Can the South African experience be a guiding force? It could and should
By Ostern Tefo
Several anti-Israel activists, including BDS (Boycott Divest Sanctions) and others, boldly assert that Israel is an Apartheid state, when such allegations could not be further from the truth. Misguidedly, this has led to a South African foreign policy exclusively geared to favour one side – Palestine. As a result of erroneous perceptions, this has created a complex and divisive viewpoint.
Ruling oppressively in Gaza, Hamas has no interest in achieving peace in the sense of parties arriving at a mutually agreeable consensus. This not in its DNA. As long as this remains the case, the predicament of the Palestinian community must be regarded as the product of both Hamas’ rule over Palestinians in Gaza as well as the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. Conflicts can be resolved if both parties are willing to do so. The latter is well illustrated by the success of the South African liberation struggle which resulted in a successfully negotiated settlement that birthed democracy and above all, “peace and reconciliation”.
Raucous Road. A protest against Israel in South Africa in 2021. Are these the voices that shape South Africa’s foreign policy? (AP Photo/Nardus Engelbrecht)
Israel has repeatedly attempted to initiate peace negotiations with the Palestinian leadership, but each time has been violently rebuffed. It would be inaccurate to compare the struggle for democracy in South Africa to the Palestinian struggle for independence. They are not remotely comparable. To say that “Israel is an Apartheid state” solely in an effort to delegitimize Israel, ends up delegitimizing the definition of Apartheid. It is an abuse of the word and hence an abuse of the people who suffered under Apartheid.
It is critical for a number of reasons that South Africa not only maintains but strengthens its diplomatic relations with Israel. South Africa is on its knees with:
– its rolling blackouts
– the world’s highest unemployment rate
– poor access to healthcare
– grey listing
– a murder rate that is higher than the death toll in Ukraine at present.
All this, when my country, South Africa, could greatly benefit from Israel’s rapidly expanding entrepreneurial economy with its emphasis on hi-tech innovation. South Africa could profit from a number of Israeli solutions which is presently being used to solve problems in much of African.
So, why not South Africa?
Take the South African healthcare system for starters, which is in tatters and compare it to Israel’s superlative National Healthcare System. There is no comparison!
Cultivated Hate. The venom by some in the South Africa Muslim community against Israel that influences the ANC today began years ago as seen in this protest against the late Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.
Every resident across Israel, whether in cities or small towns in the countryside is insured for quality healthcare under their National Health Insurance Law. While South African health care accessibility remains poor in rural areas and there are problems retaining physicians in the public system, surely South Africa could learn from the Israeli system.
Then there is Israel’s drip irrigation technology popular in much of Africa. Tailormade for dry terrain or lands plagued by unreliable water resources, the Israeli system allows villages to grow more food with less water, which not only dramatically improves food security but also economic development and financial independence. Israel, a far more desert country than South Africa with much less rainfall, is now water independent. South Africa should welcome the Israelis instead of driving them away!
A Light unto the Nations. Israeli engineering students from Tel Aviv University (TAU) bring solar power to a remote Tanzanian medical clinic, as part of their ongoing work in the village. (Photo via Facebook)
In terms of “loadshedding”, our all-consuming national catastrophe of widespread national blackouts of electricity supply that began in 2007 and is worse today in 2023, why not speak to the Israelis who have revolutionised solar power and energy?
Instead of the South African parliament dumbly voting this March 2023 to downgrade ties with Israel, it should be doing the opposite. It should be strengthening not destroying ties!
Sad ‘State’ of Affairs. At a time when many African and Muslim countries are strengthening and deepening ties with the State of Israel for the benefit of everyone’s common interests, South Africa does the opposite as exhibited in its House of Parliament in Cape Town when it voted to downgrade its ties with the Jewish state.
Ultimately, we have to come to terms with the fact that Israel cannot be prejudiced for defending its sovereign policies and the interests of its people, and Palestine must take responsibility for the attacks on Israel carried out by Hamas and other extremists. South Africa’s refusal to maintain full diplomatic relations with Israel motivated solely by the conflict, exposes its bias and prejudice because Palestine also commits a fair share of unprovoked aggressions against Israel.
