Hyperbolic Hypocrisy

Israel has been targeted by an unprecedented barrage of hypocritical claims and denunciations.

Synonyms for hyperbolic include “distorted, excessive, extravagant, fabricated, false, farfetched, inflated, magnified, melodramatic, overblown, preposterous, pretentious and unrealistic.”

Take your pick because any one of these definitions more than adequately describes the outpouring of vicious venom streaming forth from a myriad of individuals and groups this past week.

First off, the starting block was the gang of twenty-three.

Led by Starmer of the UK, Carney of Canada and Macron of France, these so-called defenders of human rights were shamefully joined by Australia and New Zealand as well as eighteen other countries.

I watched a live televised debate from the UK House of Commons. Noticeably absent were the UK Prime Minister and the Conservative Leader of the Opposition. Leading the “bash Israel” charge was the Foreign Secretary, David Lammy. Frothing in apparent righteous wrath and abandoning any semblance of restraint, this senior member of the Government unleashed a stream of accusations.

The most potent libel hurled against Israel was an unsubstantiated claim made by a UN official that within forty-eight hours, 14,000 babies in Gaza would die unless aid was immediately forthcoming.

Like sheep, most of the assembled parliamentarians bleated “shame, shame, shame” as Lammy enumerated each and every dastardly deed being allegedly perpetrated by the perfidious Israelis. Following his virtuoso performance, it was the turn of MPs to ask him questions. These followed a predictable pattern, with each one more extreme anti-Israel than the other. Lammy bobbed up and down, answering them with a sense of increased viciousness.

No doubt, the UK Labour Government feels it must show Macron and company that when it comes to selective lessons of morality, the British are in the lead. Well and truly buried, of course, is the fact that the UK and France have nothing to be proud of when it comes to past and current colonial policies.

It came as no surprise when, a day or so later, both the UN and the BBC admitted that the original blood libel of the imminent death of Gaza babies was incorrect. Of course, by then, the damage had been done as the fake news had gone viral internationally. The denials sank without a trace, and no doubt millions of the public remain convinced that Israel is complicit in a “genocidal” campaign.

This is how the big lies germinate after being planted in the addled minds of ill-informed masses. It is an old technique made more virulent by the power of today’s social media and other purveyors of evil intent.

Did any of the members of parliament who shouted “shame” and condemned Israel for unspeakable atrocities apologise and withdraw their claim? Not a single one of them did so. Lammy clammed up, and his boss doubled down by pillorying Israel again.

The French do not need any lessons when it comes to hypocritical hype against Israel, which is why they are the leaders of the pack in efforts to recognise a fake Palestine.

Not to be left behind in this chorus of hypocrisy, the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Australia unleashed an unexpected tirade against Israel.

New Zealand’s Foreign Minister who has not bothered to visit Israel and see facts on the ground pontificated that “Israel has gone “far too far in its response to Hamas terrorism.”  Presumably he would have told Churchill the same nonsense as the allies pounded the hell out of Nazi Germany.

The end result of all these barrages of negative accusations and ill-informed advice is the implanting of hate against not only the Jewish State but also Jews in general.

The best proof that this gang of 23 Israel bashers has struck the jackpot was provided when Hamas spokespeople congratulated them for their support and cheered their collective condemnations of Israel. One would have imagined that this blatant endorsement by a proscribed terror group might have jolted their missing conscience. Not a chance of this happening, unfortunately, because they have already succumbed to a mass moral collapse.

Just as the mobs in pre-war Germany and Europe were incited to violence and delegitimised Jews, so are today’s same mindless masses poisoned to act accordingly. Chants of “globalize the intifada” and “free Palestine from the river to the sea” are the latest clarion calls to eliminate Israel, Jews and Zionists. Some, whose heads are still in the sand, might believe that these chants are harmless, but last week’s murder of two Israeli diplomatic staff in Washington proves otherwise. Attacks on Jewish communal buildings and individual Jews are now a common occurrence.

Following the murder of the couple in Washington, the outpouring of sanctimonious and hypocritical rhetoric from politicians who just a short while ago eviscerated Israel was sickening. These same people who have no hesitation in making Israel guilty of every imaginable crime against humanity refuse to see that it is their naked animosity that fuels the resultant mayhem.

The stable door is wide open and the horses have bolted.

Expressions of horror at the murder of Israeli diplomatic staff ring hollow coming from the same lips that blame Israel on a daily basis.

I watched a demonstration of solidarity with Israel which took place in front of the Israeli Embassy in London immediately after the Washington murders. The Jewish commentator remarked on the absence of any Member of Parliament and representatives of the BBC, SKY UK and other media outlets. Their obvious lack of interest in reporting a gathering of Jews and non Jews in support of Israel underscores the rampant hypocrisy now an embedded feature of daily life not only in the UK but elsewhere as well.

It has been reported that Hamas and their willing accomplices are now using artificial intelligence to generate fake photos and news.

Recycled photos of alleged victims of Israeli actions are circulated to demonstrate ongoing crimes. Hamas deliberately puts civilians in the midst of terror sites in the hope that collateral damage will enable them to tar Israel with inevitable criminality.

This is the same technique used in previous generations, whereby pictures of Jews poisoning wells and killing Christian babies to make unleavened bread for Passover circulated throughout Europe and precipitated pogroms. Today’s techniques may be more sophisticated but they have the identical desired results.

Daily depictions of doctored horror photos combined with tendentious reports of Israeli “atrocities” issued by the terror groups themselves are now a feature of what passes for informed news.

It is no wonder, therefore, that even hitherto sympathetic supporters of Israel find themselves wavering and doubting. The field is wide open for confusion and conflicted feelings, given the absence of a consistent and coherent Israeli counter-response to this intentional disinformation.

Certain clear facts need to be forcefully articulated.

The plight of the kidnapped hostages has been erased from the memory of those currently condemning Israel.

The refusal of Hamas and associated willing partners to free each and every hostage, alive and dead, is the sole reason for the ongoing war.

The terrorist groups know that all they have to do is parade more “atrocity” stories and the pressure from the international community against Israel will increase.

Embittered Israeli politicians who love nothing better than to besmirch and accuse are embraced by the leftist media and fuel increased enmity against Israel and Jews. They provide fuel to the anti Zionists and self-loathers whose righteous indignations are confined solely and exclusively to the “crimes” of the Jewish State.

Hamas feels it is on to a winning formula having sensed the morally bankrupt hypocrisy of the democracies and knowing that the likes of China, Russia, Iran and North Korea are supportive.

Hamas has as its central objective the complete destruction of Israel and the elimination of a Jewish sovereign presence. Fatah and the PA profess to be “moderate” but in actual fact they give a wink and a nod to this plan of action.

Creating a country called Palestine will not usher in an era of peace. It is merely a recipe for increased terror and incitement against Jews.

All those participating in demonstrations at universities and on the streets of cities who scream “from the river to the sea Palestine will be free” are endorsing the genocide of Jews.

Nowhere in the annals of armed conflict against an enemy dedicated to one’s destruction has it been mandated for the intended victims to feed, sustain or succour the enemy. That is why the current fetish compelling Israel to do so is the height of hypocrisy.

Aid which continues to flow into Gaza is hijacked. Widespread famine narratives are promoted to whip up hate frenzy which in turn is fanned by vested groups.

As one of the released hostages told the French Government recently, “it is either them or us.”

Beating about the bush and refraining from articulating the raw truth may be diplomatically correct, but it is a losing strategy when battling rampant ignorance and prejudice.

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.