J'accuse

You can watch back the Israeli defense team today here

The betrayal of the ICJ reminds every Jew about the lessons of his or her ancestors. We have each other. Sometimes we are lucky to have clear-minded, certain, unwavering friends beyond the bond of our community. But in the end we must learn to stand firm against the scourge of Jew hatred amid the power-hungry and the immoral fashionistas of the day. They always turn up and we always have to deal with them, and it costs us our hearts at times but it never costs us our souls.

We can’t be anyone other than who we are. We cannot fold ourselves into shapes and become origami for the people who are inconvenienced by our moral sternness. We cannot make the truth malleable to accommodate for the ignorance of the weak. We cannot apologize for the things we should never be sorry for. Because we have not committed any crime other than being born into our lineage, and by virtue of our lineage we are burdened with the task of showing the world the difference between right and wrong. We are the stethoscope that shows the earliest signs of disease in the darkest corners of the earth. We are the light unto the depraved who don’t want to see light, who would rather remain shielded from exposure, who want to exploit, and cheat, and suppress. That is the issue for them. And that is the battle for us. None of this should be happening to us. And every Jew has to fight back. For our present, for our past, for our future. For our history. They came even for our religious texts. The Talmud itself was on trial today.

Fight it. Fight it even when they don’t want to hear it. Especially when they don’t. Stand up for yourselves. Stand up for us all. Take every one of them down. Force every one of them to see it. They cannot excuse it. It is inexcusable. It is the oldest and most deplorable hatred in the world. It is Jew hatred. It is conspiratorial. It is poisonous. And it destroys everything that holds it up.

This is exactly what Hamas wanted. Hamas wanted Israel to be accused of genocide so that its own genocide of Jews would be overlooked, so that it could finally prove that the Jews did to the Palestinians what the Nazis did to them, as all critics of Israel have chirped with hyperbole since 1948. Hamas wanted to totally dehumanize Jews on October 7, to obliterate bodies beyond recognition, and burn down entire villages. Hamas wanted to eradicate Jewish history in the homeland of Israel and beyond. Hamas wanted the world to forget that the Jews could ever be victims, while subjecting us to the worst atrocities – so brutal that people refuse to believe they even took place. If the Jews are capable of genocide then Hitler was right, etc.

This is exactly what Hamas wanted all along. It's older than Hamas. It goes all the way back to the Grand Mufti's alliance with Adolf Hitler, and the fledgling seeds of Palestinian Nazism almost 100 years ago. The Nazis are long gone, but groups such as Hamas picked up where they left off, and true to form the international courts are also overlooking the annihilation of Jews in favor of some warped sense of moral high ground. History has a way of repeating itself. The cycles seem to be getting shorter. And as was the case before, this will have ramifications for the rest of the free world. Just you wait.

Over 1200 Israelis should have been alive to testify at the ICJ today. Over 130 Israelis should have been there to talk about their experiences as hostages of Hamas. But Hamas and Hamas only are the reason they were unable to provide testimony.

Today the ICJ did not allow us to show the Hamas footage from October 7 as evidence. That is an injustice on a par with telling a woman who was raped that she cannot present the evidence of her assault, because all that matters is her response, and because she punched him back, she is now on trial. How dare they. The hypocrisy of them. The list of countries accusing Israel of genocide; a list of failed states and/or Islamic dictatorships. And the only democracy of the Middle East having to defend itself against malicious false allegations. As I wrote here a few weeks ago: an antisemite only accuses a Jew of theft for the joy of seeing him turn out his pockets.

The so-called International Court of “Justice”. Justice, sure. They deliberated how to provide context, nuance and justification for the murder of men, women, children, grandparents, etc. Justification for mass rapes, mass kidnappings, with the families of the still kidnapped in attendance. Imagine having to go to the highest court in the international realm and having to defend your right to RETURN YOUR FAMILY MEMBERS. Our lives mean nothing to these people. Our well-being does not matter to them whatsoever. They couldn’t give a shit about what we’ve endured. Our pain is inconvenient. We are their willing victims. To hell with that.

According to the ADL, Israel is being dehumanized and held to a double standard once again. You don’t say. What other country has ever had to contend with this buffoonery? And South Africa will live to regret bringing this case. The case for the defense was majestic this morning. Israel used its platform and made a case for itself on a global stage, with farther reach than AJ+ and Al-Jazeera and the BBC and MSNBC. The propagandists could not contend with the truth.

Even Germany, of all states, released a statement vowing to step in and defend Israel at this international charade:

"We know that different countries rate Israel's operation in the Gaza Strip differently. However, Germany firmly and expressly rejects the accusation of genocide now made before the International Court of Justice against Israel."

"South Africa knows Apartheid!!!" Well, Germany understanding Nazism and the global demonizing of Jews trumps it. Those in celebration of the ICJ’s farce are nothing but a bunch of terrorist boot-lickers.

