Part 1: Comparing realities in Israel and her neighbours

Accusations of apartheid against Israel are unfounded

Church leaders adopt anti-Semitic stance against those to whom they owe everything

The prospect of dying of thirst evidently trumps political correctness

In the face of an apocalyptic scenario, the South African Government has apparently been forced to eat humble pie in its ongoing spat with Israel.

The three-year drought that has afflicted the nation has now reached the drastic stage of a looming so-called Day Zero – 15 July this year – when Cape Town, a city of four million, will effectively run out of water: they will be cut off from running water and will be forced to line up at collection points for a miserly rationing.

Opposition MP Kenneth Meshoe revealed in the Cape Town Parliament last month that both the national and provincial authorities there had refused an offer of help from the Jewish state, which has developed an extraordinary prowess in innovative water technology.

The African Christian Democratic Party member said the aid had been turned down in the pursuit of a “narrow political agenda” focused on boycotting Israel over its alleged discrimination against Palestinians.

Accusations of Apartheid

But now an Israeli researcher who attended a water symposium in Johannesburg last month is saying that the South African Government is open to the possibility of help from Israel, and that suggestions they had spurned such aid were incorrect.

Dr Clive Lipchin, a water expert and lecturer from Tel Aviv University who grew up in South Africa, said: “ANC [the ruling African National Congress] government officials who addressed me from the audience said they were happy to look at Israel as a model.”¹

Having initially spurned Israeli aid, South Africa is now open to the possibility of accepting its help.

Whatever the truth about refusal or acceptance, I have not heard any official denial of Mr Meshoe’s damning claim. In any case, the ANC leaders have made their aggressive stance against Israel abundantly clear, accusing it of being an ‘apartheid’ state, which is obviously based on misinformation spread by the UN-backed Palestinian propaganda machine.

The Mount Carmel range, where Elijah defeated the prophets of Baal. Photo: Charles GardnerBut South Africans who lived through apartheid and know more about the situation on the ground in Israel have made their position crystal clear – for those with ears to hear – that ‘apartheid’ in Israel is pure fiction, but is very much a reality in the surrounding Arab states.

The Real Zionist Link

A further dose of reality is that Israel, a dry country with a scarce water supply, has more than it needs due to innovative programmes such as desalination. This has obviously led to the new approach in Cape Town, which has seen Economic Free Fighters (another opposition party) leader Julius Malema challenge those who “created water out of nothing” to see if it can be done in the Cape.²

But back in 2016, a Johannesburg conference focusing on the water crisis was cancelled due to Israeli participation. There are also wild claims circulating that the drought is a Zionist plot from which Jews stand to benefit. But apparently a fear of dying of thirst is trumping political correctness.

However, I believe the crisis does have a Zionist link. And it is quite simple and straightforward. The South African Government has repeatedly – and openly – spoken against God’s chosen people about whom He said: “I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse…” (Gen 12:3).

South Africa’s leaders have despised the people God has chosen to be a light to the Gentiles (Isa 49:6) – yes, a spiritual light because they gave us the Bible, and they gave us Jesus, but also a practical, physical light in the form, for example, of technical expertise in water conservation. It is marvellous indeed how people living in a desert have turned their country green in fulfilment of ancient prophecies (see Isaiah 35).

South Africa’s leaders have despised the people God has chosen to be a light to the Gentiles.

Opposing Israel Means Opposing God

The Bible speaks of how there will come a time when many will acknowledge the hand of God on Israel. Isaiah 49:23, for example, says: “Kings…and queens…will bow down before you with their faces to the ground; they will lick the dust at your feet.”

But those who oppose Israel will find that they are fighting God, who brought them out of Egypt with a mighty, miraculous hand by making a path through the sea to freedom.

Why wait until the plagues have multiplied, as Egypt did, before repenting over evil plans against God’s people?

There was a drought in Israel at the time of Elijah, of similar length to South Africa’s. And it was only broken after the people turned from idols thanks to the prophet’s leadership.

South Africa’s leaders, I suggest, need likewise to repent and abandon the worship of false gods.

