LETTER: Israel is an apartheid state — legally and in practice

Contrary to Len Bennett’s assertion, Israel is the only state in the Middle East which both legally and in practice applies apartheid laws (“Israel is the least apartheid-like state in the Middle East”,  November 22). The 2018 Nation-State law confirmed this reality, its basic principles claiming:

• The land of Israel is the historical homeland of the Jewish people,
• The state of Israel is the national home of the Jewish people, and
• The right to exercise national self-determination is unique to the Jewish people.

That a few Palestinians have managed to become doctors, lawyers or politicians in Israel is irrelevant. That was also true in apartheid SA for a few so-called coloured, Asian and Bantu South Africans.

Yes, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the UAE, Bahrain, Oman, Syria and others in the Middle East have atrocious human rights records. But are these the standards by which Bennett measures Israel?

In terms of international law, including the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, apartheid is now defined as a crime against humanity. Nor is apartheid limited to SA. Voluminous documentation establishes that Israeli government conduct towards Palestinians — both within Israel and “beyond the green line” — meets the legal criteria of apartheid. In addition, there are the issues of genocide and war crimes, which Israel also commits against Palestinians.

 That Israel is well documented internationally as meeting the criteria of an apartheid state terrifies Zionist propagandists, hence their vociferous denials. They realise, as per SA’s experience, that it is “the kiss of death” for their Zionist/apartheid state of Israel.

Terry Crawford-Browne
World Beyond War SA

JOIN THE DISCUSSION: Send us an email with your comments to letters@businesslive.co.za. Letters of more than 300 words will be edited for length. Anonymous correspondence will not be published. Writers should include a daytime telephone number.