To preserve the true legacy of the South African experience of reconciliation and share it with others that they too can benefit, South Africa’s foreign policy should be consistent, and above all, its leaders need to display impartiality and non be biased.
‘Tapping’ into Israeli Ingenuity. Israeli Sivan Yaari of INNOVATION:AFRICA opens taps of clean water for the first time in this remote part of Tanzania. Innovation:Africa has completed over 880 solar and water installations, impacting over 4.2 million people (photo credit: INNOVATION:AFRICA)
Since COVID-19 broke out, the South African economy has continued to contract. In contrast, Israel’s economy is still expanding.
We have much to learn and gain by deepening our relations with Israel. South Africa stands to gain far more from a positive and mutually beneficial relationship with Israel than Israel does and yet, we behave abysmally towards Israel. All to our detriment and suffering of our people.
Switched On Tanzania. An ‘illuminating’ lesson for South Africa – Nkaiti Medical Center is lit up at night for the very first time thanks to Israeli engineering students. (Photo via Facebook)
In essence, one cannot dismantle the fact that the benefits of the association outweigh the costs. Thus, it would be in the best interest of the South African to restore full relations with Israel and encourage partnerships to the mutual benefit of South African and Israelis.
About the writer:
Ostern Tefo has a BA in Political Studies and International relations and is currently studying for his LLB at the University of the Witwatersrand. He serves as a coordinator at ‘Africans for Peace’, a collective of independent students, scholars and activists who bring an African lens to the global debate on peace and stability on the African continent.
While the mission of Lay of the Land (LotL) is to provide a wide and diverse perspective of affairs in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world, the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by its various writers are not necessarily ones of the owners and management of LOTL but of the writers themselves. LotL endeavours to the best of its ability to credit the use of all known photographs to the photographer and/or owner of such photographs (0&EO).
A personal perspective of Israelis living with terrorism on their streets
By Jonathan Feldstein
At 9:34pm Thursday, I received a strange message from my daughter in our family WhatsApp group:
“For all those who asked, I am ok and alive”
Since nobody asked, her sarcasm coupled with a little fear was eerily palpable.
I had been recording a podcast and didn’t know what she was talking about. None of us did. It seems that there was another terrorist attack, this time in central Tel Aviv. I had not heard about it.
Surveillance camera footage shows the terror shooting attack in Tel Aviv this evening, outside a cafe on Dizengoff Street. Three wounded, including one critically. Video has been blurred by me. pic.twitter.com/wkXMJcSvfr
— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) March 9, 2023
Three people were injured, one shot in the neck and as of this writing, is still in critical condition. One terrorist was killed on the spot but there are reports that another terrorist escaped. The last time this happened, much of Tel Aviv remained on lockdown until the terrorist was caught, as it was again.
I also didn’t know my daughter was in Tel Aviv. She is 26, I don’t need to know her every move. But she lives in Jerusalem and we live just south of Jerusalem so, while not far away, we’re not often there. It’s a strange paradox in Israel that our kids have such wide freedom, so much so that we don’t feel the need to keep track of them 24/7 or on an unusually tight leash, yet we live in a society in which this could happen.
Devastation on Dizengoff. The scene following the terror attack on Dizengoff street, in central Tel Aviv, March 9, 2023. (Avshalom SaassoniFlash90)
My daughter was out at a restaurant when it happened, fifteen minutes away by foot on Ben Yehuda St. They were just about to leave to walk to Israel’s first 7-Eleven on Dizengoff Street, right before it happened.
Fifteen minutes after her first note, she wrote that she and her friends had decided to return to where they were staying and had arrived safely. Thank God!
Forty-five minutes after her first message, another daughter wrote, “There was a terrorist attack?”
Fifteen minutes later, an hour after the shooting attack happened, my younger son came into the room announcing another attempted terrorist attack in a community nearby. A Palestinian Arab terrorist entered the largely ultra-Orthodox community of Beitar Ilit by bus, left a package on the bus which began emitting smoke but didn’t explode, and then fled at the second bus stop into the city of some 50,000 residents. The residents were put on lockdown while a bomb-squad arrived to detonate the explosive, accompanied by other security personnel who began the search for the terrorist.
