For all the sturm and drang of recent months, efforts by Israel's coalition to reform our judicial system have so far created only a minor crisis – nothing compared to the catastrophe we will face if we don't create a constitution soon.

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First, there's no doubt that the nation's inarguably undemocratic judicial system needed repair. But those defects pale when we analyze the inherently dysfunctional structure of Israel's executive and legislative branches.

The legislative branch- – our only popularly elected body – is also the weakest, since it is ruled with an iron hand by the executive branch. Members of the government's ruling coalition are not beholden to voters as much as they owe fealty to the ruling party leader, the prime minister.

In short, Israel's legislative and executive branches are not separated – not independent – and don't check or balance each other. Rather they are melded into an organization whose highest value is obedience to its ruler.

Yet, despite its power, the executive branch is often held hostage by disproportionate demands of small parties, who are often the linchpins of a coalition's stability. If the coalition commands only a thin majority, even the smallest partner can bring it down.

Thus, we have a government whose power is rigid and lock-stepped by one or a very few powerful party leaders, yet is fragile, often subject to the rogue wishes of an obstinate minority party.

This highly centralized power structure, whose members have little allegiance to a specific group of voters, combined with a hair-trigger vulnerability to collapse, adds up to a weak, wobbly governmental structure that can collapse at any moment.

We need a constitution.

No wonder that in 1994, Supreme Court Chief Justice Aharon Barak was frustrated. Not only was the government wayward and unreliable, but his court also lacked formal, detailed legal guidelines to help it make judgments on all manner of issues regarding civil and humanitarian rights.

For this reason, Barak arrogated to his court the rights to base decisions on judges' own sense of reasonableness – a patently subjective, non-legal criterion. Since there was also a legal vacuum as to what the court could or could not rule on, the court assumed for itself – with no legal limit except its own discretion – broad jurisdiction to rule on virtually any social or legislative matters, whether legislated or not. As if this unbridled power were not undemocratic enough, the court also maintains the power to choose its own members, with no oversight by any elected representatives.

We need a constitution.

Our current combination of a strong-fragile, mutually dependent legislative-executive branch – whose members are not directly elected – with a supremely powerful high court of justice, makes for a volatile, explosive combination.

Without a constitution we will likely soon face an insoluble crisis, pitting the coalition government directly against the court – with no clear legal path to resolution.

Here's how things could explode: Israel's Supreme Court decides to overrule the coalition's new legislation, which limits the Court's right to make decisions based on "reasonableness" – by calling the new law "unreasonable." The coalition stands firm and orders all branches of government to ignore any Court decisions that violate the new law. Who will the IDF obey? Who will the unions obey? Who will our universities and financial machers obey?

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If enough dissident Israelis take to the streets, disrupting transportation, medical care and other vital services, the resulting conflict could be a disaster – for the Israeli economy and our society in general. It could lead to dissolution of the government and shred our social fabric.

We need a constitution . . . urgently. It should be created by a constituent assembly, funded and chartered by the Knesset. This assembly will create a constitution that resolves the fundamental contradictions and black holes in our system of governance. For those who claim they support Israeli democracy, there is no other choice. It needs to happen now.

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In two major West Bank towns – Jenin and Nablus – the Palestinian Authority has lost control, and rogue gangs rule the land. Last week, thousands of Gazans protested in the streets – risking brutal backlash from the Hamas regime. Meanwhile, talks in Egypt meant to reconcile the PA and Hamas after 17 bitter years have again hopelessly failed.

No surprise: Despite billions of dollars in "welfare" from the United States, Arab states, and the European Union, Palestinian institutions are in a death spiral. Both the PA and Hamas lack political stability or security control, their economies are bankrupt, the two rival dictatorships cannot reconcile and neither has a vision for statehood, let alone peace … other than the destruction of Israel.

Discouragingly, the Palestinians appear further from independence than ever.

The political instability of both Palestinian regimes undermines citizens' trust in their leadership and further radicalizes them – imperiling their independence movement.

According to the latest poll conducted by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research, 80% of Palestinians want 87-year-old PA President Mahmoud Abbas to resign. An Arab News/YouGov poll indicates 63% of Palestinians feel underrepresented by both Hamas and Fatah, the two most powerful Palestinian factions. In fact, just 11% have confidence in Fatah, while only 19% have confidence in Hamas.

At the same time, the majority of Palestinians – 71% – support the formation of armed terrorist groups like Lions' Den. In addition, 52% of Palestinians support continued "armed struggle" – more terrorism – against Israel.

Palestinians' lack of trust in their rulers isn't surprising given their rulers' lack of legitimacy. President Abbas is in the nineteenth year of his four-year term. Though in ill health, he has yet to choose a successor. A bloody power struggle will likely follow his death. The Palestinian parliament has not functioned since 2006, and of course, no one elected Hamas to rule the Gaza Strip since 2007.

Neither the PA nor Hamas has full security control over their respective territories – making it inconceivable that either could control a unified, sovereign state.

The PA has all but ceded control of Jenin and Nablus in Samaria (northern West Bank) to armed terrorist gangs. Last month, Israel conducted a large-scale raid in Jenin to neutralize its terrorist infrastructure and halt murders of Israeli civilians. While Israel temporarily cleaned up the PA's mess, the rebels will surely regroup.

Meanwhile, in the Gaza Strip, Hamas shares power with several terrorist militias. Last May, Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) spent days bombarding Israel with rockets, forcing the Jewish state to retaliate. Hamas refrained from fighting, yet did not prevent PIJ from attacking Israel – demonstrating the Hamas rulers were either unwilling or unable to curb rival terrorists.

The failure of both the PA and Hamas to effectively control their respective territories – and prevent their use as terrorist bases to attack Israel – proves convincingly the Palestinians are unprepared for statehood.

A nation-state must have reasonable economic independence – yet both the PA and Hamas are bankrupt, entirely devoid of sustainable industries, and utterly dependent on international welfare.

Between 1994 and 2020, the Palestinians received more than $40 billion in aid. About a third came from the West – 18.9% from the European Union and 14.2% from the United States. With all this financial aid, the Palestinians could have built a spectacularly successful economy.

