A few days ago, I pointed out how many of the well-known palestinian Arab academics, writers, artists, and activists who signed the open letter condemning Mahmoud Abbas’ latest antisemitic comments had themselves made antisemitic comments and/or expressed support for terrorism. I also noted that almost all of the signatories are on record opposing the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism. As I wrote at the time:
So it seems to me that signing this letter is a way to give them “street cred” in supposedly opposing antisemitism, so they can better undermine the best definition of antisemitism we currently have.
It turns out, I wasn’t too far off. Khalil Shikaki, the director of the Palestinian Center for Political and Survey Research in Ramallah and one of those who signed the letter, has revealed the ulterior motive of those who signed it:
“The Holocaust is a European issue and the Palestinian people are the ones paying the price for it. The president increases the problems of the Palestinian people, with baseless statements based on the words of some marginal historians. Therefore, we issued the statement because we believe that what the president spoke is harmful to the Palestinian cause.”
—
“There is respect and support for us in the world, and if the world feels and sees that the Palestinian people support what the president said, this will mean to them that the Palestinian people are racist, and this means to them that there is racist settler colonialism, and also racist Palestinians, and therefore they will put us and Israelis are in the same dark trench. If we go into the same crucible of racism and anti-Semitism, we will become no different from the occupier.”
Note how he is painting Jewish Israelis as racist settler colonialists, effectively denying Jewish history and painting Israel as a racist endeavor, falling foul of the IHRA working definition of antisemitism. Go figure.
By the way, here is Mr Shikaki having no problem speaking with some “racist settler colonialists.” Perhaps also just to make palestinian Arabs not look too racist.
Hat tip: EoZ