While this was unfolding, several friends from overseas reached out to ask:
“Are you guys OK?”.
I assured them we were all fine, that my daughter who was fifteen minutes away from the attack was shaken but also fine. I explained that it’s sometimes surreal that things like this happen sometimes; that it’s close to home, sometimes closer, and sometimes too close. But we go about our lives.
Sitting Targets. Tables and chairs in disarray following lone gunman on a shooting spree at city restaurant on Dizengoff Street, Tel Aviv.
While we were watching the news unfold, three of my kids were out, going about life. I didn’t really think about it, but did want to stay up to be sure they got home safely. My youngest son went to a midnight movie with friends. Another daughter was out at a kosher Korean restaurant with her boyfriend (and didn’t bring me any), and my older son and his fiancé went to an engagement party for other friends.
One friend asked about mental health and trauma related issues, a logical and intuitive question. I explained that because of the reality of terror and the threat of terror and war that exists (though the impression is that Israel is unsafe like the wild-west which is not the case), people do suffer trauma but most just go about their lives.
Trauma like this, particularly impacts terror victims and families of terror victims, military and former military and at-risk youth who live in areas that might be particularly unsafe and/or come from homes where they have no parents or parents who are unable to care for them. These children need support. It’s one of the important projects that the Genesis 123 Foundation funds, to empower “at-risk” youth so that they can pursue – with security and confidence – successful lives.
Terror in Tel Aviv. One minute there are revelers enjoying the nightlife of Dizengoff street in central Tel Aviv, the next police at the scene of a terror attack on March 9, 2023. (Avshalom Saassoni/Flash90).
Both military and private civilian security in communities like mine which abut Palestinian Arab communities, go on high alert in situations like this as well. First responders must be trained in defense, able to confront a live terror incident, and take care of anyone injured from an attack before EMS personnel arrive. Providing resources for these rapid response civilian security teams saves lives, I know this, because my son-in-law is in one of the local teams and has actually saved people’s lives. It’s a reason that this is also a project that the Genesis 123 Foundation is proud to fund.
Friday morning, while running errands before the onset of, Shabbat (the Sabbath), I drove by Beitar Ilit, just 15 minutes away from my house by car. I went to the bakery where “Abed” and I always greet one another, as we did again. In another shop, another Palestinian Arab worker helped me professionally and politely. All as if nothing had changed. Maybe it hadn’t. Maybe this is just the norm: on one day others try to kill us and the next day we’re being polite and respectful.
Targeting Busses. Israeli security forces scan the settlement of Beitar Illit, following an infiltration of a Palestinian terrorist who placed a bomb on a passenger bus that caught fire but failed to explode on March 10, 2023. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
All this comes on the heels of other civil strife in Israel that has been adding to the stress of increased terror attacks. Earlier in the day there were country wide protests over proposed sweeping judicial reforms. Roads were blocked to and at Ben Gurion airport, and main arteries in Tel Aviv. Hours later, Tel Aviv’s roads were clear of protestors, replaced by police and military securing the area and hunting for the terrorist who got away.
This is a taste of life here. There are injured people and their families who need your prayers. There are others for whom this creates trauma. And if these don’t hit too close to home, the rest of us just try to go about our lives.
About the writer:
Jonathan Feldstein - President of the US based non-profit Genesis123 Foundation whose mission is to build bridges between Jews and Christians – is a freelance writer whose articles appear in The Jerusalem Post, Times of Israel, Townhall, NorthJersey.com, Algemeiner Jornal, The Jewish Press, major Christian websites and more.
While the mission of Lay of the Land (LotL) is to provide a wide and diverse perspective of affairs in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world, the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by its various writers are not necessarily ones of the owners and management of LOTL but of the writers themselves. LotL endeavours to the best of its ability to credit the use of all known photographs to the photographer and/or owner of such photographs (0&EO).
