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"You anti-Semite!" By Nayala Rehmat The label of anti-Semitism continues to prove to be a useful accusation for those who wish to not allow any criticism to be aired about the Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands. Many Muslims, non-Muslims who speak out against the horrors committed by the Israeli government are labelled anti-Semites and Muslim ‘sympathiser’. Consequently this unjustly discredits those who speak out about the genuine atrocities committed by the Israeli government. This slandering intends to associate those speaking against Israel and their ideas with those unforgivable actions of the Holocaust. No one can forget and no one should ever forget what the Nazi’s did to the Jews of Europe, and it should never be allowed to happen again. In fact that is exactly why we should continue to strongly speak out against what the Israeli government are doing to the Palestinians. Yet as Muslims we should also hold fast to the principles of Islam which give the Jews and Christians the esteemed station of the ‘People of the Book’. One can speak out against Israeli policy and Zionism and not be an anti-Semite. One can be an anti-Zionist and at the same time have respect for the Jewish faith. Zionism is a movement whose goal was the return of Jews to Eretz Yisrael, or Zion, the Jewish synonym for Jerusalem and the land of Israel. However there are many Jewish people who actually oppose the concept of Israel and condemn Israeli policy; one such group calls themselves ‘True Torah Jews’ http://www.jewsagainstzionism.com They argue that Jews have been prohibited by the Torah to establish an independent Jewish sovereignty in the Holy Land. They argue that Jews were once given the Holy Land on condition that they observe the Torah and its commandments. However they failed to do this and thus their sovereignty over the land was taken from them, and therefore they reject the legitimacy of the state of Israel. The ‘True Torah Jews’ group sees themselves as orthodox Jews who are following the true commandments of the Torah unlike the Zionists, who have abandoned the true commandments of the Torah. This group should be commended; they are bravely standing up for what they believe in the face of huge opposition. As Muslims and non-Muslims who understand the injustices of the Israeli government and Zionist movement, we should not be intimidated by the accusations of anti-Semitism. We should make it clear in our minds and to others that it is not the Jewish people but the Zionists and the Zionist policies of Israel that we object to. We have a responsibility; we mustn’t allow the ignorance of those who make irresponsible and inaccurate accusations of anti-Semitism to any one who speaks out against the Israeli policies to weaken our voice. The author is Head of the Women’s Affairs Team at IACN and is a student of History and International Relations at the Nottingham Trent University. Click here to comment on this article.
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