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Jewish associations have begun to react against the Israeli offensive into Lebanon.
Belgian Jewish Leader: Israel Committing War Crimes
By Selcuk Gultasli
Wednesday 2 August 2006
Head of the Union of Belgian Jewish Progressives (UPJB) Dr. Jacques Ravedovitch stated that Israel is committing war crimes in Lebanon.
In an interview with Zaman in Brussels, Ravedovitch said that while former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon committed indirect war crimes, current Prime Minister Ehud
Olmert is nquestionably a war criminal.
Dr. Ravedovitch said it is a shame that Jews who were once exposed to the holocaust are doing he same evil things against another nation today.
According to Ravedovitch, anti-Semitism is from time to time misused by Israeli statesman, and the recently intensified Israeli offensive into Lebanon has increased hatred for Israel.
UPJB, an active Jewish Association in Belgium, accuses Israel of committing war crimes.
Some Jews still have dreams of a “Great Israel,
” Ravedovitch noted, adding that the Israeli government is absolutely against negotiations and is acting aggressively to impose its own interests as a solution. Ravdeovitch said: “Peace will not be secured without the return of
Israel to its pre-1967 borders. Israel should stop destroying Lebanon. It should leave Eastern Jerusalem to the Palestinians and accept that Jerusalem is the common capital; they should sit at the negotiation table for talks.”
Calling the Israeli attacks shameful, Ravedovitch aid: “Resistance in Palestine and ebanon is ustified. Israel is an invader. I do not approve of Hamas killing innocent people, but I defend that if there are invaders there will be resistance at the same time. What Israel is
doing in Lebanon is terror.”
Accusing the West, and particularly Europe, of fearing to criticize Israel, Ravedovitch said:
“The EU keeps saying that they treat Israel and Palestine equally, but how can we ehave equally towards both the invader and the invadee?”
Ravedovitch said the EU’s attitude indicates Europe still feels guilty about the holocaust, but hat Israel is exploiting anti-Semitism.
He pointed out that anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism are different concepts.
“Anti-Zionism is a political stance. When people criticize Israel, they do not become anti-Semites.” Ravedovitch compared the situation to the US’s failure in Vietnam,
and suggested that it’s impossible for Israel to attain its objectives in Lebanon as the latest attacks into Lebanon only increased the hatred against Israel tenfold.