Instead, Palestinians live from hand to mouth. About one in four Palestinians has no job. The unemployment rate in the Gaza Strip alone is 45%. In addition, nearly half of young graduates aged 19-29 are unemployed.

Why, then, haven't the billions in aid improved the lives of ordinary Palestinians? One reason is that much of it goes toward terrorist activities. For example, the PA spends between $170 million and $283 million yearly on its "pay-for-slay" policy – rewarding with generous monthly salaries Palestinians who murder Jews. Abbas has obstinately gone on record saying, "If we had only a single penny left, we would pay it to families of the martyrs and prisoners."

Another reason is economic corruption. The PA is a cesspool of insider family- and tribal-business deals. Abbas' millionaire sons control huge businesses. In Gaza, a leading German newspaper Die Welt reported in 2021 that Hamas has a secret investment portfolio worth $500 million, which, according to the World Bank, could have repaired all the physical damage in the Gaza Strip from the terror group's war with Israel in 2021.

Misappropriating funds for terrorism and economic oligarchies have led to the failure of the Palestinians to create a self-sufficient economy – a key requirement of any viable, functioning state.

The violent fragmentation of the Palestinian political establishment also makes a unified government – and in the future, a unified state – inconceivable.

Notwithstanding numerous attempts at reconciliation between the PA and Hamas in order to reunite the autonomous Palestinian territories, all attempts have failed. Most recently, in Egypt last month, Hamas insisted on violent resistance to Israel, whereas Abbas advocated "peaceful" resistance, despite his regime's generous incentives to murdering terrorists.

Above all, neither the PA nor Hamas has a strategy to achieve statehood, preferring their hopeless quest to destroy Israel over peaceful coexistence. Hamas continues to reject any recognition of the Jewish state, while the PA occasionally pays lip service to the two-state solution. But in reality, the PA also rejects Israel's existence.

Both the PA and Hamas fail to prepare their people for peace. Palestinian children in both territories still learn from their textbooks to hate and murder Jews – who allegedly stole land the Palestinians never possessed. The PA continues to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to reward the murder of innocent Israelis.

No wonder the Palestinian independence movement is languishing: Its structures are crumbling, and its dictatorships continue their internecine warfare. Neither Hamas nor the PA effectively controls its own territory. Neither has a self-sustaining economy. Rather than a hopeful dream, they are animated by hate. In short, the Palestinians haven't achieved an independent state because, sadly, they lack the prerequisites – viable institutions and a life-affirming spirit.

Reprinted with permission from JNS.org.

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Over the last 75 years, since Israel's founding, the Palestinians have achieved the dubious distinction of being among the world's most persistent and brutal terrorists.

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Against all evidence, Palestinian leaders apparently believe this strategy will eventually achieve self-determination. Note that the world's most famous and beloved leaders usually motivate their people with an uplifting vision regarding how to achieve freedom, prosperity, or greatness. Martin Luther King's "I have a dream" speech, for example, was an inspiration to black Americans who yearned for equal rights.

Unfortunately, the Palestinians have never had such a visionary. Instead, their leaders attempt to motivate Palestinians with the nightmarish vision of eliminating the Jews – killing them and driving them from their ancestral home in Israel. Hardly the vision of Dr. King.

Notwithstanding, historical evidence is crystal clear: Palestinian terrorism, since Israel's independence 75 years ago, has not worked at all. What's also clear is that while the Palestinians have become skilled at the art of terrorism, they have failed miserably to establish the conditions needed for independence and statehood.

Indeed, it would seem that Palestinian leaders have focused on precisely the wrong skills. They have steadfastly ignored the arduous political work of instilling democratic values, creating governmental institutions and building an economy. Rather, Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) leaders like Yasser Arafat and Mahmoud Abbas, as well as Hamas leaders such as Ismail Haniyeh and Khaled Mashaal have been better revolutionaries than statesmen.

What should be abundantly obvious, though, is that a strategy of terrorist murder will never bring Israel to the peace table. What should also be self-evident is that without leaders who dream of peace and democracy – in a well-oiled, functioning state, with a financially independent economy – the Palestinians will never create the independent nation they say they crave.

Surely, the Palestinians' commitment to terror as a strategy cannot be doubted. They rank as some of the longest practicing and heartless "freedom fighters." They have killed thousands of innocent Israelis – from the murder of a 19-year-old Israeli girl in 1952 to the Munich Olympics massacre in 1970, the Achille Lauro piracy murders in 1985, and 1,500 more killings of Israeli citizens during the First Intifada (1987-1993) and Second Intifada (2000-2005).

Tragically, such Palestinian murder and attempted attacks on innocents continue at a record-breaking pace today in Israel. Think of the British-Israeli sisters – aged 15 and 20 – killed just last month with their mother (48) in an execution-style, drive-by terrorist murder. Think of the two Israeli brothers, Hillel and Yagel Yaniv (19 and 21 years old), shot at point blank and killed as their car was stopped for a traffic light in an Arab Palestinian town. They were on their way to a wedding.

Nonetheless, despite this decades-long war waged by Palestinian leaders on Israel – and despite numerous Israeli offers to relinquish nearly all the West Bank, grant a Palestinian capital in Jerusalem, plus eliminate settlements – those same leaders have still refused to accept peace.

Indeed, it would seem Palestinians leaders are more committed to their violent strategy against Israel than to their actual liberation.

Surely the money and effort spent by Palestinian leaders on anti-Zionist violence could better have been used to create a culture and diplomatic atmosphere conducive to peace and democracy. As it is, the Palestinian people are so indoctrinated in Jew hatred and the "injustice" of a Jewish state, some reports say their leaders fear assassination if they were actually to sign a peace treaty.

Just as important as failing to promote a mentality that supports peace, the Palestinians have also allowed their terrorist zeal to distract them and misdirect their resources from building governmental institutions and a self-sufficient economy.

Current Palestinian political organizations are in shambles. The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) has effectively disintegrated and has long excluded Hamas and other Islamist factions. The Palestinian Legislative Council – supposedly the governing parliament – has not met as a body in some 11 years, nor held elections since 2006.