References

1 Tress, L. As ‘Day Zero’ looms, South Africa open to Israeli water tech, researcher says. Times of Israel, 8 March 2018.

2 Ibid.

Drought-stricken nation refused water aid - MP

As Jews celebrate the time in ancient Persia when they were rescued from annihilation, anti-Semitism rears its head at UK universities and the South African Parliament.

The effects of the longstanding drought that has struck South Africa’s Western Province could have been alleviated if they had accepted an Israeli offer of help, the Cape Town Parliament heard.¹

South Africa’s Water Crisis

In responding to a state of the nation address from new President Cyril Ramaphosa following the resignation of Jacob Zuma amidst allegations of corruption, opposition MP Kenneth Meshoe revealed that the Jewish state had offered their world-renowned expertise in the prevention of water shortages.

The ACDP (African Christian Democratic Party) member said it had been refused on the grounds of a narrow political agenda linked with the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions campaign that seeks to isolate Israel along lines comparable to that suffered by South Africa during the apartheid era.

BDS supporters accuse Israel of being an apartheid state because of their alleged mistreatment of Palestinians – this in a region where in fact they stand out as the lone democracy with Arabs and Jews sharing equal rights along with positions of influence in the nation.

The effects of South Africa’s long-standing drought could have been alleviated if they had accepted Israel’s offer of help.

Mr Meshoe said it was surely irresponsible for the Government (both national and provincial) to turn down aid from people with a proven track record – “people who live in a desert and yet have no water shortages” – and described it as “the politics of hatred that will not help our country,” urging the new President to root out corruption, starting with his Cabinet, and pursue truth, righteousness and justice for all.

Israel has also suffered a drought of late, but their innovative drip irrigation scheme has already been successfully tried in other dry areas of the world including Africa.

Israeli Apartheid?

Meanwhile UK universities are taking part in another so-called ‘Israel Apartheid Week’, part of a hostile worldwide campaign to delegitimise and demonise the Jewish state that in fact contravenes the International Definition of Anti-Semitism the British Government adopted last year, which states that “claiming that the existence of the State of Israel is a racist endeavour” is anti-Semitic.²

Christians United for Israel last year successfully campaigned to prevent some universities hosting these weeks after sharing their concerns with academic authorities – pointing out, for example, that Israel’s 1.6 million Arabs have the same rights as their 6.8 million Jewish fellow citizens.

The truth is that Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East, and apartheid is being practised by its neighbours, where there is no freedom of speech or religion, and where women do not enjoy equal rights.

South Africans like Kenneth Meshoe lived through apartheid, which bears no resemblance to Israel’s policies.

The truth is that Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East, and apartheid is being practised by its neighbours!

Don’t Shut Up!

Jewish people everywhere will this week be celebrating their annual feast of Purim, marking their deliverance from genocide in ancient Persia when Queen Esther used her position of influence to save her people.

Those who call for boycotts and protests against Israel today are in danger of being linked with unsavoury groups like Hamas, Hezbollah and their sponsors, Iran, who seek the annihilation of the Jewish race. Hitler tried it too.

At a London university, Jewish students were jeered and sworn at as a motion was passed supporting BDS while photographs were taken of those who opposed the motion!³ Since apartheid was basically racist, is this not a case of the pot calling the kettle black? And all this on UK campuses that were once the bastion of free thought.

Those who stand with Israel, and for truth, would do well to match the courage of America’s UN Ambassador Nikki Haley, who responded to the advice of a top Palestinian negotiator that she should “shut up” by saying: “I will not shut up! Rather, I will respectfully speak some hard truths.”⁴

The great evangelist Billy Graham, who died last week, succinctly put it this way: “The Jews are God’s chosen people. We cannot place ourselves in opposition to Israel without detriment to ourselves.”⁵

References

1 Friday 16 February 2018, quoting from video of parliamentary debate.

2 Christians United for Israel, 26 January 2018.

3 CUFI, 16 February 2018.

4 World Israel News, 20 February 2018.

5 CUFI, 23 February 2018.

Boycott campaign is another form of anti-Semitism.

