We in this country are rightly critical of Israel and how it behaves in Gaza and the West Bank but are we fair?
A little over a week ago Israeli security forces killed 62 people on its border with Gaza after days of protests stemming from the USA moving its embassy to Jerusalem. It was widely reported and widely condemned by news outlets across Europe and Ireland with lots of noise from the UN.
Then, a few days later a HAMAS representative admitted that 50 of the 62 killed were HAMAS operatives with only 12 being "civilians". That gave credence to the Israeli position that what happened was an attack, not a protest. While the it is still appropriate to condemn the excesses of the IDF I find it very incredible that this revelation was not widely reported in the Irish media.
At the same time the widespread oppression of the Kurds in Turkey [broken link removed] here. What they are doing now far exceeds the excesses of the Israelis and the history of oppression of the Kurds within Turkey dates back to the founding of the state of modern Turkey.
Why do we get so exorcised about what Israel does while we ignore what Turkey does?
Why is Israel held to higher standards that its neighbours?
Why are we not all calling for a boycott on Saudi Arabia for it's support of terrorism and the horrific war it has wages in Yemen? In that war Saudi (and the USA, France and the UK, along with other Sunni Arab countries) is backing a government which is supported by the local al-Qaeda faction, a group regarded as one of the most dangerous in the region.
Where's the politicians and musicians protesting about that or the more than 100 people executed in Saudi each year for crimes including attending public protests and adultery, after which their severed heads can be left on public display?
Where are the same mob protesting about the oppression of the Kurds?
I just can't shake the idea that the fact that Israel is Jewish has something to do with it.
A little over a week ago Israeli security forces killed 62 people on its border with Gaza after days of protests stemming from the USA moving its embassy to Jerusalem. It was widely reported and widely condemned by news outlets across Europe and Ireland with lots of noise from the UN.
Then, a few days later a HAMAS representative admitted that 50 of the 62 killed were HAMAS operatives with only 12 being "civilians". That gave credence to the Israeli position that what happened was an attack, not a protest. While the it is still appropriate to condemn the excesses of the IDF I find it very incredible that this revelation was not widely reported in the Irish media.
At the same time the widespread oppression of the Kurds in Turkey [broken link removed] here. What they are doing now far exceeds the excesses of the Israelis and the history of oppression of the Kurds within Turkey dates back to the founding of the state of modern Turkey.
Why do we get so exorcised about what Israel does while we ignore what Turkey does?
Why is Israel held to higher standards that its neighbours?
Why are we not all calling for a boycott on Saudi Arabia for it's support of terrorism and the horrific war it has wages in Yemen? In that war Saudi (and the USA, France and the UK, along with other Sunni Arab countries) is backing a government which is supported by the local al-Qaeda faction, a group regarded as one of the most dangerous in the region.
Where's the politicians and musicians protesting about that or the more than 100 people executed in Saudi each year for crimes including attending public protests and adultery, after which their severed heads can be left on public display?
Where are the same mob protesting about the oppression of the Kurds?
I just can't shake the idea that the fact that Israel is Jewish has something to do with it.