The Palestinian Authority, established by the Oslo Accords, has become a corrupt iron hand of P.A. President Mahmoud Abbas' regime. Two thirds of Palestinians say they want Abbas – now in the 18th year of his four-year term – to resign. In any case, the frail 87-year-old Abbas is bound to leave office soon, one way or the other. Unfortunately, he has created no line of succession or even designated an heir-apparent, so chaos will only escalate following his departure.

Finally, major efforts by Abbas and his bitter competitors – the designated-terrorist Hamas regime in Gaza – to reconcile have utterly failed. Rather than a single, well-oiled Palestinian government, the two dictatorships are in a frozen stalemate, effective only in generating effete gestures of anti-Israel violence.

Struggling national movements that inherit legacy industries – like the Iraqi Kurds' oil fields – have it tough enough. But Palestinian leaders have zero experience managing a national economy, let alone launching one.

Both the PA and Hamas have been dependent for survival on funding from international sources, which have been unreliable – and shrinking – over the decades. While the PA has received more than $40 billion in foreign aid since 1994, it has developed no functioning economy, it's effectively bankrupt, and sadly, still lives hand to mouth.

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Hamas, famously, spends a huge part of its revenue – mostly from Iran and Qatar – on funding military equipment and troops for the futile, unending war it wages against Israel. Its unemployment rate is around 50%.

No wonder US President Biden on his trip to the Middle East last year told Abbas, in a blinding flash of the obvious, that "the ground is not ripe" for peace negotiations.

On top of the Palestinians' abject lack of readiness for their own state, Israelis have grown skeptical even of their neighbors' desire for independence. Indeed, the Palestinians' strategy of heartless murder of Jewish women, children and men, combined with their refusal to seize numerous Israeli offers of land for peace, have made the Jewish population bitter, distrustful and fed-up.

In short, Israel is unlikely to welcome another painful peace process, let alone repeat their generous peace offers of the past.

Palestinian leaders have left their movement bereft of the basic qualities required of statehood: A commitment to peace and democracy, stable governmental institutions and a functioning economy. Above all, if its cruel strategy of terror ever made sense in the past – it did not, of course – today it only causes Israelis to dig in and fight back more fiercely.

Reprinted with permission from JNS.org.

The post Why the Palestinians have failed to create a state appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.

You've no doubt noticed: The Biden administration is obsessed with the so-called two-state solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict. Yet Team Biden virtually never goes beyond lip service – never addresses the huge obstacles to two states, nor does it take concrete actions that would facilitate Palestinian independence.

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Contrary to what the administration keeps preaching, Israeli "settlements" and visits to the Temple Mount pose no major barriers to peace with the Palestinian Arabs. In fact, Palestinians adamantly opposed the Jewish state for many years before Jews began to resettle in Judea and Samaria (the West Bank). And Israeli visits to Jews' holiest site surely pose no barrier to a Palestinian state in the West Bank.

Rather, the two greatest obstacles to Israeli-Palestinian peace are the Palestinians and Israelis themselves. The Palestinians oppose a two-state solution, and prefer an ongoing struggle to "free Palestine from the river to the sea." A poll conducted by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research (PSR) in December 2021 showed only 39% of Palestinians support a two-state solution, while 59% oppose it. Indeed, the Palestinians have conducted a murderous terrorist war against Israel for more than 50 years and have rejected every serious proposal for peace and a Palestinian state offered by Israel and its ally, the United States.

A majority of Israelis – 58% – also oppose a Palestinian state at this time. Their reason: The Palestinians steadfastly refuse to accept the Jewish state and show no willingness to make peace. According to a poll by the Israel Democracy Institute in 2022, just 32% of Israelis support a two-state solution.

If President Biden and company truly want two states, they must create – and implement – a comprehensive strategy to address Palestinians' resistance to the goal of Jewish Israel and Arab Palestine, living peacefully side by side.

Above all, the United States should diplomatically pressure and condition funding to the Palestinians on removing the two key obstacles to this goal: 1. Palestinian rejection of a Jewish state in the region, and 2. the Palestinians' mission of destroying Israel as their means to freedom. Palestinian leaders indoctrinate their people to hate Jews and Israel daily – from children's TV and schoolhouse curricula to pulpit sermons and news programs. These leaders also incite the Palestinian public to commit acts of terrorism against the Jewish state and its citizens by financially rewarding terrorist murderers.

Above all, the United States should stop coddling Palestinian leaders – both in Judea and Samaria and in Gaza. Both dictatorships need to realize it is they who are the agents of peace with Israel and of their own eventual independence. Instead of hectoring Israel with the "two states" mantra, the United States needs to help the Palestinians recognize there will be no Palestinian state without significant cultural, economic and political changes. Specifically, Washington should focus energies and resources on assisting the Palestinians overcome five fundamental obstacles currently preventing peace with Israel and their own independence.

First, it must make its funding for the Palestinian Authority, currently about $235 million per year, contingent on a) the PA reforming its notorious educational materials to promote peace and co-existence to children, rather than terrorism and Jew hatred; and b) reforming government media so TV news broadcasts no longer deliver daily diatribes about "filthy Jews" and the Zionist enemy who "stole their land." Aid must also be conditioned on the Palestinian leadership ending its unconscionable "pay-for-slay" program – paying lifetime salaries to terrorists who kill innocent Jews. Currently the Palestinians spend some $300 million annually on this program. Ironically, rather than supporting peace initiatives, US taxpayer dollars currently fund most of the pay-for slay program costs.

In short, the United States should reward good behavior and penalize bad behavior. It should stipulate that our financial support depends on the Palestinians ending terrorism and promoting peace. Without such incentives, there is surely no hope for the two-state solution that Biden and other Americans swear they are committed to.

Second, Washington must step up its support for the Abraham Accords, to promote Arab-Israeli cooperation and commerce. Simultaneously, it should invite the Palestinians to take part in the economic and cultural cooperation thriving around them, while making it clear that progress towards normalization and peace will continue with or without them.