As new settlement construction gets underway in Israel’s disputed territories, a fresh wave of condemnation is expected.

Accusations that the Jewish state is practising apartheid – supposedly over its ‘illegal occupation’ and ‘treatment of the Palestinians’ – will inevitably be trotted out, adding fuel to the fire of a Boycott, Sanctions and Divestment (BDS) movement masquerading as a compassionate supporter of oppressed Palestinians, but in actual fact demonstrating another form of anti-Semitism.

Backlash Against BDS

Before tackling this gross misuse of the ‘apartheid’ tag, it’s worth saying that BDS has taken a series of knocks of late – both in the courts and in the legislative arena. In Spain, for example, 24 legal rulings and expert opinions were made against the movement and, in France, one court decision ordered that a financial penalty be imposed on BDS activists demonstrating outside supermarkets calling on consumers to boycott Israeli products.¹

In the United States, several pieces of legislation against the movement have been ratified. In Texas, for instance, a law was passed forbidding ties with, or investment in, companies that boycott Israel.² According to Ynetnews, such success owes much to legal investment from Israel’s Justice Ministry, now under Ayelet Shaked.

BDS has taken a series of knocks of late – both in the courts and in the legislative arena.

Even actress Greta Gerwig now regrets putting her name to a letter calling for the cancellation of a play based on a novel by Israeli author David Grossman and funded by Israel’s Office of Cultural Affairs in North America – a letter denounced as “hypocritical, discriminatory and dangerous” by nearly 50 high-level entertainment industry executives.³

Creative Community for Peace, dedicated to countering the cultural boycott of Israel, claims credit for persuading Gerwig to retract her support. “I was unfamiliar with the complexities of the letter and I did not take the time to study them,” she conceded.⁴

Israeli ‘Apartheid’? An Absolute Lie

Meanwhile, claims that Israel is an apartheid state are described as “an absolute lie” and a mockery of the struggle her parents went through by Olga Meshoe, daughter of a South African MP who grew up under the apartheid system.

There is no doubt that international sanctions helped to end that oppressive regime, but comparisons with Israel are outrageous, according to many South Africans like Olga (myself included). Opponents of Israel have been using the ‘apartheid’ tag “to incite and encourage the destruction of a people just because you don’t like them,” she said. “The world needs to recognize that you are not only doing an injustice to the people in the Middle East; you’re making a mockery of what our parents went through.”⁵

Olga and her father Kenneth are founders of DEISI – Defend, Embrace, Invest, Support Israel – part of Africa’s growing movement towards closer ties with the Jewish state.

The irony of the Jewish ‘apartheid’ claim is that Ramadan Dabbash, head of a Palestinian village in Jerusalem, says almost all the city’s Arabs would prefer to live peacefully under Israeli administration.⁶

It is the Palestinian leaders, he said, who destroy the chances for peace with non-stop incitement of Palestinian youth, diversion of funds to terror and a resultant lack of economic growth in Palestinian-controlled areas.

Comparisons between Israel and apartheid South Africa are outrageous.

Also on the BDS front, I recall that Boris Johnson, on his last tour of Israel, condemned a boycott proposed by what he termed “corduroy-jacketed academics”. He said: “I cannot think of anything more foolish than to say you want to have any kind of sanctions or divestment or boycott against a country that, when all is said and done, is the only democracy in the region; and that is the only place, in my view, which has an open, pluralistic society.”⁷

I need to add that, just because I commend a politician on his/her stand for Israel, doesn’t mean I applaud them wholeheartedly or necessarily regard them as morally superior. But it is a chink of light, as the Bible is quite clear – those who bless Israel will themselves be blessed (Gen 12:3).

How Far Will BDS Go?

And I very much doubt if the boycott advocates would go all the way in their efforts if they really knew the extent of the merchandise produced by little old Israel, or by Jewish people in other lands. It would mean a change of lifestyle few would be prepared to contemplate.

