Inflammatory consequences…writes Michael Kuttner
Incendiary incitement usually results in a burning desire to take action and so it proved this past week.
Michael Kuttner
It has taken the better part of a week and international assistance to douse the wildfires which “spontaneously” erupted up and down the country. The end result has been large swathes of forest and nature reserves plus homes and communities destroyed and damaged. People have been displaced causing disruptions to normal life and precious personal property has been lost to the flames.
There is ample evidence of deliberate arson and as the police arrest more suspects it is becoming clear that a concerted campaign of terror by fire was launched. It has been proven over many years that inflammatory incitement inevitably leads to pyromaniac terror and other forms of terrorist activity. The drip feed of poison which is imbibed by Arab school children, teenagers and adults inculcates a culture of hate which leads to acts of violence.
If further proof was needed it was provided by the eruption of joyous celebrations in Arab media. Celebrating the devastation being caused, those who have been conditioned to hate took to the streets and held parties. Needless to say this spurred on others to start new fires and thus the atmosphere of incitement fuelled the ongoing mayhem. It is important to point out that most of the joy expressed emanated from Palestinian Arabs and others in the wider Arab world. Israeli Arabs on the other hand, realising that these terror tactics threatened their homes as well, generally condemned the arsonists and offered practical assistance to those displaced.
Much has been made of the fact that Abbas offered support of PA fire fighting teams. It should be noted that this gesture does not herald the dawn of peace and brotherhood but instead a sober realisation that the conflagrations also threatened PA towns. It’s a bit rich to wax enthusiastically over someone who having incited his people to fight the “Israeli colonial apartheid oppressors” all of a sudden comes to the understanding that those who take action in support of his incitement threaten to burn his own house down.
Meanwhile the UN engaged in some more hypocritical contortions. On 29 November which marked the 69th Anniversary of the 1947 partition plan another grotesque charade took place in the General Assembly. When the partition plan was first suggested which would have seen the creation of a Jewish and Arab State the reaction was one of total rejection by Arab countries. Inflammatory threats against the very idea of a Jewish State formed the basis for years of hate and incitement. Instead of recognising that reality the UN has turned the event into a spectacle of Israel bashing under the ludicrous title of “day of solidarity with the Palestinians.” This year the President of the General Assembly draped himself in a PLO scarf and flag and launched off onto a distorted version of history. Mind you he was not alone. Jimmy Carter once again trotted out a perverted diatribe in the NY Times in which Israel naturally is responsible for every conceivable sin. The UN has also demanded that Israel hand back the Golan to Assad. Anything more detached from reality would be hard to find.
The death of Fidel Castro provided yet another opportunity for an outpouring of political rubbish on a grand scale. In a classic example of “birds of a feather flock together” the avalanche of laudatory songs of praise for a dictator who had suppressed democratic freedoms reached unbelievable proportions. Our “peace partners” excelled in extolling the support given by Castro to their cause. Leading Palestinian Arab politicians lauded “the historical relationship between the PA and Cuba.” The Popular Front for the Liberation of (all) Palestine, a terrorist group, memorialised Castro and praised “his consistent support for the oppressed peoples of the world in their confrontation with imperialism, Zionism, racism and capitalism.” Abbas instructed that flags be flown at half mast. Syria and North Korea joined in eulogising Castro. Need one say more?
The French are at it again. They have issued instructions that goods from Judea, Samaria, Jerusalem and the Golan must be labeled as “settler products.” I suggest that all products originating in French occupied settler territories, of which there are quite a few, be similarly labeled and boycotted.
The Trondheim municipality in Norway has decided to boycott Israeli products. The irony of this being initiated in a country which gave us the word “Quisling” during the Nazi occupation should not be overlooked.
Fatah has invited Hamas and Islamic Jihad representatives to its congress which is currently taking place in Ramallah. Abbas, who was last elected leader of Fatah in 2009 for a five year term, has been unanimously re-appointed. As the incendiary rhetoric ramps up we can expect more consequences to follow.
The Dutch Parliament has voted to ban burqas. Switzerland has banned the building of minarets. Have you by any chance heard any outpouring of outrage from the international community? There won’t be any because outrage is usually solely reserved for Israel.
Currently there is a lot of outrage because Israel wishes to enforce its noise pollution laws. The Moslem call to prayer can be heard five times a day starting as early as 4am. This is no muted noise but full throated blasts from several loudspeakers. Not only calls to prayer but also sermons and inflammatory exhortations blasted at full volume from every Mosque in the land. If you happen to live in Jerusalem for example your sleep will be disturbed and conversation is impossible. It should be noted that Israel like most advanced countries has laws against loud music or noise which may interfere with one’s quality of life. Nobody is suggesting that there should be bans but merely that the noise level should be reduced to a reasonable level. However the outrage convulsing Islamic countries as well as others, demonstrates yet again the hypocrisy and double standards so prevalent. It also demonstrates the intolerance endemic in so many societies where inciteful language inevitably leads to physical violence.
The blackened landscape is a stark reminder of the inevitable consequences of non stop inflammatory incitement. It serves to remind us that while we plant, develop and build, our misnamed “peace” partners prefer to destroy and burn. Until there is a fundamental change in their hate filled agenda they can forget about establishing another terror State in our midst. They missed the boat in 1947 and failed to destroy Israel in 1948 and subsequent years.
Why on earth would we now want to present them with another opportunity to try again?
Michael Kuttner is a Jewish New Zealander who for many years was actively involved with various communal organisations connected to Judaism and Israel. He now lives in Israel and is J-Wire’s correspondent in the region.