Third, it must harshly condemn Hamas's efforts in the Gaza Strip to lure Israel into wars by periodically launching unprovoked attacks against the Jewish state. Likewise, it should emphatically lend its support to the international community when Israel fights back.

Fourth, it needs to help the Palestinians develop economic self-sufficiency. Currently corruption abounds in the Palestinian economy, and about one in four Palestinians has no job. Without Western aid, the economy would collapse. No two-state solution can happen without a self-sustaining Palestinian economy.

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The United States and European Union pour hundreds of millions of dollars into "support" for the Palestinians, but where does this money go? Where are the US- and EU-sponsored training, incubator and economic development programs? The most lucrative opportunity in the self-ruled Palestinian territories should be meaningful employment, not terrorist pay-for-slay.

Fifth and finally, the United States should make a concerted effort to strengthen the PA and help it regain control of all autonomous Palestinian territories, including Gaza. Two states and Palestinian independence will remain a fantasy until the Palestinians achieve some level of political unity and stability – the structure and institutions of a state.

The challenge, of course, is that the Palestinians are fractured into two dictatorships – one ruled by the belligerent terrorist group Hamas, with the PA in charge of a competing government in Judea and Samaria (the West Bank). Unfortunately, the PA is slowly losing control of its territory to various semi-independent Palestinian militias. While there's no denying the messiness of the Palestinian political reality, there's also no denying that a two-state solution remains impossible with rogue armed groups roaming Palestinian streets.

In sum, if Washington is serious about two states, it must seek to pacify the Palestinians and help them achieve political institutions reliable enough to sustain true independence.

Moreover, if it wants to make the two-state solution a cornerstone of its Middle East policy, it must firmly commit to creating conditions within Palestinian society that make independence possible. Until then, the United States should wholeheartedly support Israel's efforts to protect its people from terrorism fueled by Palestinian refusal to accept the Jewish state.

Reprinted with permission from JNS.org.

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While so-called "progressives" and biased media in the United States level a relentless stream of accusations against Israel, these "critics" uniformly ignore the fact that Israel is one of the most liberal, progressive nations in the world. If Israel's "progressive" critics really cared about social justice, they would be the country's most fervent supporters.

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Enemies of Israel falsely accuse Israel of white colonialism, apartheid, ultra-nationalism, unfair treatment of its Arab citizens, LGBT "pinkwashing," theocracy and violations of international law.

In fact, Israel is a mature democracy with high-functioning government and judicial institutions, plus a long track record of moral behavior and the rule of law. It guarantees expansive civil liberties, equal rights and economic opportunities to its citizens.

This includes, of course, Israel's two million Arab citizens – 20% of the population – who share all the benefits of Israeli society.

Israeli Arabs are currently represented in the Knesset by two political parties, one of which is an Islamist party that was part of the outgoing government. An Arab Muslim judge serves on Israel's Supreme Court. An Arab Christian also served as a Supreme Court justice and was chair of Israel's Central Elections Committee.

An Arab Muslim is the head of Bank Leumi, Israel's largest bank. Arabs also make up 30% of the country's doctors and 50% of the country's pharmacists.

Thousands of Israeli Arabs volunteer for service in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), even though military service is not required of Arab Muslims or Christians.

So much for the myth of Israeli apartheid.

Israel is the Middle East's most diverse nation and one of the world's most diverse nations. In fact, the overwhelming majority of its population are people of color – including more than half of Israeli Jews, who mostly hail from Africa and the Middle East.

The IDF is also extremely diverse, boasting service members from 73 nations and a Muslim holding the rank of major.

Israel protects freedom of religion. Unlike most of its Middle East neighbors, all religions – including all branches of Judaism – are welcome, and Israel is the only Middle Eastern country in which Christians are growing in numbers. Israel also hosts the world headquarters of the Bahai faith.

Israel believes in and practices full social equality. Women enjoy complete freedom, serve in all levels of government and business and even participate in the military draft. The IDF has six female brigadier generals and a female fighter pilot.

Abortion is legal in Israel. There are no state restrictions on racial or religious intermarriage. Same-sex marriages are recognized by the legal system. This was the case nine years before same-sex marriage was legalized in the US. In addition, while the abusive practice of "conversion therapy" for members of the LGBT community is still legal in some parts of the US, it is banned in Israel.

While homosexuality and sexual diversity are either outlawed or severely censured in almost all Middle Eastern countries, Israel hosts some of the largest and liveliest celebrations of LGBT life in the world. Tel Aviv is rightfully dubbed the Gay Capital of the Middle East.

Israel even grants asylum to members of the LGBT community living in areas under the jurisdiction of the Palestinian Authority, where there is harsh, often violent punishment of sexual minorities, and no legislation to protect their rights.

Israel is an exemplary citizen in the community of nations. In the face of natural disasters worldwide – hurricanes, earthquakes, tsunamis – the Jewish state's response with medical help and food supplies is unparalleled. Tiny Israel is usually one of the first countries to send aid.

The IDF observes some of the strictest rules of engagement in the world in order to protect civilians in war zones. Such policies often put IDF troops at risk by sending them on the ground into dangerous areas rather than employing tactics like carpet bombing, which could lead to the deaths of many innocents.

Alleged violations of the IDF's rules of engagement by soldiers – such as the death of journalist Shireen Abu Akleh – are seriously investigated and severely punished when proven, which Akleh's was not.

Finally, Israel is far from a colonial settler state. It was founded by indigenous Jews returning to their homeland in opposition to colonial rule, and its founding was legitimized under international law by the United Nations.

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Israel also strictly adheres to the letter of the international protocols and treaties to which it is a party. For example, despite constant lies that Israel disobeys the Geneva Conventions against occupation, Israel has never relocated its citizens to the territory of another nation.

In short, Israel is one of the world's most moral, enlightened democracies – few nations can match its expansive civil rights, legal protections for minorities, equality of liberties and opportunities and adherence to international law. No wonder the EIU 2021 Democracy Index ranked Israel the world's 23rd most successful democracy – ahead of the US, Spain, Italy and 139 other nations.

Far from being a white colonial nation, an oppressor of Arabs or a violator of human rights, Israel is one of the freest, most diverse and law-abiding countries in the world.