We are not just talking about oranges, Sharon fruit and a few other products we could easily leave out of our shopping baskets without upsetting our appetites too much. Are they prepared to sacrifice their mobile phones, computers and so many other trappings of modern life for the cause? It is no secret that Israel has long been an international hub in the development and production of modern technology from which we all now benefit and without which much of our commerce would grind to a shuddering halt.

A full boycott of Israeli produce would mean a change of lifestyle few would be prepared to contemplate.

For example, you would have to stop googling for all that vital information, as Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin are both Jews. You would have to close down your Facebook account, because 31-year-old Jewish-American Mark Zuckerberg founded the facility. You would have to stop watching Steven Spielberg movies and throw out all your Bob Dylan and Barbra Streisand albums. And, to top it all, you would need to close down your computers as Microsoft boss Steve Ballmer and Dell Computers founder and CEO Michael Dell are both Jewish.

In closing, may I recommend Israel’s delicious mangoes, available at Sainsbury’s. And, if you’re looking for the perfect setting for a special occasion, I could point you in the direction of the world’s No 1 restaurant (according to Tripadvisor!) – the Black Swan at Oldstead, near Thirsk in North Yorkshire – which includes Israeli wine on its menu…at a cost!

Notes

1 Bridges for Peace, 28 July 2017, quoting Ynetnews.

2 Ibid.

3 Oscar Front-Runner Regrets Signing Anti-Israel Letter. United with Israel, 8 October 2017.

4 Ibid.

5 David Soakell’s Watching over Zion, Christian Friends of Israel, 12 October 2017.

6 United with Israel, 9 October 2017.

7 See note 5.

Theresa May gave an extremely encouraging speech on Monday.

Let's give thanks that, at the close of 2016, Prime Minister Theresa May has made no bones about the fact that she is a keen supporter and ally of Israel, which she has this week called "a remarkable country."¹

On Monday, in a firm speech to the Conservative Friends of Israel, our Prime Minister described Israel as "...a thriving democracy, a beacon of tolerance, an engine of enterprise and an example to the rest of the world for overcoming adversity and defying disadvantages." She waxed lyrical about the shared values and positive relationship between Israel and Britain, emphasising her hopes for an even stronger friendship between the two countries post-Brexit.

Determined to Back Balfour

Crucially, in the face of parliamentary and civic attempts to derail the 2017 Balfour Centenary celebrations and force Britain to apologise for her role in creating the Jewish homeland, the PM staunchly defended the document as "one of the most important letters in history...[which] demonstrates Britain's vital role in creating a homeland for the Jewish people."

As for the centenary celebration, she declared that "it is an anniversary we will be marking with pride." Hopefully that will be a big blow to the anti-Balfour movement!

Resounding 'No!' to BDS

Not only that, but in the same speech she also roundly condemned BDS (the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement) and all attempts to boycott Israeli products and producers. In relation to the extensive economic ties between Britain and Israel (we are Israel's second-largest trading partner), she said in no uncertain terms: "We should celebrate that, we should build on that – and we should condemn any attempt to undermine that through boycotts. I couldn't be clearer: the boycotts, divestment and sanctions movement is wrong, it is unacceptable, and this party and this government will have no truck with those who subscribe to it."

This is a profoundly encouraging position for our national leader to take – and the fact that she is able to speak on behalf of her party and the current government is also very welcome. Having openly stated her support for Israel in September, in a letter to Conservative Friends of Israel's Informed magazine,² we have all waited to see whether or not Theresa May would stand by this position in practice. Now, happily, she confirms our hope that we truly do have a pro-Israel PM!

This is a profoundly encouraing position for our national leaer to take.

Not All Positive...

Whilst thanking God for her bravely positive words (follow the link below for the full text of the speech, which is well worth a read), it is important that we also note those aspects of her speech that were not quite as encouraging – though whether they are indicative of her own personal opinions or simply of politically correct diplomacy is not yet fully known.

