[Thread:] Throughout his career Netanyahu has maintained power by inciting Jewish Israelis against Palestinians in Israel and the OPTs, which has resulted in countless acts of racist violence by his supporters. Who’ve been the second biggest target of his incitement? The left.
It’s no surprise then that since the current wave of mass anti-government demonstrations began in June, protestors (who Bibi called “anarchists” & “aliens”) have sporadically been targeted with violence by pro-Bibi groups and individuals, especially Beitar ultras “La Familia”.
Earlier this week Netanyahu extended the lockdown regulations to include a ban on protesting further than 1km from home. While stifling the regular demonstrations at Balfour and other epicentres, protestors responded by demonstrating at every street corner across the country.
But the proliferation in protest locations has been accompanied by a huge spike in violence against demonstrators. The following comes from Haaretz’s coverage of tonight’s protests:
“In Tel Aviv, two demonstrators who were attacked were evacuated to the hospital, and in Ramat Gan, glass bottles were thrown from a balcony at protesters. A demonstrator was beaten in Jerusalem and another demonstrator was knocked over.”
“In Holon, a glass bottle was thrown at protesters, and in Haifa, firecrackers were thrown at protesters [...] Another protester was reportedly attacked and sent to the hospital in Kiryat HaYovel in Jerusalem.”
“In Pardes Hannah a protester was taken to the hospital with a broken hand after he was reportedly attacked by 15 people. [...] The protester added, ‘They chased me, knocked me to the ground and lynched me. They kicked me in the ribs and in the face. I ran away from them.’”
Elsewhere in TLV, this woman was punched in the face while blowing a horn:
This violence against protestors is almost certain to continue. Why? Because violence is the natural and necessary outcome of Netanyahu’s political strategy. Violence against Arabs has become routine; now we’re witnessing the normalisation of violence against “the left”.
(Police violence against protestors also continues unabated but this has been happening throughout these protests)
In a truly jaw-dropping document revealed in full today by @yuval_abraham in @972mag, Israel’s Intelligence Ministry officially proposes the complete ethnic cleansing of Gaza’s 2.2 million Palestinian residents in the framework of the current war. 972mag.com/intelligence-m…
The Intelligence Ministry is not a particularly consequential body, and the chances of the plan being put into action appear slim, but the fact that this is being discussed at all among senior Israeli policymakers should cause serious alarm.
The document explains how exactly such a move would be carried out, including with the help of varying propaganda messages targeted at Palestinians, the Arab world, and the international community writ large.
Something happened last night at a small protest in Tel Aviv which illustrated Israeli apartheid in one of the most blatant ways that I’ve ever personally witnessed. 1/
The protest took place in front of the Shin Bet HQ (Israel’s internal security services) which is right next to Tel Aviv University, on the lands of the depopulated and destroyed Palestinian village of Sheikh Muwannis. 2/
It was a protest against Israel’s policy of administrative detention, by which it detains hundreds of Palestinians at a time without charge or trial. Around 40 Israelis gathered with Palestinians flags and posters bearing the faces of Palestinian minors currently detained. 3/
A judge who lives in an illegal settlement is determining whether to expel 1,000+ Palestinians from Masafer Yatta, where they have lived for generations, in line with the state’s claim that they are “illegally living in an army firing zone”
Bristol lecturer David Miller’s antisemitism is subtle, and the whole affair provides an excellent example of why it’s so important to listen to Jews on the left when discussing antisemitism on the left. [THREAD]
The right-wing/mainstream Jewish bodies are focusing on his desire to “end Zionism”, which is not inherently antisemitic. Miller and his acolytes know that, and so they argue that the antisemitism accusations are just a pro-Israel smear campaign.
Nothing new here so far. And if that was all, Jews on the left would be coming to his defence - as we have done for a number of others. But Miller goes further than simply a critique of Zionism.
[THREAD] Gideon Levy won’t join the current anti-gov protests because, rather than Bibi’s corruption, “the occupation is what makes the Israeli regime clearly undemocratic”. He’s right, but he’s blinded by his own cynicism and failing to recognise an opportunity.
Let’s leave aside the fact that these protests are also dealing with other important issues like the gov’s terrible support for those who’ve lost their livelihoods because of the pandemic, and that mass mobilisations like this are inherently good for politicisation and democracy.
In stark contrast to the much maligned social protests of 2011 which deliberately ignored Palestine/the occupation in order to avoid “politicisation” (one of several fatal flaws to that movement), this time anti-occupation groups are coming strong. 972mag.com/anti-occupatio…
This evening @NaamodUK is hosting a unique webinar in which we’ll be discussing the ongoing anti-government protests in Israel from an anti-occupation angle.