Op-ed blames Netanyahu for Muslim massacre in NZ
Excerpt of an op-ed by PA Parliament Member and Secretary-General of the National Initiative Movement Mustafa Barghouti
Headline: “New Zealand’s terrorist crime is a continuation of Goldstein’s massacre”
“This crime (refers to shooting attacks at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand on March 15, 2019, 50 murdered –Ed.) was a direct result of the despicable populist racist thinking that has spread in the US, Europe, and the world… and joining this is racist indoctrination – which leaders and presidents of world powers are not ashamed to behave according to – including [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu’s racist statements against the Arabs and Palestinians that pass without an accounting, even when they turn into a racist nation-state law such as the Jewish Nation-State Law that turns the Palestinians into victims of a regime of official racist apartheid and discrimination (sic., the law does not strip non-Jewish citizens of any individual rights; see note below), and even when it reaches the point where he declares that the state is for the Jews only, and not for all of its citizens (see note below –Ed.)
One of the strongest colonialist racist phenomena that has strengthened recently is the demonization of Islam, and the Arabs and Muslims…
New Zealand's crime reminded us of the exalted Ibrahimi Mosque (i.e., Cave of the Patriarchs) massacre (see note below –Ed.) that was committed by terrorist Baruch Goldstein 25 years ago, and which put an end to the lives of 29 Martyrs (Shahids)… and caused the death of 50 additional Martyrs who were shot by the Israeli army (sic., the only people killed during Goldstein’s attack were the 29 victims and Goldstein)…
If the world and its leaders had stood firmly against Goldstein’s crime and not covered up for it (sic., Israeli leaders widely condemned the attack in addition to world leaders), it might have been possible to prevent the despicable crime in New Zealand.
And we must not forget the tens of millions of victims who died, and the great destruction that stemmed from the laxity in standing against fascism approximately 100 years ago.
For us and the victims of the crime in New Zealand, the statements of condemnation that the world will forget within a few days are not enough… They will not bring the victims back to life, and will not ease the pain. What will ease their pain and our pain is the entire world standing against racism, against its parties and organizations and their populist ideologies… and it standing with courage against the regimes of racist apartheid and discrimination,the most insolent of which is the Israeli apartheid regime.
Fascism, racism, Antisemitism, Islamophobia, and hatred of immigrants are all the product of one racist and warped ideology, and silence regarding them only creates the despicable terror that harmed the Palestinians in the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron; and we have seen its awful ugliness in New Zealand’s mosques.”
The article’s mention of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declaring “that the state is for the Jews only and not for all of its citizens” apparently refers to a message he wrote on his Instagram account on March 10, 2019, in which he said: “Israel is not a state of all its citizens. According to the Jewish Nation-State Law that we passed, Israel is the nation-state of the Jewish People – and them alone. …There is no problem with the Arab citizens of Israel – they have the same rights as all of us and the Likud government has invested in the Arab sector more than any other government.”
Jewish Nation-State Law – law passed by the Israeli Parliament on July 19, 2018, which codifies in Israel's Basic Law that Israel is the home of the Jewish nation with Jerusalem its capital, and the Hebrew calendar its official calendar. It establishes Hebrew as the sole official language and grants Arabic a special status, and it recognizes Jewish and Israeli holidays, memorial days, and the Jewish Sabbath as national holidays and days of rest - while guaranteeing the right of all Israeli citizens and residents to celebrate their holidays and days of rest. The law, which passed with 62 in favor, 55 against, and 2 abstentions, has sparked controversy within Israeli society.
Cave of the Patriarchs massacre - Baruch Goldstein, a member of an Israeli far-right movement, opened fire on Muslims praying inside the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron, known to Muslims as the "Ibrahimi Mosque," murdering 29 and wounding 125 on Feb. 25, 1994. Following the attack, which was widely condemned by Israeli leaders and Jewish communities abroad, the Israeli government took concrete steps to prevent similar attacks from occurring by dividing the area of worship into Muslim and Jewish sections and designating several extremist movements, including Goldstein’s, as illegal terrorist groups.