For instance, she condemned "illegal" Israeli settlements (i.e. in the West Bank and Gaza), showing clearly that she has not done her legal homework on the issue or fully appreciated the complex history of the region. The PM also clearly stated her support for the so-called 'two-state solution', which is the fashionable answer but a diplomatic dead end as far as Palestine is concerned.

Her celebration of her own efforts to eradicate anti-Semitism by cracking down on 'hate speech' (as much as her position on anti-Semitism should be celebrated) should sound alarm bells for Christians because of the potential for this ideology to be meted out in ways that restrict our freedom to declare the Gospel. Furthermore, it could easily be consolidated on by future governments that may or may not be so friendly towards Israel.

And despite the goods of her recent acceptance of an encouraging international, formal definition of anti-Semitism,³ contributing to global efforts to stem anti-Semitic behaviour and making it easier to prosecute perpetrators in this country, her assertion that "Islamophobia comes from the same wellspring of hatred" as anti-Semitism is worryingly misguided, especially when you consider how wide the 'Islamophobia' net can be flung.

So, we must be realistic at the same time as being thankful. Let us hope that Theresa May is not simply out to take the credit for Britain's role in creating Israel for the sake of securing some good trade deals. If we want to take the credit for our historic successes, you can be sure that God will also hold us responsible for our failings.

In the face of parliamentary and civic attempts to derail the 2017 Balfour Centenary celebrations, Theresa May staunchly defended the document.

Onwards and Upwards!

Neither is this necessarily a sign that Britain is turning back towards Godly beliefs and living. For instance, from this week 3-parent babies will be able to be made in Britain, in a move that bioethicists are already calling 'a slippery slope'.⁴ Also this week, Government-funded LGBT pressure group Educate and Celebrate have published a guidebook advising against the use of the terms 'boys' and 'girls' in schools around Britain, in case 'transgender' pupils are offended.⁵

Nevertheless, let's rejoice and praise God at this, the close of 2016, for small mercies. That our national political head is willing – passionately so, it would seem – to affirm and bless Israel on the one hand, and defend Christian freedoms at home on the other, is indeed the grace of God to us in this hour, for it will undoubtedly place Britain on a better spiritual footing for the road ahead.

"I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you." (Gen 12:3)

"Whoever blesses Israel will be blessed, and whoever curses Israel will be cursed." (Num 24:9)

Make no mistake: the battle for Britain is raging all around us. All our prayer and witnessing efforts are needed – every hand to the plough. But surely this is evidence that it is worth interceding for our leaders, that this is a battle worth fighting - that all is not yet lost, even though there is much still to be done?

References

1 Full text of the PM's speech available here. All further quotes from here.

2 Read the September issue of Informed here.

3 As "language or behaviour that displays hatred towards Jews because they are Jews", including sweeping statements about Israel as a 'Jewish collective'. Quote taken from Theresa May's speech, see note 1.

4 Gallagher, J. Babies made by three people approved in the UK. BBC News, 15 December 2016.

5 Guidebook tells schools not to call children 'girls' and 'boys'. Christian Concern, 13 December 2016.

Last week, global 'Israeli Apartheid Week' was celebrated in cities across the UK. Charles Gardner helps dismantle the hype surrounding this increasingly common vilification of Israel.

As British cities took part in 'Israeli Apartheid Week', which rallies people to the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign against Israel and which has been gathering momentum year on year, hundreds of London Underground trains were plastered with ads depicting Israel as a vile apartheid state. They turned out to be illegal fly-posters and were duly removed - but not without the intervention of authorities alerted by the Israeli Embassy.¹

Because the issues surrounding Israel are highly complicated and controversial, some are frightened off taking any view at all, while others fall for the temptation of over-simplifying things, which is why those determined to vilify Israel latch on to the emotive 'A' word.

Israel Not Perfect

Of course Israel is far from perfect, and there are areas of discrimination - like restrictions on land access for Palestinian citizens. But as Benjamin Pogrund wrote in The Guardian last year, the situation in Israel cannot and should not be compared to apartheid South Africa – and he should know, since he was a correspondent there for 26 years, and has been living in Israel for 17 years.