A reputation of tough and tenacious, SA Rugby loses its spine
By Lennie Lurie
In an unprecedented vote on the 6th November 1962, uniting nations on both sides of the Iron Curtain, the UN General Assembly passed Resolution 1761, condemning South African Apartheid policies and called for the imposition of economic sanctions on South Africa. While nations such as the United States and the United Kingdom were at first reluctant to impose sanctions, by the late 1980s, both countries and 23 other nations had passed laws placing various trade sanctions on South Africa.
An immediate arms embargo was followed by a trade embargo which played havoc with the burgeoning vehicle production factories in the eastern Cape province. Despite the large numbers of black employees who were dismissed as a result of production cut backs, they heartily approved of the economic sanctions even though their income was grievously affected. Anything which would contribute to the removal of the cruel, wicked and humiliating racial policies of Apartheid was encouraged and the black workers were prepared to bear the load of the economic boycott as it affected them as well.
When it was realised that the SA Government was not bending under the economic boycott, a cultural boycott was imposed on the Republic. No foreign entertainers and singers visited SA and no South Africans performers would be welcome overseas. The iconic and celebrated SA singer of authentic African music, Miriam Makeba, who gained international fame with her popular “click” song, wholly supported the cultural boycott, which made a strong impression on South African artists and entertainers.
Miriam Makeba – Click Song (Qongqothwane) (Live)
Here again, the resolute and determined SA government remained steadfast in the maintenance and implementation of the Apartheid system.
Finally, it was decided to impose a sport boycott on all South African sportsmen and women preventing the proud ‘Springbok’ teams – notably in rugby and cricket – from competing abroad as well as officially banning any overseas countries and foreign sports team from touring South Africa. And this, dear friends, was the final straw which broke the back of the Apartheid system!
Economic sanctions against South Africa placed a significant pressure on the SA government. The cultural boycott made SA unwelcome overseas and isolated the country from foreign entertainers and performers. The real fear that the Springboks would no longer compete against the sports teams of other countries proved to be a hardship (particularly on the rugby field!) that even the most fervent white nationalist could bear.
In 1990, President Frederik Willem (F.W.) de Klerk recognized the economic unsustainability of the burden of international sanctions and felt the isolation of his country in all aspects of culture and sport. Reluctantly but finally and unreservedly, he released the nationalist leader Nelson Mandela and unbanned the African National Congress (ANC) that Mandela led. De Klerk and Mandela together guided the country to democratic elections in 1994, with Mandela as president. When Mandela was asked if the sanctions, especially the sports boycott, helped to bring an end to the apartheid system, Mandela replied “Oh, there is no doubt!”
Can’t take the Heat. While players from Israeli rugby team ‘Tel Aviv Heat’ are seen here in London celebrating a victory in November 2022, they will not be seen in South Africa this March after their invitation to compete was withdrawn by the SA Rugby Union following pressure from the BDS coalition.
Who can ever forget the emotional scene when Nelson Mandela congratulated the Springbok rugby captain, Francois Pienaar on winning the 1995 World Rugby Cup in Ellis Park. Rugby was as dear to Mandela as any white South African rugger lover – he never forgot the pressure of the international sports boycott on his country and how it contributed in breaking the vile and contemptible Apartheid system.
True Colours. Disinviting Israeli rugby team to participate in South Africa in 2023 is a far cry from the outreach projected by President Nelson Mandela and Springbok captain, Francois Pienaar at the historic 1995 Rugby World Cup.
In light of the above historical review of the sports boycott on South Africa, it is therefore most surprising and deeply disappointing to read that the South African Rugby Union (SARU), had on the 3rd February, 2023, rescinded its invitation, given in August, 2022, to have the Israeli rugby team Tel Aviv Heat compete in the 2023 Mzansi Challenge tournament – also known as the Currie Cup First Division, which is scheduled to start on the 24th March with teams from Kenya, Namibia and Zimbabwe and six SA provinces.
The Tel Aviv Heat team includes a number of South Africans and its coach, Kevin Musikanth, was born in South Africa.
Happier Days. Launched as Israel’s first professional rugby team in July 2021, Tel Aviv Heat is seen here celebrating a post-match at Loftus Versfeld at the end of a magical South African Tour hosted by the Blue Bulls in 2022.