And yet some are still demanding the legal points be met. So here I quote a lawyer (@CptAllenHistory), for I am not a lawyer. I think you’ll all find this immensely satisfying:

Ok, you want to know from a lawyer why the allegation that Israel is committing genocide is false? Fine. I prefer to focus on the absurdity of the allegation, especially since it is Hamas that expressly seeks Jewish & Israeli genocide; but it's clear people want this analysis. Genocide is defined by the 1948 UN Convention on Prevention & Punishment of the Crime of Genocide as: (1) the coordinated; (2) planned; and (3) intentional destruction, in whole or in part, of a national, ethnical, racial or religious group. Let's set aside for a minute the fact that the the #UN Convention regarding #genocide was adopted because of what the #Nazis had done to the #Jews thereby making its invocation here not only absurdly false, but also unforgivably offensive. That outrageousness aside, we can analyze the elements of the crime of genocide under the present situation in #Gaza. The requisite mens rea to find a government guilty of genocide is the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a particular group of people. This intent to commit genocide doesn't magically come into being just because people want to believe it exists. There must be actual proof of criminal intent to destroy a particular group of people. #SouthAfrica cannot possibly carry its burden of showing Israel "intended or intends to commit genocide"; thus, the allegation fails. Just some of the obvious reasons intent to commit genocide could not possibly be shown follow:

10/7 & Hamas' words since 10/7 have proven the #terror group would, if it could, continue carrying out massacres until it killed every #Israeli & potentially every #Jew on Earth. Israel, like every other UN member state, has the inherent right to self-defense under Article 51 of the UN Charter. In this case, Israel's right to self-defense continues until it has done everything "necessary" to to ensure #Hamas can never attack Israeli civilians again because of: (1) the genocidal brutality of the #October7Massacre; (2) Hamas' 35+ years of genocidal warfare against Israel & Jews; & (3) Hamas' express & repeated commitment to repeat massacres like 10/7 "again and again." Therefore, Israel's right to self-defense includes both the right to eliminate the threat from Hamas to its civilians & to restore a sense of security to its civilians.

The Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry claims 22,000 #Palestinians have died. Even if that number was reliable (it is not), Hamas claims every one of the deaths was a civilian, not a #HamasTerrorist. That is obviously not the case. Israel claims to have killed ~9,000 Hamas terrorists. Even assuming the Hamas numbers were correct, that would mean about 1.45 civilians have been killed for every 1 "combatant" (Hamas terrorist). As horrible as the loss of any civilian life is, it is simply a fact that civilians suffer disproportionately in war & what Israel has done in protecting civilian lives is unprecedented in the history of urban warfare. In fact, according to the UN statistics of global conflict, the average civilian to combatant killed ratio is 9 civilians killed for every 1 combatant killed. This ratio in and of itself makes the allegation of "genocide" a complete absurdity. - Even assuming the "worst case scenario" numbers above of ~9,000 terrorists killed & ~13,000 civilians killed still does not take into account the cause of those civilian deaths. We know that somewhere between 20%-35% of all Hamas & #Palestinian #Islamic #Jihad missiles misfire & land in Gaza (like the one that landed at a Gaza hospital that Israel was wrongly accused of bombing). So, how many Gaza civilians were killed by misfired rockets from Palestinian terror groups? Suddenly, that already incredible ratio of civilians:combatants in the annals of warfare is improving even further.

There are at least dozens of videos of Hamas #terrorists firing at #IDF troops while wearing civilian clothing (which is itself a #WarCrime) to blend in with the civilian population. So, how many Gaza "civilians" who were killed were actually just Hamas terrorists wearing #civilian clothing? That civilian:combatant ratio is improving once again.

We know from video, reconnaissance, audio, interrogations, & eye-witness accounts (including from #Gazans themselves) that Hamas uses both voluntary & involuntary human shields to protect Hamas terrorists & their weapons (each time they do it, that is also a war crime). So, how many Gaza "civilians" who were killed were voluntarily acting as human shields for Hamas? And while Israel has made significant efforts to limit civilians casualties, those involuntary human shields who die are legally dead at the hands of Hamas. Wow, that civilian:combatant ratio is looking beyond amazing now!

There is video, photo, interrogation, & eye-witness accounts that Hamas uses women & children under 18 in combat roles. Therefore, not every allegedly killed woman or child counts as a "civilian."

What kind of genocidal army would do what Israel has been doing in engaging in massive warning campaigns before it attacks via hundreds of thousands of phone calls, text messages, leaflets, & via roof knocking? Gazans are actually given so much warning & time to evacuate that the extreme majority of "civilians" who remain in a targeted area are there either because they support Hamas or because they were forced to stay & act as human shields by Hamas. Essentially, not only is Israel obviously not conducting a genocide, it has completely eliminated their own advantage of surprise that would have helped Israel eradicate Hamas much quicker by providing warnings that reach both civilians & Hamas terrorists.

A large percentage of Palestinian deaths in Gaza have been due to their combined use by Hamas as human shields & by Hamas' refusal to permit Gaza civilians to either to use Hamas tunnels as bomb shelters or to flee via safe corridors provided by the @IDF (what kind of genocidal army provides safe corridors for civilians even knowing some Hamas terrorists will manage to escape by blending in with the crowd???). In other words, it is Hamas that is by far the most responsible party for putting #Gazan #civilians in harm's way; and the mere fact that civilians have died is in no way indicative of any deliberate intent on the part of Israel to kill Palestinian civilians - let alone intentionally "destroy" the population, as required to prove genocide.