Reprinted with permission from JNS.org.

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After being called an antisemite for her UN commission's savage, one-sided attacks on Israel, Navi Pillay protested that "I am 81 years old, and this is the first time I've ever been accused of antisemitism."

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Pillay, now chairperson of the United Nations Human Rights Council's "Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Including East Jerusalem and Israel," has no reason to be shocked at the accusation. She's lived a long history of antisemitic, anti-Israel activism, as chairperson of both the UNHRC itself and of her latest star chamber, dedicated solely to prosecuting Israel. The recent Commission of Inquiry (COI) report blames the Palestinian-Israel conflict entirely on the Jewish state. The report does not mention Hamas's unprovoked terror attacks on Israel, tens of thousands of missiles rained down on Israeli civilians, or the Palestinians' refusal to accept numerous Israeli peace offers over decades.

Accusing Israel of human rights abuses using outright lies and half-truths is brutally unfair. But UN Watch Executive Director Hillel Neuer states flatly that the COI report is guilty of "shameless bias … it's antisemitic." Indeed, the very name of Pillay's commission confirms its verdict will be biased: To call the disputed region of Judea and Samaria (aka the "West Bank") Occupied Palestinian Territory prejudges peace negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians.

There is, of course, no such legal entity as "the Palestinian Territories." There are only disputed territories in the region that the Palestinians and Israel have agreed in the Oslo Accords to jointly and severally govern. Israel has every legal right to administrative and security control in large parts of Judea and Samaria. The COI fully disregards these legal agreements.

According to the COI report, Jews also have no historical rights to a presence in Judea and Samaria. The report ignores Jewish presence in its ancient biblical homeland for thousands of years until 1948, when Jordan ethnically cleansed it of all Jews. When Israel defeated Jordan in the 1967 Six-Day War, it recovered this territory. Though the Palestinians have never owned or controlled any land in the region, the COI now magically grants it to them.

By any definition, Pillay and her two fellow henchmen on the COI qualify as antisemites. Pillay herself has accused Israel of apartheid, which she knows is a patent lie. Israel has never had any laws separating or discriminating against its citizens because of race – the key characteristic of South African apartheid. This attempt to demonize Israel alone is enough to make the antisemitism label stick to Pillay.

Pillay was in charge of the United Nations' 2009 Goldstone Report, which accused the Israel Defense Forces of war crimes and crimes against humanity. The report's evidence was later exposed as fraudulent, causing its main author, Justice Richard Goldstone, to disavow it. Navi Pillay, however, has refused to repudiate the lies – another example of her demonization of Israel.

Pillay also supports the hateful BDS movement, which, since it opposes the existence of the Jewish state, is blatant delegitimization – another bright marker of antisemitism. One of Pillay's colleagues on the COI tribunal, Miloon Kothari, just last June inferred that social media are controlled by the "Jewish lobby" – a notorious antisemitic trope – and he questioned the right of Israel to be a member of the United Nations. In response, US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield affirmed there's "no place for such antisemitism and anti-Israel sentiment at the UN"

Clearly, the COI triumvirate is immune to the stench of anti-Jewish bias. Its third member, Chris Sidoti, mockingly said that "accusations of antisemitism are thrown around like rice at a wedding." Except it's not a joke when the hate is real.

No wonder the COI's latest report, just presented to the UN General Assembly, was slammed by Israel's UN Ambassador Gilad Erdan, who noted that 30% of the UNHRC's resolutions attack Israel – more condemnations than against North Korea, Iran and Syria combined. Gratifyingly, Erdan's statement was supported by Hungary, the United States, Canada, Australia, Guatemala, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Germany, among others.

Shamefully, the UNHRC does not fret about China's imprisonment of a million ethnic Uyghurs; Russia's violent colonialism in seizing huge parts of Ukraine; the world's largest population of slaves in Africa; or billions of people living in more than 100 nations who are denied basic democratic rights. Instead, the United Nations focuses inordinate attention excoriating the world's only Jewish state – one of the world's most vibrant and successful democracies; one of the most inspiring stories of self-determination by an indigenous people; one of the world's most ethnically diverse nations, of which 20% are Arabs; one of the freest countries for women and sexual minorities; birthplace of some of the world's most innovative technologies; and one of the "happiest" nations on earth.

Yet tiny Israel has only 9.5 million people – only 7.5 million Jews. All Jews worldwide number just 14.8 million. Jews make up only about 0.2% of the world's population of 7.95 billion people. Only one in 1,000 of the world's people are Jews. With all the injustice wrought by North Korean, Syrian, Iranian, Russian dictatorships on hundreds of millions of people, why does Israel deserve so much attention from the United Nations?

If you try to explain the disproportion of criticism, violent attacks and outright hate expended on the Jewish people and their one and only state – in the United Nations and on the streets of the United States and Europe – there simply cannot be any other explanation than racism. Racism means hateful prejudice with no rational basis. Racism against Jews is antisemitism.

Like all antisemites, Navi Pillay will deny her prejudice until her dying day. We can't expect her – or other antisemites to stop just because we call them out. However, last January, a bipartisan group of 42 House members called for US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to defund the UNHRC Commission of Inquiry. Indeed, the United States should immediately withdraw funding for the Commission of Inquiry…preferably also including its parent, the decidedly antisemitic UNHRC. Neither deserves our moral or financial support.

Reprinted with permission from JNS.org.

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The post When an anti-Israeli UN official denies any bias appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.

Sen. Robert Menendez, one of Israel's most stalwart – and passionate – supporters, dropped a bombshell last week when he warned former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against forming a coalition government with Israel's far-right Religious Zionist Party, one of whose leaders is the outspoken attorney-politician Itamar Ben-Gvir.

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Mendendez's bold statement raises the question as to whether Israeli politicians may also exercise their right to suggest whom American political parties should allow into their coalitions.

Menendez reportedly told Netanyahu that including Ben-Gvir in Israel's next government would threaten US-Israel relations. As chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Menendez has the power to make that danger real.