The SARU President Mark Alexander stated that it had “listened to the opinions of important stakeholder groups” and took the step “to avoid the likelihood of the competition becoming a source of division.” A more accurate and honest reason being that the SARU bowed under pressure and alleged threats from supporters of the South African BDS (Boycott, Disinvestment, Sanction) Coalition.
Shameful Withdrawal. Under pressure, Mark Alexander SA Rugby president rescinds invitation to Israeli team, Tel Aviv Heat.
This cowardly and shameful volte-face decision by the SARU is not only insulting to the Israeli Tel Aviv Heat rugby team but it is a despicable slap-in-the-face to the sporting image of South Africa which knows only too well the historical background of imposing a sports boycott on a fellow sporting nation or team. To comprehend that the all-powerful SARU has cowardly kowtowed to insidious pressures and / or threats of the SA BDS Coalition, an anti-Israeli group of South Africans who are known as talkers, not doers, is all the more pathetic. It is indeed a sad day when South African rugby has lost its independence, objectivity and neutrality in matters relating to sport and becomes a spineless puppet manipulated by an anti-Semitic group, simply pulling on distant strings!
Let SARU bow its head in shame in stooping so low as to callously affront the proud and heroic image of that South African leader, known to all his friends as ‘Madiba’, who had the courage to welcome and support a sport boycott as a means of exerting pressure on a government that oppressed his people under the scourge of Apartheid.
Not long ago, the University of Cape Town, again under pressure from BDS student supporters, decided to impose a boycott on all Israeli universities and colleges. UCT soon realized that it had more to lose than gain by such an ill-advised and self-defeating act and promptly withdrew its boycott threat after it was inundated by letters from former students informing the UCT council that they would discontinue all financial aid should UCT enact the boycott. Frankly, UCT could be in greater need of ground breaking Israeli academic discoveries and inventions than vice versa!
Thumbs Up to Thumbs Down. Israel’s SA-born rugby coach Kevin Musikanth who helped get together Israel and the UAE to play a historic match for the Sons of Abraham trophy got the thumbs down for his Tel Aviv team the ‘Tel Aviv Heat’ to compete in his native South Africa.
Likewise, SARU has already lost face in the eyes of many Israelis and probably Israeli supporters world-wide. Making excuses about “competition becoming a source of division” when it is well-known that the BDS threat was the real reason, places SARU as a pathetic and weak-willed organization, susceptible to the crudest form of verbal pressure.
Even the image of the proud Springbok emblem has been irrevocably tarnished and sullied by the cowardly collapse of SARU.
One can only exclaim: How the mighty have fallen!
About the writer:
A B.Sc. graduate in Economics and Geology from the University of Cape Town (UCT), Lennie may be the only volunteer from abroad who was granted permission to leave his group on kibbutz during the 1967 Six Day War to rejoin his paratroop brigade that he had served with years before following his matriculation in Cape Town. In Israel, Lennie has worked as an Export Manager for some of the country’s major food manufacturers and chemical companies as well as an independent consultant in Export Marketing guiding many small Israeli businesses to sell their products and services in the world-wide market. As a result of a work accident in 1995, Lennie made a career change and became an independent English teacher working mainly with hi-tech companies and associated with universities and colleges in the north of Israel.
While the mission of Lay of the Land (LotL) is to provide a wide and diverse perspective of affairs in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world, the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by its various writers are not necessarily ones of the owners and management of LOTL but of the writers themselves. LotL endeavours to the best of its ability to credit the use of all known photographs to the photographer and/or owner of such photographs (0&EO).
ANC government repeatedly alienates partners for development in South Africa
By Pamela Ngubane
In a heart-warming series of events, Israel has repeatedly displayed its commitment to continue growing its ties in Africa. This follows the announcement by Chadian President, Mahamat Deby, that his country would open an embassy in Israel.
The Chadian leader travelled to Israel to officiate the inauguration of the embassy in Ramat Gan in early February. Deby cited that Chad and Israel were at a decisive turning point in their relationship, during a meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem that week. This followed waves of peace talks in the Middle East and Northern Africa, which have resulted in a remarkable increase in economic cooperation between Israel and other states.
