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Boundless hypocrisy of those who demand we now denounce Israel

No one makes a similar demand of pro-EU politicians, when member states have far-right presidents and prime ministers

November 11, 2022 15:47
Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich campaign ahead of the 1 November 2022 election (GIL COHEN-MAGEN/AFP via Getty Images)
(L to R) Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israeli far-right lawmaker and leader of the Otzma Yehudit (Jewish power) party, and Bezalel Smotrich, Israeli far-right lawmaker and leader of the Religious Zionist Party, attend a rally with supporters in the southern Israeli city of Sderot on October 26, 2022. (Photo by GIL COHEN-MAGEN / AFP) (Photo by GIL COHEN-MAGEN/AFP via Getty Images)
3 min read

I have been campaigning against the far right for over 40 years and am as disappointed as anyone at the prospect of Itamar ben-Givir and Belazel Smotrich being part of the new Israeli government.

At the same time, we know that the foundations of our support for the Jewish state go beyond party politics.

Of course those who want to delegitimise or weaken Israel or undermine its support internationally will use last week’s election as another stick to beat the country and its supporters with, but we must not fall into the trap of allowing them to do so.

First, I have always argued that supporting Israel and its right to defend itself does not necessarily mean supporting particular Israeli politicians, agreeing with every decision the government takes or endorsing specific action taken by the IDF, any more than I agree with every UK government or support all the policies they implement.