Why is Israel under a microscope, but the Palestinians aren’t?

Beloved cultural figures have been “cancelled” for far less than what the Palestinians said in recent days.

By Ryan Jones | | Topics: palestinians, Israel
Palestinian society is an enemy of Western liberal progressivism. But that doesn't seem to bother those pushing for a Palestinian state. Photo by Atia Mohammed/Flash90
Palestinian society is an enemy of Western liberal progressivism. But that doesn't seem to bother those pushing for a Palestinian state. Photo by Atia Mohammed/Flash90

If the successful resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict were really so important to regional and global stability, then there’d be much more scrutiny of both sides.

The reality, of course, is that it’s not. What really drives everyone, whether they realize it or not, is opposition to the will of God, in this case the foretold restoration of Israel.

That’s why Israel is constantly under a microscope, while the Palestinians are given a free pass even for things that would get any other group ostracized in the blink of an eye.

Take for instance the Palestinian reaction this week to a new code of conduct distributed by the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) to its employees in the Gaza Strip.

The world body asked its local Palestinian employees to commit themselves to not discriminate against LGBT persons when providing education and aid to the population of Gaza.

The response was a resounding “NO!”

In fact, the Palestinians were outraged that the United Nations would make such a request of them.

The Palestinian Authority, through its official daily newspaper Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, stressed that it only respects those human rights that align with the “principles of the Islamic religion,” and demanded that UNRWA remove from its new code of conduct all clauses that deal with “perverse” issues like homosexuality and gender identity.

The PA’s Department of Refugee Affairs further stated that it slanderous for the UN to even suggest that there might be gay Palestinians.

UNRWA’s own Palestinian employees, through their Employee Association (a kind of union, it would appear), decried efforts by their bosses to promote “a culture of perversion” among the Palestinians.

Beloved cultural figures have been “cancelled” for far less, while the Palestinians remain a cause célèbre.

Imagine if Israeli government officials and UN employees had made similar remarks. But you don’t need to imagine, because Israel has been “cancelled” by progressive Western society for far less.

Consider the statement of PA Minister of Religious Affairs Hatem Al-Bakri who said that Jews who ascend Jerusalem’s Temple Mount during the upcoming biblical holidays are “infidels” who “defile” a Muslim holy place.

Now, Muslims don’t typically try to visit the Western Wall below the Temple Mount, as it holds no meaning for them (though neither does the Temple Mount, not really). But imagine that they did. And imagine that Israel’s Minister of Religious Affairs reacted in the same way as Al-Bakri, by calling Muslims “infidels” who were “defiling” a Jewish holy site.

In both scenarios, if the roles were flipped and Israel was the one making such offensive remarks, it would be mercilessly condemned by the international community. The media bashing from New York to London to Berlin to Beijing would be relentless.

But when the Palestinians do it, no one seems to notice.

To call this hypocrisy would be a gross understatement.

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