"The Arabs of Israel are full citizens", he wrote. "Crucially, they have the vote and Israeli Arab MPs sit in parliament. An Arab judge sits on the country's highest court; an Arab is chief surgeon at a leading hospital; an Arab commands a brigade of the Israeli army...Under apartheid, every detail of life was subject to discrimination by law...Israel is not remotely like that."²

Because the issues surrounding Israel are complicated and controversial, people often over-simplify things, with those determined to vilify Israel latching on to the emotive 'A' word.

Elsewhere, South African Olga Meshoe, daughter of African Christian Democratic Party president Rev Kenneth Meshoe, has called designations of Israel as an 'apartheid' state "an absolute lie" which "trivialises" what happened in South Africa.³ She is now campaigning worldwide for Israel to be treated more fairly and intelligently.

Discrimination – or Self-Preservation?

Much of what is perceived as discrimination in Israel is driven by the need for security. For example, the disputed West Bank (still known to Israelis as Judea and Samaria and claimed as their biblical heartland) is not part of modern-day Israel; so when people cross over into Israel, they are effectively crossing an international border, where you would normally expect checkpoints.

But in the case of Israel, such controls are doubly necessary due to the constant threat of terrorism. I was stopped at a checkpoint myself while travelling with friends up the Jordan Valley to Galilee. And when armed Israeli soldiers asked for my passport, I was unable to oblige, having left it behind at a Jerusalem guesthouse. But after some anxious moments, my driving licence was deemed sufficient and we were waived through.

The security fence was erected after nearly 1,000 Israeli civilians were killed by suicide bombers in the five-year period to 2005. And it has worked. Even Palestinian terrorists have admitted it is a deterrent.⁴

Arab Palestinians visit Israel for work every day from the PA-controlled West Bank and are searched, as you would naturally expect on passing through customs. However, there are some Palestinian areas from which Jews are altogether banned!

Distorted Narrative

While acknowledging that Israel isn't perfect, Pogrund concludes that her critics "exaggerate and distort and present an ugly caricature far distant from reality". Many want more than an end to the occupation; they want an end to Israel itself, he says, asking: "Why is Israel the only country in the world whose very right to existence is challenged in this way?"⁵

Much of what is perceived as discrimination is driven by the need for security. The security fence was erected after nearly 1,000 Israeli civilians were killed by suicide bombers between 2000 and 2005.

It's worth pointing out that apartheid in South Africa finally collapsed when the structure upon which it was built – a false understanding of the scriptures – fell apart. This happened when leading Afrikaner clerics confessed that they had been wrong.⁶ In fact, the Church as a whole played a leading role in ensuring a relatively peaceful transition from white minority to black majority rule. In matters of politics in other parts of the world, we still need the Church to lead with this kind of repentance and wisdom, which can only come from God.

I'll let America's legendary civil rights leader Martin Luther King have the last word. In a letter to a friend who claimed to be 'merely anti-Zionist', not a Jew-hater, he thundered:

Let the truth ring forth from the high mountain tops, let it echo through the valleys of God's green earth: When people criticize Zionism, they mean Jews...Anti-Semitism, the hatred of the Jewish people, has been and remains a blot on the soul of mankind...And what is anti-Zionism? It is the denial to the Jewish people of a fundamental right that we justly claim for the people of Africa...⁷

This article is an extension of our current 'Israel Q&A' series.

Notes

1 Anti-Israel Ads Plaster London's Underground. Bridges for Peace, 26 February 2016.

2 Pogrund, B. Israel has many injustices. But it is not an apartheid state. The Guardian, 22 May 2015.

3 BDS claims make mockery of SA struggle, says Olga Meshoe. Gateway News, 3 March 2016.

4 David Soakell, Watching Over Zion newsletter. Christian Friends of Israel, 18 February 2016.

5 See note 2.

6 A key influence in this was evangelist Michael Cassidy, whose biography you can read here.

7 This I believe: selections from the writings of Dr Martin Luther King Jr, New York, 1971, pp234-235. Thanks also to Saltshakers, the website of author Steve Maltz.