His warning was echoed by Rep. Brad Sherman, who urged Israeli politicians to "ostracize extremists like Itamar Ben-Gvir." Neither Sherman nor Menendez specified any Ben-Gvir views to which they object.

Ben-Gvir hasn't made Netanyahu's decision easy: He has a reputation for making statements against Arab Israelis – such as suggesting deportation of those who attack Israeli soldiers, a proposal some consider racist.

This past weekend, when Arab rioters attacked a prayer service that Ben-Gvir was attending in Jerusalem, he drew a pistol and waved it at stone-throwers.

On the other hand, Ben-Gvir swears he is not racist – that indeed he is an anti-racist, fighting antisemitic instigation within the boundaries of Israel's "homeland" by the likes of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, with the aim of defeating them "just as the United States defeated Al-Qaeda."

Netanyahu's decision on Ben-Gvir is likely to come soon, since Israel's next national election – its fifth in just four years – is slated for Nov. 1. Because so many parties are vying for control of the Knesset, top politicians will almost surely face huge challenges in negotiating a ruling coalition partnership … once again.

Currently, Netanyahu's Likud party looks likely to capture the most seats in the Knesset – projected at 32 – but nowhere near enough to clinch a 61-seat majority. Which means in order to govern, Netanyahu may well be forced to include the Religious Zionist Party, which with 13 seats is likely to rank as the nation's third-strongest faction.

Americans should note that in a rough-and-tumble Israeli election, one thing is fairly certain: About 62% of voters will support right-leaning parties.

This percentage has grown substantially over recent years, mostly at the expense of the political center (now about 24% of voters) and the left (now about 11%).

Even so, Netanyahu's path to the premiership is not certain: Some polls show him only able to muster 59 or 60 seats, short of a majority – throwing more uncertainty into the mix. While right-leaning voters are a clear majority in Israel, their division among the various right-wing parties still makes it difficult to form a right-leaning government.

In other words, if Netanyahu's only path to governance is by coalescing with Ben-Gvir and the Religious Zionist Party, he is going to do it. (And so, we believe, would Sen. Menendez.)

Contrast Israel's voter sentiments with those in the United States in the run-up to the midterm elections on Nov. 8. We can safely say American voters are generally split between left and right, with most voting in the center. While coastal states lean left and the country's center leans right, no one party shows a clear advantage.

Indeed, Democrats' margin of control in the Senate is just a single vote. Its majority in the 435-member House of Representatives is just eight – which could easily be swept away in the midterms.

Notably, one of the Democrat's newest Senate members, Raphael Warnock, has accused Israel of being an apartheid state – clearly a falsehood and clearly antisemitic on the grounds of demonization and delegitimization of the Jewish state.

How receptive would President Biden – or Sen. Menendez – be to Israeli suggestions that Democrats exclude Warnock from their governing coalition?

Likewise, six members of the Democratic "Squad" in the House – made up of Reps. Ocasio-Cortez, Omar, Tlaib, Pressley, Bowman and Bush – have all made anti-Israel (and many openly antisemitic) statements.

Should Knesset members recommend that Squad members be disavowed by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi or stripped of their membership on key House committees?

While Sen. Menendez' support of Israel is respected and highly valued, his attempt to influence the will of Israeli voters and the composition of Israel's government is misplaced and unwelcome.

Likewise, while a handful of American politicians in both the House and Senate have made clearly antisemitic and anti-Israel remarks, Israeli members of the Knesset have rightly resisted making recommendations to either political party as to who should serve in the United States government.

Reprinted with permission from JNS.org.

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Israel's enemies need little excuse to criticize – and more often condemn – the world's only Jewish state. Their baseless accusations of apartheid, genocide, slaughter and European colonialism seemingly respect no requirement of proof or rules of evidence.

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Thus, despite Israel's superb record of civil liberties, elections, rule of law applied to all citizens and equal opportunity at all levels of society, the country receives outsized doses of vitriol for its alleged lack of democratic values.

Such condemnation, of course, is rarely fact-based, but rather springs from ignorance and, in too many cases, irrational bigotry. These attacks are usually targeted at presumed treatment by Israel of its Arab citizens … as well as, especially, of non-Israeli Arabs living in surrounding disputed territories.

In stark, refreshing contradiction to unsupported accusations against Israel, the new "Democracy Index 2021" by the EIU – Economist Intelligence Unit – ranks Israel twenty-third among modern democracies, scoring it higher than the United States, Spain, Italy and some 139 other nations.

The index ranks countries according to 51 criteria, covering each nation's performance according to its electoral process and pluralism; functioning of government;  political participation; political culture; and civil liberties.

Israel's 2021 ranking shows consistent improvement in its democratic processes compared with the first such report in 2006, when the Jewish state came in at No. 47. In the current report, Israel was lauded for its inclusion of an Arab party in today's ruling government coalition.

No surprise, since Israel's robust democracy has a vibrant electoral tradition, stable governing institutions, high political participation among its citizens, a vigorous, even boisterous political culture, and broad, equal civil liberties for all its citizens.

Unfortunately, even as Israel's democracy improved in the past year, the EIU noted that democracy globally actually deteriorated. This was due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it said, which caused "an unprecedented withdrawal of civil liberties," including "a huge extension of state power over large areas of public and personal life."

In contrast to Israel, the next highest ranking Middle East nation was Tunisia, which only reached seventy-fifth place – and then not as a democracy, but as a "hybrid regime." The Palestinian-controlled territories were ranked as a frankly "authoritarian" regime, at No. 109.

Like all countries in the index, Israel's performance in the EIU evaluation was based on the health and performance of democratic institutions among its citizens.

While critics often unfairly blame Israel for a lack of democratic freedoms in Judea and Samaria ("the West Bank") and Gaza, they ignore the fact that the Oslo Accords give governance responsibilities over Palestinians in those territories almost entirely to their respective dictatorships – the Palestinian Authority and Hamas.

Unfortunately, neither of these Palestinian governments holds regular elections, supports basic civil liberties – like freedoms of speech, assembly and religion – or enforces rule of law. Neither respects women's equality, and both violently persecute members of LGBTQ and religious minorities.