A country's intention to destroy a group in whole or in part is typically found in state policy (as it was with the Nazis & as it is with Hamas). However, no such policy in Israel has ever existed. Israel has made clear repeatedly (and its actions, with some examples stated above, show this is more than just words) that its goal is to "operate against Hamas & other terrorist groups in Gaza, not against the civilian population ... Israel wishes no harm to civilians & is committed to addressing the humanitarian needs of those suffering ..."

Simply, the loss of lives in Gaza are reasonably explained by & attributable to Israel's necessary self-defense military goal of eradicating Hamas' ability to make war. The loss of lives in Gaza are not, however, reasonably explained by some claimed genocide on the part of Israel, as there is no actual evidence to support a finding of the type of criminal intent required to prove genocide.

Israel is a straight-up parliamentary #democracy; thus, it has voices in the Knesset that can be extreme. Those voices, however, are not mainstream; and, more importantly, those voices are not the ones who are responsible for prosecuting the war against Hamas. Therefore, their words (indelicate as they may have been) are irrelevant to a finding of genocide on the part of the government of Israel. The Israeli war cabinet in charge of prosecuting the war to eradicate Hamas consists of only five people: PM Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, unity coalition member, former Deputy PM, & Minister of Defense Benny Gantz, former military Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot, & Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer. Attempting to attribute the words of anyone else, especially in the very fringes of Israel's eclectic democratic government, to try to show proof of government intent to commit genocide fails as a matter of both fact & law. Any comments by the five members of the war cabinet at which any dishonest person may wish to point to try to prove "intent to commit genocide," in reality can only be reasonably interpreted as statements referring to the destruction of the Hamas terrorist regime. So, what is the takeaway? It is South Africa's burden to show Israel had/has the intent to carry out a "genocide" of the Palestinian people in Gaza. For the foregoing reasons (among many others), South Africa cannot possibly prove intent to commit genocide. South Africa's allegations are defamatory & are an attempt to hold the world's only Jewish State to a different standard than every other state in the history of humankind; and, perhaps worse, to try to turn the victims of a genocide into the alleged committers of a genocide. Were the #ICJ to find intent to commit "genocide" here, then no country on Earth would be permitted to act in self-defense in the event it is attacked - no matter how horrible the attack - if any civilians may be killed in the process. If that were the case, Hamas & other terrorist organizations would be given carte blanche to attack countries with impunity & then simply hide behind civilians to suddenly become entirely immune from justice. That obviously can never be the law.

There’s no both sides here.

There’s no both sides.

No both sides.

It’s us or it’s them.

I’m sorry for your losses. I am sorry for mine. But they don’t care about us. And we deserve in the very least to be cared about.

One day they will wake up, and they will realize that they traded integrity for their desperate need to be perceived as “good”, for their own selfish wants. But we don’t have to trade anything. We are inherently good. The ICJ and international law has been exposed as illegitimate. Those participating in this trial are nothing beyond the morally bankrupt Jew haters of the era.

Vladimir Jabotinsky, 1911:

“Instead of turning our backs on our accusers because we have nothing to apologize for and no one to apologize to, we swear again that we are here for no reason… [O]nce again we have taken on the role of prisoners on trial: we press our hands to our hearts, with quivering fingers we leaf through old stacks of supporting documents that no one is interested in, and we swear right and left that we do not consume this drink, that never has a drop of it passed our lip's… How much longer will this go on? Tell me, my friends, are you not tired by now of this rigmarole? Isn’t it high time, in response to all of these accusations, rebukes, suspicions, smears, and denunciations – both present and future – to fold our arms over our chests and loudly, clearly, coldly, and calmly put forth the only argument which this public can understand: why don’t you all go to hell? What kind of people are we that we have to justify ourselves before them? And who are they to demand it of us? What is the point of this whole comedy of putting an entire people on trial when the verdict is known in advance? What is the point of reacting to all of this shrieking and barking with sworn statements, reassurances, and pledges? There is no point, and it should be unthinkable to behave thus. As soon as we rebut one argument, another is born. There are no limits to human spite and stupidity. Justifications are worth making only at those rare, exceptionally important junctures when there is full certainty that a court really does have equitable intentions and appropriate competence. But to make apologies into a way of life… that means humiliating ourselves and bringing ourselves down to the level of barking dogs.”

I’m wishing you all a Shabbat shalom. I didn’t personally excavate the City of David but I went last week to see thousands-year-old proof of our existence in Israel. It’s our land, baby. It’s our home. And the attempts of a tyrannical Jihadist regime to exterminate us will not become the intellectual joust of people who would deny us our indigenous rights and deny us our history. From the ashes of the most targeted minority group on the planet, we repatriated our nation and we thrive there. Nothing makes our haters more mad. Hamas will not win. South Africa will not win. The hypocrites of the world will not win. We never die. We survive it all. In every generation.