Criticism of Israel and of genocide is not antisemitic

Accusations of antisemitism are continuing in an attempt to drown out the sights and sounds of the dying Palestinians, writes Lyn Bender.

AS ATTENDEES from many nations wept at Auschwitz, the decimation of Gaza was live-streamed.

Delegates attended the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz to commemorate the ending of the death camp and pronounce, “Never again”.

Even as a sea of humanity trudged through their destroyed homeland from the south to the north of the Gaza Strip. Those who had supplied bombs and weapons, or had been complicit through their silence in the face of a current genocide, proclaimed “Never again”.

It has been 80 years since Soviet troops liberated the survivors of the Auschwitz camp to reveal the horrors of the Nazi's industrial murder. Russia was not invited to this commemoration nor acknowledged as the liberators.

Israel proclaims itself chief mourner, as Gaza lies in ruins

On the Jewish Day of Atonement (12 October) the killing in Gaza and Lebanon continued unabated.

Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel was permitted to attend by Poland despite the ruling of the International Criminal Court that required his arrest. He shrewdly did not attend, even though he claims that the Holocaust and defence of Israel justify his abhorrent war crimes against the Palestinians.

At the time that the horror of the Nazi genocide was being confronted by the world in 1945, there was no word for the mass murder of a people now known as genocide. Nor had definitions of war crimes been refined, beyond "just wars". The just war was conceived in the eyes of the perpetrators and claimed throughout history by the victorious.

Raphael Lemkin gave us the definition ofgenocide, then worked to have it become the United Nations Genocide Convention in 1948. War crimes are now explicitly defined in the United Nations Geneva Convention.

Accusations of antisemitism have been a continuous scream, reaching a crescendo recently, in attempts to drown out the sights and sounds of the dying Palestinians.

Israel, gifted by the British, was established in part as a solution to European complicity in the annihilation of millions of men women and children for the crime of their Jewish ethnicity. Palestine was declared to be a land with no people for a people with no land. It had a familiar colonial ring to it.

But as the saying goes, two wrongs don’t make a right.

The massacres and expulsion of the Palestinians in 1948 during the catastrophic Nakba was and continues to be, a massive crime. At least 850,000 Palestinians were forcibly expelled from their homes or massacred by the new occupiers.

Palestinians are granted no right of return.

Whereas I, by virtue of my Jewish ethnicity and my so-called god-granted biblical rights can "return" to this stolen land. Noam Chomsky cites this biblical claim as not part of the real world.

By the way, I renounce this Israeli-legislated so-called right of return.

Marek Edelman, last surviving leader of the 1943 Warsaw Uprising, wrote a letter in support of the Palestine resistance, comparing this to the Jewish fighters in Warsaw. He opened with,

'Commanders of the Palestine military, paramilitary and partisan operations – to all the soldiers of the Palestine fighting organisations.'

What could be more ironic than the last surviving leader of the uprising in the Warsaw Ghetto, praising resistant Palestinians as freedom fighters?

Famous Jews including Albert Einstein, Hannah Arendt and Primo Levi have been critical of Zionism as a Jewish endeavor.

The defence of Zionists being perpetual victims facilitates the outcry against all acts of resistance to the Zionist Occupation. This argument is wearing thin, as atrocities suffered by Palestinians are being exposed. Coincidentally, acts claimed to be "antisemitic" are increasingly headlined in the media. Student protests on behalf of Palestine – that included Jewish people – were claimed to be arousing fear amongst Jewish students.

There is a classic strategy of all dictators and wannabe authoritarians, including Opposition Leader Peter Dutton — Israeli PM Netanyahu employs this strategy:

1. Fear and hostility — create fear of survival, including economic, or capitalise as Hitler did on depression in Germany.

2. Unite by identifying and hunting down an "enemy".

3. Promise that safety lies with the strong leader.

4. Define criticism as "extreme" or criminal disloyalty. For example, un-American (McCarthyism), un-Australian or as antisemitic.

In Australia, the Government and Opposition compete as noble warriors against antisemitism. The media, including the ABC, conflate Israelism with Judaism.

Creative Australia's shameful dumping of Khaled Sabsabi

If Creative Australia thinks it's reducing the risk of losing public support by cancelling Khaled Sabsasi, surely the question is, who is this “public” it is worrying about?

The state of Israel pronounces itself as acting on behalf of all Jewish people. Not just Israeli citizens but all those in the diaspora who even marginally could be, or are identified as, somehow linked to and unconditionally supporting Israel. Many Jewish People repudiate this, including the newly formed, impressively articulate, Jewish Council of Australia that declares that it stands against all forms of racism.

One of the many reasons that falsely calling out antisemitism is a blight on all of us, was expressed elegantly by Francesca Albanese United Nations Special Rapporteur. The false accusations of antisemitism levelled against all critics such as the International Criminal Court, Amnesty International, human rights organisations, the United Nations and many more serve to distract from any genuine response and tracking of the root causes of antisemitism and racism.

Ironically, the Palestinians are the current victims of dehumanisation based on their ethnicity. Their deaths from 2,000-pound bombs sent by America (that the ABC reports} can pancake buildings , are largely discounted.

Independent Australia reported on the setting up of fake antisemitism events — as did academic and journalist, Wendy Bacon. With a Daily Telegraph film crew and journalist, serial Israeli provocateur, Ofir Birenbaum, sought to entrap the staff of the Cairo Takeaway. I hear the food is very good there and custom surged after reports of this pathetic charade.

Daily Telegraph tries and fails to stage antisemitic incident

Not content with the many existing instances of alleged antisemitic behaviour, The Daily Telegraph tries to create another one.

The Jerusalem Post reported, 'Sydney Jew Detained for Waving the Israeli Flag', at another of Birenbaum’s provocative events; thus, serving Zionist propaganda well.

Despite there already being several Holocaust memorials in Australia, Albanese pledged $6.4 million to promote Holocaust education.

One dollar for each of the 6 million victims? Please note that this is not a tasteless satire in The Chaser.

Importantly, this is overkill.

The Palestinians may eventually get full recognition of their genocide and displacement. Will there be a commemoration of this in 2040?