IN international media reports, it is hard to find any discussion of the human rights situation in Israel. The global media, especially the Western media, consider Israel to be the oasis of democracy in the Middle East. They deliberately forget the fact that even the foundation of Israel was associated with the violation of the human rights of Palestinians, some of whom were driven out of their homeland while others are still suffering under Jewish military occupation. Here, I would like to shed light on the general human rights situation in Israel. Are all citizens in the Jewish state treated as equals? Are there any differences between Jewish and Christian citizens or between Jewish and Muslim citizens? We all know that Israel, after having been recognized at the international level in a contentious UN decision, deliberately included some Palestinian Arab Christians and Muslims among its citizens. It also lured, under the illusion of the “Promised Land,” Jews from the West and the East, and recently even Arab and black Falasha Jews from Ethiopia. As far as Israel's violations of human rights against Muslims are concerned, they are numerous, and the whole world knows that if any Jew perpetrates an act of terror against a Muslim, then the Israeli authorities will fabricate evidence to show that the Jew is mentally ill and that, therefore, he cannot be held accountable or punished. The Israeli government and Jewish extremist groups also violate the human rights of some Jews. In Israel, there is an extreme form of apartheid practiced by Jewish citizens on the basis of a person's religious doctrines, national origin and color of skin. In terms of religion, there are differences between Sephardic Jews and Eastern Jews from the Arab states and between the Ashkenazi Jews and Jews from the West. They were originally not Jews. This was emphasized by Arthur Koestler in his book “The Thirteenth Tribe.” As far as national origin is concerned, there is a difference between the Western Jew, who is considered to be first grade, and the Jew who came from East Europe or the erstwhile Soviet Union who is second grade. As for the Falasha black Jew coming from Ethiopia, he is considered to be third grade and therefore, not suitable for leadership positions. There are also differences between these Jews and the white Jews in terms of allotting housing facilities and residential districts. This is what Israel looks like from the inside — a society made up of people who came from different nations and environments under the illusion that they were going to live in the “Promised Land”, whereas in reality they are living in a land of racial and religious discrimination and human rights violations. It only remains to ask why the US government has not applied provisions of the US International Religious Freedom Act against Israel. The act gives the US president the right to slap economic and political sanctions on countries that practice racial discrimination and religious persecution. The failure to do so is conclusive evidence of the bias of the US administration in favor of Israel.
— Hassan Tahsin is an Egyptian writer and political analyst. He can be reached at [email protected]
