The conference "Israel on Trial" took place in the Dutch cities of The Hague and Nijkerk from March 29th to 30th. Among the topics discussed were the disproportionately high number of condemnatory resolutions passed annually by the UN against Israel. The role of the International Criminal Court in light of the biased treatment of Israel was also examined. Furthermore, the presentations highlighted the fact that Israel is the only country permanently on the agenda of the UN Human Rights Council. Our head of the Young Generation program (Young Christians Standing with Israel), Dina Röll, was also present, along with volunteer Talita Höhl.
The international conference “Israel on Trial,” organized by the non-governmental organization The Hague Initiative for International Cooperation (thinc.) and Christians for Israel (C4I), the parent organization of Christians Standing with Israel, focused on the United Nations (UN) and similar institutions’ handling of the State of Israel and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Hillel Neuer, executive director of the non-governmental organization UN Watch, opened the conference on Wednesday morning in The Hague. UN Watch is dedicated to critically examining the activities and resolutions of the UN. Neuer emphasized how deeply UN resolutions influence the hearts and minds of millions of people, even if they do not always have legal force. Last year alone, there were 15 resolutions against Israel, while only one each was passed against Syria, Iran, and North Korea. There was no resolution against Somalia, "where women and girls are mutilated," or against the "communist police state of Cuba," where many teenagers are currently in prison for demonstrating for democracy and freedom of speech in their country.
Vote trading
Neuer offered further insights into the work of the UN by discussing so-called "vote trading." This is an exchange of votes, based on the principle: "If you vote for what's important to me, I'll vote for what's important to you." He also emphasized the importance of economic leverage, such as that employed by Qatar. If a nation votes for something that supports Qatar, oil is delivered. But if it votes against it, the oil is not delivered.
Israel is doing too little against illegal Arab settlements in Zone C due to international pressure.
Naomi Kahn of the Israeli organization Regavim, which monitors Israeli and Arab activities in the West Bank, reported an "unfair" perception by the international community of illegal structures in the West Bank. Currently, there are 81,000 illegal Palestinian structures, such as buildings, roads, and fields, in Area C, which is administered by Israel under the Oslo Accords. In contrast, there are "only" 4,000 illegal Jewish structures in Area B, which is under Israeli military administration. The non-governmental organization complains that Israel is doing too little to combat illegal Palestinian construction, such as schools, villages, and garbage dumps, due to international pressure. Most recently, Regavim sued the Israeli Minister of Justice for continuing to uphold the antisemitic and racist Jordanian Law No. 40, which prohibits the sale of land to non-Arabs in Judea and Samaria.
The term apartheid cannot be separated from the history of South Africa.
Anne Herzberg of the non-profit organization NGO Monitor spoke about the history of Israel's perception in the world public sphere and the legal difficulties surrounding the term "apartheid." What is happening to Israel, she said, is a prime example of the abuse of law and justice. Some try to decouple the word "apartheid" from South Africa. However, this is impossible, as the word originated in the context of the situation in South Africa. If it is nevertheless detached and defined in the Israeli context, it means nothing other than "racism," and "every country in the world has problems with racism," Herzberg stated.
Andrew Tucker, director of thinc., stated that the European Union has a policy of not recognizing Israel's inherent right to rule in East Jerusalem. This territory, he asserted, is occupied and belongs to the Palestinians. The EU has made this dramatic decision and is now attempting to adapt international law accordingly. Based on this decision, the EU also intends to continue granting the Palestinians their own "Jew-free" (see the Charter of the Palestine Liberation Organization, PLO) state.
The current education system in Palestinian schools leads to hatred and violence against Jews.
A highlight of the conference took place on Thursday at noon at the C4I premises in Nijkerk. A Jewish settler and a Palestinian Christian led an insightful panel discussion on the topic of identity. Neither photography nor audio recording was permitted. The risk of persecution by the Palestinian Authority was too great for the Palestinian Christian. In the past, she had already been forced to seek political asylum and flee. For nearly ten years, she has been advocating, among other things, for children in the Palestinian territories to be educated about Israel and for a radical reform of the education system there. Unfortunately, the current way in which Israel and Jews are taught in the Palestinian territories only leads to hatred and violence against Jews.
