Israeli Govt Rabbi Calls for Genocide of Palestinians

OhNoYouDidn't

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-11127409

Israel rabbi calls for 'plague' on Mahmoud Abbas

Rabbi Ovadia Yosef's words were condemned as "deeply offensive" A senior rabbi from a party within Israel's coalition government has called for Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas to "vanish from our world".

Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, spiritual leader of Shas, spoke out as Middle East talks are poised to begin in Washington.

The United States condemned the remarks as "deeply offensive".

Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu distanced himself from the comments with a statement saying that his government wanted peace with the Palestinians.

The attack on Mr Abbas, delivered in the rabbi's weekly sermon, also prompted chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat to condemn the remarks as "an incitement to genocide".

Mr Erakat urged the Israeli government "to do more about peace and stop spreading hatred", the AFP news agency reported.

'Regret and condemn'

Rabbi Yosef expressed the wish that "all the nasty people who hate Israel, like Abu Mazen (Abbas), vanish from our world".

He went on to say: "May God strike them down with the plague along with all the nasty Palestinians who persecute Israel."

Continue reading the main story
Rabbi Yosef: Man of controversy
5 August 2000: Said the Nazi Holocaust was God's retribution against Jewish sinners.

Later added that he believed all six million Jewish victims were pure and complete saints.

9 April 2001: On Arabs: "It is forbidden to be merciful to them. You must send missiles to them and annihilate them. They are evil and damnable."

Later said he was only referring to terrorists.
The remarks come as Mr Netanyahu is due in Washington this week for direct peace talks with Mr Abbas.

US President Barack Obama hopes to bring the leaders together on Thursday for the first face-to-face discussions since December 2008, when the Palestinians broke off negotiations over Israel's offensive against the Gaza Strip.

The US response to Rabbi Yosef, a founder of the ultra-Orthodox Shas party, was swift.

In a statement, US State Department spokesman Philip Crowley said: "We regret and condemn the inflammatory statements by Rabbi Ovadia Yosef.

"These remarks are not only deeply offensive, but incitement such as this hurts the cause of peace."

Mr Netanyahu's office issued a statement saying that Rabbi Yosef's comments "do not reflect the views of Benjamin Netanyahu or of his government".

The 89-year-old former chief rabbi of Israel has been at the centre of controversy before, with comments about Arabs, secular Jews, liberals, women and gays.

In 2001, during a Palestinian uprising, he called for the annihilation of Arabs and said it was forbidden to be merciful to them.

He later said he was referring only to "terrorists" who attacked Israelis.

Settlement division

Meanwhile, Mr Abbas, the president of the Palestinian Authority, said on Sunday that Israel's policy of settlement-building could undermine the new round of peace talks.

"Israel will be held accountable for the failure of the talks if settlement construction should continue," Mr Abbas said in a speech delivered in Jordan.

"The negotiations need to bring about serious action that will be able to bring liberation from the occupation and independence."

Mr Abbas said Palestinians understood Israel's need for security, but said that need should not be an "excuse to expand settlements and steal land".

In the statement responding to Rabbi Yosef's remarks, Mr Netanyahu's office said Israel intended to negotiate in good faith in Washington.

"Israel plans to take part in peace negotiations out of a desire to advance toward a peace agreement with the Palestinians that will end the conflict and ensure peace, security and good neighbourly relations between the two peoples," the statement said.

Analysts say expectations for the latest round of talks are low, with the settlement issue just one of a number of area of difference.

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What a charmer. More proof, if needed, that there is a highly racist cancer at the core of Israel.

dlofnep

I read this yesterday. The Israeli leadership should have condemned this, and they failed to do so. Netanyahu was quick to condemn a few Israeli actors who boycotted an Israeli theatre - but put this on the long finger. Stating that his views "do not reflect the Government's" is clearly side-stepping the issue, and shows a lack of leadership. He should have taken the initiative and condemned it.

OhNoYouDidn't

dlofnep wrote: »

I read this yesterday. The Israeli leadership should have condemned this, and they failed to do so. Netanyahu was quick to condemn a few Israeli actors who boycotted an Israeli theatre - but put this on the long finger. Stating that his views "do not reflect the Government's" is clearly side-stepping the issue, and shows a lack of leadership. He should have taken the initiative and condemned it.

Problem being this guy isn't some random nutter, he is a serious policitical player and former cheif rabbi of Israel.

Frightning that this man is deemed suitable for government in a state that has the bomb.

Manic Moran

Though the comments are not exactly helpful, it's a bit of a stretch to say that the man's calling for genocide.

NTM

dlofnep

Manic Moran wrote: »

Though the comments are not exactly helpful, it's a bit of a stretch to say that the man's calling for genocide.