Anti-Israel commentators also usually neglect to acknowledge that Palestinians have been waging a terrorist war against Israel's existence since the state's birth in 1948. Much of Palestinian suffering results from Israel defending itself against these unrelenting attacks, as well as the Palestinian refusal to accept offers of land for peace and a state of their own.

Israel is often also faulted for passage of its "nation-state law" in 2018 – which declares that the country exists to fulfill the Jewish people's "right to self-determination." This attack, however, is a red herring, attempting to discredit a statute that in no way limits Israel's democratic liberties.

Note that this law does not infringe on the rights of individual Israelis, including its two million Arab citizens. Like many other nation states, it merely formalizes symbols of its people – in this case the Jewish people – such as the flag, national anthem and holidays.

Note, too, that while the nation-state law declares Hebrew to be the national language, this is not different than in the United States, in which English is the mother tongue. Nor does Israel's nation-state law establish any official religion – unlike some seven European countries that declare state religions in their very constitutions.

All of this is to point out that Israel can be a proud nation of the Jewish people while still cherishing and implementing one of the most diverse and freest democracies on earth. In fact, some would argue that it is precisely Jewish values that fortify and help guarantee Israel's robust democracy.

In short, no matter what slanderous accusations Israel's enemies employ, the Jewish state objectively remains one of the strongest and most successful democracies on earth. Tiny Israel provides political freedoms and economic opportunities unmatched by the overwhelming majority of the world's nations.

Note finally that the suffering and political plight of the Palestinians has little to do with Israel and is in fact almost entirely the result of authoritarian governance by its terrorist dictatorial regimes and their obstinate refusal to make peace.

Reprinted with permission from JNS.org.

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Israel's enemies' violent attacks exact a high price in Jewish blood. But attacks in the media and by international organizations also exact a high price – in good will and political and economic support among Israel's friends and partners around the world.

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Most anti-Israel attacks in the media take the form of lies – from apartheid to ethnic genocide to the slaughter of Palestinian children.

Indeed, by no rational stretch of these words' meanings can Israel be guilty of such slanders. No separation of or discrimination against citizens by race or ethnicity – no apartheid. No methodical mass murder of people because of race or ethnicity – no genocide. No targeted, purposeful killing of innocent children – no slaughter.

But one libelous accusation persists – largely because the lie is so plain-sounding and its meaning so vague and diffuse: occupation.

Thus, in mainstream and social media – as well as in reports from United Nations agencies and certain NGOs – we learn that Israel "occupies Palestinian territory." This lie would be bad enough. But some of these commentaries raise the stakes, going so far as to call Israel's presence in Judea and Samaria ("the West Bank") an "illegal occupation." This claim is often fortified by citing a "consensus of international opinion" or the Fourth Geneva Convention.

Just as words like apartheid and genocide have actual definitions, so does "occupation" have strict definition under international law and precedent.

First, just because a preponderance of countries in the United Nations vote to condemn Israel's "occupation" doesn't make it illegal. In fact, the notorious anti-Israel voting patterns of U.N. members are well documented.

To put a sharper point on it: Opinions expressed by members of the U.N. General Assembly – no matter how many of them – do not make international law.

Second, citing the Fourth Geneva Convention to prove Israel illegally "occupies" Judea and Samaria exposes equally serious flaws in the anti-Zionist argument.

It's true that a provision of the Convention holds that the "Occupying Power shall not deport or transfer parts of its civilian population into the territory it occupies."

However, according to international legal expert Eugene Kontorovich, professor at George Mason University Scalia Law School, "Under international law, occupation occurs when a country takes over the sovereign territory of another country."

However, the Arab Palestinians have never had sovereignty over any of the Holy Land.

Palestinians never governed any land until Israel turned over control of some areas in Judea and Samaria under the Oslo Accords in 1993-95, then unilaterally left Gaza in 2005.

Rather, Judea and Samaria were illegally seized by Jordan in 1949 – during Israel's War of Independence – at which time the Jordanians ethnically cleansed it of all Jews.

Notably, the Jordanians did not offer Palestinian Arabs a state on this land…nor did the Palestinians demand one. They didn't try to form a state or make claim to the land until Israel conquered it.

The League of Nations Mandate for Palestine – endorsed by its successor, the United Nations – actually included Judea and Samaria in its borders. Thus, according to Kontorovich, when Jordan attacked Israel in 1967 and was driven out, under international law and practice the new prevailing country "inherits the borders of the prior geopolitical unit in that territory."

In other words, when Israel defeated Jordan, sovereignty of Judea and Samaria legally reverted to the Jewish state.

What's more, Israel in 1994 made an unconditional peace with the defeated sovereign nation, Jordan. This, also according to international law, would in any case end any alleged state of occupation.

As for forcibly moving citizens into the conquered land, Israel has never "deported or transferred" parts of its population to Judea and Samaria. While it's true that many Israeli citizens have established communities in these territories, this was never done at the behest of the Israeli government or organized by it.

Rather, these Jewish communities were established voluntarily by passionate Jews seeking to live in their ancient, indigenous homeland – including families who had been driven out in 1948.

While the State of Israel has not opposed many of these Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria, there is no stricture in the Geneva Convention in any case requiring the inheritor of the new territory to do so.

Finally, we should remind those, like the U.N.'s Special Commission of Inquiry, like Amnesty International and like the United Kingdom's official government travel advice page – all of which refer to the "Occupied Palestinian Territories" in their communications – that many countries globally are truly occupied under international law.

Consider this: Russia occupies the sovereign states of Georgia and Ukraine, Turkey occupies Northern Cyprus, Morocco occupies Western Sahara and Indonesia occupies East Timor. All these occupiers have transferred their nationals to their occupied territories to fortify illegal occupations.

When was the last time the United Nations – or The New York Times, NPR or CNN – covered, let alone condemned those true, illegal occupiers who are indisputably violating the Fourth Geneva Convention?

It seems that only Israel is consistently excoriated for "occupying" land – to which it has ironclad legal rights – even as true criminals under the Fourth Geneva Convention are given a pass.

