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Israel wants to kill Palestinians silently

July 19, 2018 at 9:39 am

Palestinians carry an injured protester after Israeli forces fired tear gas at protesters during the Great March of Return on 3 July 2018 [Mohammed Asad/Middle East Monitor]

Early this week the Israeli Knesset approved the first reading of what is known the Facebook Bill which stipulates that Israeli authorities are entitled to request internet giants like Facebook, Google and others to delete content under the pretext of inciting terror.

Then on Tuesday the Israeli Knesset passed a law that will ban rights groups which disclose crimes committed by Israeli soldiers against the Palestinians from entering Israeli schools and speaking with pupils.

Israeli Education Minister Naftali Bennet, who initiated this law, said that it is targeting the people who are working to delegitimise the state of Israel: “The reality in which organisations that undermine the legitimacy of the State of Israel and slander IDF soldiers will get to school children has ended today,” he told Israeli media.

He referred to the Israeli NGO Breaking the Silence, which interviews former Israeli soldiers who committed violations and acted brutally against the Palestinians when they were serving in the occupied Palestinian territories.

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“Breaking the Silence crossed the line a long time ago of legitimate dialogue when they chose to slander the State of Israel in the international arena,” Bennet said.

Israeli MK David Bitan has said that he “examined whether, legally speaking, if I can ask the interior minister to revoke the citizenship of B’Tselem’s executive director. I checked, and there’s no legal avenue for doing so today, but we must strip his citizenship.”

Bitan’s remarks came after the director of the Israeli rights group addressed the UN Security Council and spoke about Israel’s violation of international law and disclosed Israeli army crimes before international leaders.

In a letter to B’Tselem, Director General of the Israeli National-Civilian Service Authority accused B’Tselem of spreading lies, claiming that it carried out “activities against the State of Israel and IDF soldiers in Israel and around the world”.

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All these efforts are aimed at preventing the dissemination of information about daily Israeli violations against the Palestinians. Israel calls Palestinians and pro-Palestine activists who post Israeli crimes on social media hate inciters. Therefore, it is working on the Facebook Bill to continue its brutalities.

Representatives of Breaking the Silence, according to Israeli lawmakers, must not mix with Israeli students at schools in case they give them distorted information about the crimes of the Israeli army.

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B’Tselem, the leading Israeli rights group, is accused of telling lies because it spoke to international leaders about the crimes of the Israeli army practiced against the Palestinians.

“There is a clear line between legitimate political opinions in Israel and disseminating and publishing lies and slander, which cause severe damage to Israel and IDF soldiers,” National-Civilian Service Authority Director General Sar-Shalom Djerbi wrote in his letter.

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Israel will only be happy when there is no one to speak about Israeli crimes and the brutal killing of Palestinians. Even when the UN Human Rights Council speaks about its crimes Israel accuses it of being anti-Semitic.

Israeli Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman commented on a resolution by the UNHRC taken against Israel: “Israel has no business being in the UN’s Human Rights Council”. He said its “presence there gives legitimacy to… anti-Semitic resolutions, and the farce must end”.

So, you have to remain silent about Israel’s crimes or you are accused of telling lies and being anti-Semitic and then the Israeli parliament constitutes laws against you.

The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.