NTM

Hardly anymore of a stretch than people who claimed Ahmadinejad called for genocide of Israelis, when he stated that Zionism should be wiped from the page of time - Now is it?

How is it not calling for genocide? A while back he stated in regards to arabs: "It is forbidden to be merciful to them. You must send missiles to them and annihilate them. They are evil and damnable."

Now he's asking for God to strike down Palestinians.

"Not exactly helpful" is an understatement. Why don't you give this the condemnation that it deserves?

Laminations

Wow, so your telling us there are some hateful crazy people in Israel? That's news. Next you'll be telling us there is such a thing as Islamic fundamentalism

Bottle_of_Smoke

The 89-year-old former chief rabbi of Israel has been at the centre of controversy before, with comments about Arabs, secular Jews, liberals, women and gays.

Something very Paisleyesque about this bloke.

OhNoYouDidn't

Laminations wrote: »

Wow, so your telling us there are some hateful crazy people in Israel? That's news. Next you'll be telling us there is such a thing as Islamic fundamentalism

But this 'crazy' is former Cheif Rabbi of the state and is a senior official in a government party. Slightly different to a random nut, this lunatic has political clout.

PeterIanStaker

Now now now, if you criticise Israel your a Nazi. :rolleyes:

Manic Moran

Fortunately, there are those who will bring balance to the Force...

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100831/ap_on_re_mi_ea/mideast_talks

JERUSALEM – Palestinian gunmen opened fire Tuesday on an Israeli car in the West Bank and killed four passengers on the eve of a new round of Mideast peace talks in Washington. The Islamic militant group Hamas claimed responsibility.

<Snip>

One of the victims was pregnant, said police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld. Israel's national rescue service said the victims were two men and two women, and Israeli media said everyone in the car was killed.

<snip>

About 3,000 people joined a rally in Gaza to celebrate the attack. Hamas military wing spokesman Abu Obeida was among them and told The Associated Press: "The Qassam Brigades announces its full responsibility for the heroic operation in Hebron."

NTM

dlofnep

I just read about that this morning. It's awful. There can be no excuse for shooting a pregnant woman. Those who celebrated it should be ashamed of themselves.

Curious as to why you didn't create a new thread for this Manic to give it the attention it deserves, as it's a red herring under the current topic. I also noticed that you didn't answer my questions. Perhaps you could answer them now.

Manic Moran

dlofnep wrote: »

Curious as to why you didn't create a new thread for this Manic to give it the attention it deserves, as it's a red herring under the current topic.

Easy. I'm sick and tired of Love/Hate threads relating to Israel and Palestine, and will append an item of general relevance to an existing thread instead of creating a new one.

I also noticed that you didn't answer my questions. Perhaps you could answer them now.

Sorry.

Hardly anymore of a stretch than people who claimed Ahmadinejad called for genocide of Israelis, when he stated that Zionism should be wiped from the page of time - Now is it?

Nope. Are you suggesting that inaccurate hyperbole should be permitted on both sides for the sake of making things even? I have never acceeded to the Ahmadinejad claim, and do not do so for this one either.

How is it not calling for genocide? A while back he stated in regards to arabs: "It is forbidden to be merciful to them. You must send missiles to them and annihilate them. They are evil and damnable."

Remarks taken out of context. (I am having some difficulty finding the full text of the sermon to apply context). But from the same sermon, he says that "The Lord shall return the Arabs' deeds on their own heads", implying that Arabs which do not cause ill shall have nothing to fear. Without reading the full text, it is entirely possible that "his remarks referred only to 'Arab murderers and terrorists' and not the Arab people as a whole", as his spokesman mentioned on 10APR01.

Why don't you give this the condemnation that it deserves?

How much does it deserve? I think he should have chosen his words a little more precisely. However, he did not kill persons who are not believed to have taken up arms against anyone, neither did he celebrate the killing of such as far as I am aware. Put in perspective, proper condemnation should probably be reserved for the gunmen who shot the Israelis in the car and the Hamas officials who supported it. After all, though there is a fine line between freedom of speech and incitement to violence, you generally have to be pretty specific and blatant in order to fall afoul of the laws prohibiting the latter.

NTM

Nijmegen

The comment about genocide came from the Palestinians, not the Rabbi. Surely what he said was ill considered, but he was hardly outlining an extermination program.

OhNoYouDidn't

Nijmegen wrote: »

The comment about genocide came from the Palestinians, not the Rabbi. Surely what he said was ill considered, but he was hardly outlining an extermination program.

"It is forbidden to be merciful to them. You must send missiles to them and annihilate them. They are evil and damnable."

"A plague... vanish from our world"