In short, Israel is not an occupier under international law…and it is certainly not occupying "Palestinian territory," since the Palestinian Arabs have never owned or controlled any territories.

What's more, the media, the United Nations and many NGOs ignore blatant, indefensible violations of the Fourth Geneva Convention by many nations, while attacking Israel's clear rights to control Judea and Samaria until the Palestinians agree to make peace.

Reprinted with permission from JNS.org.

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Support of Israel by all rights should be  – and has for decades been – non-partisan. But evidence shows Democrats increasingly are abandoning Israel's cause – outright opposing Israel and openly supporting the Palestinian war on the Jewish state.

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This trend poses a tough, soul-searching question for pro-Israel Democrats: Will the party's decision to abandon Israel exact a political cost by driving Israel-supporting Democrats – especially Jews – to abandon it?

Just a few weeks ago, the North Carolina Democratic Party (NCDP) adopted two anti-Israel resolutions, which are slated to become part of the party's platform coming into the November midterm elections.

First, the party passed "A Resolution in Support of Human Rights in Israel/Palestine," the title of which already shows bias, since there is no such political entity as "Palestine." Also, since the vote resolved to sanction Israel for alleged human rights violations, it appears the state's Democrats assert Israel is guilty.

Second, the NCDP passed a "Resolution for an Independent Investigation of the Killing of Shireen Abu Alekh," while the Palestinian Authority was still refusing to turn over the bullet that killed the Al Jazeera journalist, though this Palestinian obstruction was not mentioned in the resolution.

These two resolutions and one other that was tabled – "Resolution to Commemorate May 15 as Palestinian Nakba [Catastrophe] Day" – were put forward by NCDP party operatives who have deep anti-Israel histories.

To give a sense of proportion, the words "Israel" or "Israeli" are mentioned 41 times in the NCDP's Final 2022 Resolution Report, yet there is no mention of inflation, Iran, guns, assault weapons or gas prices.

The problem is not limited to North Carolina. In fact, some 57 Democrat members of the U.S. House of Representatives sent a letter in May to Secretary of State Antony Blinken and FBI Chief Christopher Wray demanding an investigation into Alekh's death. The Democrats' letter focused on Israel's potential fault, with no mention of the Palestinian terror spree that precipitated the tragic incident.

In addition, Rep. Rashida Tlaib and other ultra-left House members – all Democrats – have introduced a resolution to make Palestinian Nakba Day a national observance, lamenting Israel's declaration of independence in 1948. In truth, the anniversary marks Palestinian refusal to accept a Jewish state in the Holy Land and the offer of territory for a Palestinian state – but that is not the Democrats' intention.

Nor is the trend isolated to radical Democrats. Several polls over the past year have exposed a marked weakening of support by the party's members for Israel. Tellingly, while Americans' support for Israel is today at about 55% -- higher than 20 years ago – it is down among Democrats and up among Republicans.

According to a recent Pew Research Center report, "Republicans and those who lean Republican are more likely to express a favorable view of the Israeli people (78%) than of the Palestinian people (37%). Among Democrats and Democratic leaners, on the other hand, similar shares express favorable views toward both groups (60% and 64% respectively)."

Similarly, last year's Economist/YouGov poll reported that "although 22% of Democrats regard protecting Israel as a 'very important' US goal overall, fully 61% of Republicans do so."

Finally, a 2021 Quinnipiac College survey found that 74% of Republicans sympathize with Israelis and only 8% with the Palestinians. Among  Democrats, some 43% favor Palestinians and only 22% favor Israelis.

Let's say that plainly: More Democrats support the Palestinian cause than the Israeli cause.

Clearly, Democrats are leaving Israel –and Israel supporters – behind. According to The Washington Post, 10 years ago, Democrats expressed their sympathies with Israelis over Palestinian Arabs by a margin of two to one.

No wonder strong supporters of Israel are incredulous that some 70% of Jewish American voters continue to identify with or lean Democratic.

Nonetheless, as former National Security Advisor Elliott Abrams notes, the contradiction for pro-Israel Democrats looks to be permanent. "Whatever is being done to maintain – or better, to recover – Democratic support for Israel is not working," he said.

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That is to say, efforts by rank-and-file Democrat Israel supporters – let alone by bipartisan organizations like AIPAC or partisan political action committees like the Democratic Majority for Israel – are failing.

For many Jewish Democrats, this comes as no surprise: They readily admit that support for Israel does not rank high enough among their political priorities – such as abortion, climate change, gun control – to sway them from party loyalty. That is, they are more Democrats than they are Israel supporters.

However, here's what these pro-Israel Jewish Democrats fail to face: The problem is not simply that their party no longer heartily supports one item of many on their wish list of causes.

Rather, they must acknowledge that much of Democratic support for the Palestinians is rooted in opposition to Zionism – a core value of Judaism. Anti-Zionism – antagonism to the self-determination of the Jewish people for a nation in their indigenous homeland – is fundamentally anti-Semitic.

Anti-Zionists don't simply oppose certain Israeli policies – they support the BDS movement and efforts of Palestinians to destroy the one and only Jewish state. These are both anti-Semitic.

Enemies of Israel oppose its right to defend itself against terrorist attacks. In the face of all evidence, they slanderously accuse Israel of apartheid, genocide and ethnic cleansing. These are anti-Semitic assertions.

In short, Democrats who support Palestinians over Israelis – and who support legislation and resolutions opposing the Jewish state – are in essence expressing opposition toward the Jewish people. They oppose a fundamental tenet of Judaism – Zionism  – which, bottom line, is anti-Semitic behavior.

When seen through this lens, perhaps some pro-Israel Democrats will be forced to conclude that supporting Israel is indeed more important than fighting climate change or other less momentous issues than the survival of the Jewish people.

Facts show that Democrats are slowly but certainly abandoning support for Israel. This trend is rooted in anti-Zionism, which is fundamentally anti-Semitic.

This is a threat not just to Israel, but also to the Jewish people. Thus, Jewish Democrats face a serious decision: Continue to support a party that opposes one of the core values of their Jewish peoplehood … or abandon the party that is abandoning them.

Reprinted with permission from JNS.org.

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