Thread by @AzeemIbrahim

The Palestinian cause is being damaged by Corbyn and the hard-left as it is being used as a cover for anti-semitism.

My piece in @ForeignPolicy

foreignpolicy.com/2019/11/18/cor…

Short thread: 1/16

87% Jews believe Corbyn is anti-semitic. His supporters say it is smears for standing up for Palestinians. Continuing Palestinians suffering under occupation raises natural sympathy. But many left-wing Jews also share this justified anger at right-wing nationalist policies. 2/16

Yet some of the hard-left’s criticism is not driven by humanitarian concerns, but simply anti-Semitic attitudes. Many see Israel as a classic imperialist state, an agent of the US imposed on region by outside powers. Israel is painted as a unique and irredeemable monster. 3/16

This leads parts of the hard left to deny the painful history of Jews in Eur that led to creation of Israel in first place. An understandable desire for Palestinians to enjoy protection of nationhood leads to forgetting that Jews once lacked those safeguards. 4/16

Lack of sympathy of Jewish history means anyone engaging with Israel is accused of “collaborating” with the enemy. For the far-left, the only acceptable posn is a complete rejection of the state of Israel: criticism of Israeli policy means to see Israel itself destroyed. 5/16

This produces a model in which total rejection of Israel is demanded of any Jew, otherwise they are complicit in the misdeeds of the current Israeli government. THIS is why the Labour Party under Jeremy Corbyn, has become riddled with anti-Semitism. 6/16

Jews who have serious qualms with Israel's right-wing policies are dismissed unless they condemn the very existence of Israel. Israel is so bad, there is no compromise with it – solutions that might aid Palestine are neglected in favor of the real focus: attacking Israel. 7/16

EG: Labour MP Rosena Allin-Khan, a doctor, visited West Bank hospitals 2019 and was shocked to see sick children separated from parents. Pressure of Israeli sanctions led to collapse of Palestinian medical system so sick children were transferred to hospitals in Israel. 8/16

Israeli policy then led to the separation of children and parents. Govn issue 7,000 travel permits for children from Gaza but less than 2,000 for accompanying parents. Allin-Khan made the mistake of trying to do something about the problem. 9/16

She lobbied UK Foreign Secretary and spoke to the Israeli Deputy Amb about increasing parental visas. Sensible humanitarian response from a medial doctor and politician? 10/16

No. She was abused by the hard-left for being a “collaborator in apartheid” having been “bought by the Zionists.” The far-left was more interested in using the suffering of Palestinian children to attack Israel than in doing anything to mitigate the situation. 11/16

The hard-left only cares about the suffering of the Palestinians when Israel is to blame. They do not offer a means to engage with Israel to mitigate harm in the short-term—all the while insisting that they support the Palestinians above all else. 12/16

Thus Corbyn describes Hamas as being “dedicated to the good of the Palestinian people,” even though they execute dozens of Palestinians without trial in the Gaza Strip. 13/16

Once Palestinians are oppressed by an actor other than Israel, the ‘anti-imperialist’ left is no longer interested. EG: When Assad imprisons, tortures, and kills Palestinians who support the opposition, the hard left is silent. 14/16

Complexities of Israeli-Palestinian relations are thus lost. The far-left is only interested in demonizing Israel. The quest for wider political solution, whether a two-state outcome or a single state with equal rights for all, are thus not considered. 15/16

Also, no interest in small-scale solutions to minimize suffering. This rejectionist stance helps extremists in Israel. They conflates all policy criticism as deep-seated anti-Semitism making the situation worse for Palestinians. With the hard-left playing into their hands. 16/16