does the article by Jerome Slater which he refers to.
The title of Jerome Slater’s “A Perfect Moral Catastrophe” pretty well sums up this comprehensive brief against Israel.
Continue reading ‘Getting to Grips with Hamas’
It is possible to be very critical of Israel and its actions without being antisemitic; the Spanish writer Jordi Soler proves it in this op-ed published in El País, part of which I translate below. You could argue with some of his points and not everything is phrased in the most judicious manner. Nevertheless, the attempt to offer a harsh critique of the actions of the Israel while simultaneously separating himself from the mile-wide streak of antisemitism in many similar critiques is as noteworthy as it is laudable.
Continue reading ‘The Barbarian Streak in Spain’

When all the horse-trading and deal making that Israeli politicians have just plunged into is over, what will remain are the security threats both near and far - and most immediately, the Hamas regime in Gaza.
Continue reading ‘Can Fatah Retake Gaza?’

Twice in three days now, Hamas thugs have stolen humanitarian aid transported into the Gaza Strip by UNRWA, the UN agency which caters to Palestinian refugees, via the Kerem Shalom crossing in Israel.
Continue reading ‘Hamas: Not Just Murderers, Thieves Too’

Enrique Krauze is a Mexican writer and, among other roles, the editor of Letras Libres. The following is my translation of part of an op-ed piece by him that appeared this week in El País.
Continue reading ‘Enrique Krauze on Gaza’
Überblogger Norman Geras has a long and brilliant post on reactions to the recent fighting in Gaza here. It’s essential reading for anyone seriously interested in the Israel-Palestine conflict and its international repercussions. I offer the following quote as a mere taster for an argument that has to be engaged with in its entirety in order to be properly understood.
Continue reading ‘Norman Geras on Reactions to Gaza’

There was a major dispute between the government of Argentina and the farm sector last year over an attempt by the former to increase export tariffs. It dragged on for months and during the course of it a large group of intellectuals got together to draft and publish an open letter in support of the government.
Continue reading ‘Gaza: Argentine Intellectuals Have Their Say’

This is a guest post by Michelle Sieff.
The New York Times has exposed Columbia University Professor Rashid Khalidi as a purveyor of fiction when it comes to the Middle East conflict.
Continue reading ‘What You Don’t Know About Rashid Khalidi’
Over at Open Democracy, Hugo Slim has an interesting piece about the role of NGOs in the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Continue reading ‘Gaza: the Role of NGOs’
Aníbal Fernández is Argentina’s Minister for Justice, Security and Human Rights and he believes that there has been “… no outbreak of antisemitism in Argentina”, though he’s willing to admit that there have been “…unfortunate demonstrations directed at the Jewish community.”
Continue reading ‘No Antisemitic Upsurge in Argentina says Minister’
Regular readers of this blog will be familiar with my views on the London Review of Books so I won’t repeat them. Its current issue leads with yet another badly argued rant against Israel and apologia for Hamas, this time written by someone called Henry Siegman. Judging by the potted biography of him at the bottom of his article, Siegman is a Jew. The editors of the LRB are oh so keen to publish articles by Jews attacking Israel. I wonder why.
Continue reading ‘Bob from Brockley on Ducks, Chickens and Bad Arguments’