Back to Africa. “We believe that our co-operation can help not only advance our relations and our co-operation, but it is also part of Israel’s coming back to Africa and Africa coming back to Israel,” said Chadian President Mahamat Idriss who is seen here meeting with Israel’s State President, Isaac Herzog following the opening of the Chadian Embassy in Ramat Gan, outside Tel Aviv.
Deby was welcomed in Israel with great diplomatic fanfare by President Isaac Herzog and Foreign Minister Eli Cohen for the opening of the Chadian embassy. At the time, Prime Minister Netanyahu reported that this would form part of a tremendously important relationship with a major country in the heart of Africa.
The news of Chad formalising its diplomatic ties to Israel were followed closely by reports that Israel and Sudan would sign a “historic peace agreement” in Washington in a few months’ time, indicating an irrefutable move to promote peace, dialogue and increase economic cooperation between Africa and Israel in 2023.
The Sudanese agreement is particularly noteworthy because it overturns the Khartoum Resolution of 1967, which was issued at the conclusion of the 1967 Arab League summit, convened in Khartoum, the capital of Sudan, in the wake of the Six-Day War. The resolution is infamous for containing what became known as the “Three Nos”:
“no peace with Israel”
“no recognition of Israel”
“no negotiations with it”
This has been comprehensively shattered this year and replaced with three Yes’s for peace.
‘Power’ to the People. Children in Iringa, Uganda, where the Israeli nonprofit organization, Innovation Africa connected a clinic to electricity via solar power, December 21, 2019. (Sue Surke/Times of Israel)
Countries in Africa and the Middle East continue to welcome Israeli technology and innovation through these historical peace agreements and talks. This is an unsurprising fact, given that Israeli solar technology now provides a stable water supply to over 3.5 million people in Africa, and to over half a million people in South Africa as well.
One would be forgiven for imagining that these developments would encourage South Africa’s national government to adopt foreign policies which would aim to promote Israel in our country as a partner for our continued development and basic service infrastructure. And yet, here we are, completely disengaged from reality. Our Minister of International Relations, Naledi Pandor, won’t pick sides when it comes to Russia and the war it has waged on innocent civilians in Ukraine! However, when it comes to Israel, it’s always been a hard no. Why? Because Israel offers the ANC government (currently polling below 50%) with the only straw of relevance they have left to the South African electorate. And even then, it is entirely misguided and based on a narrative that has never served Palestinians or Israelis at all.
Impacting Millions. Since its inception in 2008, Israeli company ‘Innovation Africa’ with its solar and water installations, impacts millions across 10 African countries Uganda, Malawi, Tanzania, Zambia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Cameroon, South Africa, eSwatini, Ethiopia and Senegal.
South Africans have been called to categorically reject the appropriation of the suffering of black people under colonisation; and Apartheid by the enemies of Israel as a tool to de-legitimise the Jewish state. This has been communicated on a number of occasions by several stakeholders, including the South African Zionist Federation and the South African Jewish Board of Deputies, as well as Stand With Us.
The Holy Land of Israel remains the ancestral and indigenous homeland of the Jewish people. The return en masse of Jews throughout the world to re-establish their state two thousand years of exile and statelessness, is the legitimate and legal expression of the Jewish people’s struggle for national self-determination.
Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East and is home to a multicultural society where the rights of all religions, minorities, ethnicities and beliefs are protected and promoted. It is the only country in the Middle East where the population of Christians is growing and has a number of holy sites which are critically relevant to Christians and their faith.
Skewed Foreign Policy. While quick to condemn Israel at every opportunity, Minister of International Relations Naledi Pandor has refused to condemn Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine that is claiming thousands of innocent lives. Reinforcing the two country’s friendship, Pandor is seen here welcoming her Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov for talks in Pretoria. This February 2023, joint “war games” military exercises with Russia and China were held in South Africa.
And yet – the ANC continues to feel threatened by Israel’s growing ties in Africa. So much so, that our national government shamelessly allows the narrative of an “Apartheid state” to consume all conversations about Israel in our country.
South Africa’s foreign policy between Israel and the Palestinians should take a de-hyphenated approach if we are to contribute meaningfully to securing peace for the people living in both territories during our lifetime. This will ensure that South Africans continue to access the best that Israel has to offer, while creating a safe space for the difficult conversations that need to take place to address the senseless violence and suffering that has destroyed families across both borders to date.
At this rate, we need to start asking ourselves, as South Africans, some hard questions. Has the ANC government been captured by the BDS movement? And is BDS dictating our foreign policy to our public representatives?
About the writer:
A Social Science Honours graduate, Pamela Ngubane is a history teacher who was appointed as the Spokesperson of SAFI(South African Friends of Israel)
While the mission of Lay of the Land (LotL) is to provide a wide and diverse perspective of affairs in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world, the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by its various writers are not necessarily ones of the owners and management of LOTL but of the writers themselves. LotL endeavours to the best of its ability to credit the use of all known photographs to the photographer and/or owner of such photographs (0&EO).
The bumpy path of building relations between Africa and Israel
By Jonathan Feldstein
I just returned home to Israel after an extraordinary 10-day trip in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, a massive country in central Africa. I had always wanted to visit Africa but until several months ago, Congo was not on my top ten list, or even on my radar at all. To give you an idea of its size, it covers a land area larger than Spain, France, Germany, Sweden, and Norway combined.
I visited in the context of my work as President of the Genesis 123 Foundation which builds bridges between Jews and Christians and Christians with Israel in ways that are new, unique, and meaningful. Most Israeli Jews like me who engage in building bridges between Jews and Christians do so in North America, mostly due to the commonality of language and Judeo-Christian culture.
Meeting the Media. The writer speaking at a press conference following a meeting with Modeste Bahati Lukwebo, the President of the Congolese Senate.
Part of our outreach is however directed south. Through managing an incredible WhatsApp group of Christians throughout Africa, ‘Africa Praying for Israel’, I have built strong relationships and deep friendships. I have experienced genuine love and support for Israel and the Jewish people, often from people for whom I am the first Jew they have ever met, albeit in most cases virtually.
Congo is unique. It’s the second largest country in Africa in size, the fourth largest in terms of population, and it’s 90% Christian. As a Christian nation whose president, Félix Tshisekedi, is both a devout Christian and ardent Zionist, support and love for Israel is palpable from the top down. It is why I visited when I did. President Tshisekedi served as head of the African Union where he advocated for Israel to return to the AU as an observer, meeting fierce resistance from Islamic and antisemitic countries.
My visit took place a week before the AU vote on Israel’s status, hosted by Congo Bless Israel. We were received by the Senate President, and dozens of governmental, ministerial, religious, and business leaders. Throughout the trip, everywhere I went, I experienced overwhelming love and support for Israel and the Jewish people.
Our purpose was to widen and deepen relationships, support President Tshisekedi and the other Congolese and African leaders supporting Israel, and pray and advocate for Israel in the AU, raising Congo as an example not just for Africa but the world.
Hands-on Diplomacy. The writer being introduced to Modeste Bahati Lukwebo, the President of the Congolese Senate.
It is not to be taken for granted that throughout my visit, I walked openly as an Orthodox Jew everywhere. It is common when traveling in (many) parts of the world where Jews are not as welcome, or where it is outright dangerous, for Jewish men to hide their identity by covering up their kippah (Jewish skullcap) with a baseball hat, and removing or hiding other religious symbols. That’s hard for non-Jews who love Israel to understand. Throughout Kinshasa, complete strangers came up to me multiple times, greeting me with “Shalom,” telling me how they love Israel and asking to take a selfie. Amazingly, people sell Israeli flags on the street alongside the Congolese flag. It is something I had never previously experienced and it wouldn’t be happening if the love wasn’t sincere and that it was not good for business. Afterall, people would not pay money for a flag unless there was some love for that country.
Israel and the Jewish people have a long history in Africa from Abraham, Joseph, Jacob, and Solomon, to more recent expressions of support for meaningful relations from Theodor Herzl, Golda Meir, and massive amounts of Israeli support for many of the newly independent nations in Africa, emerging from colonialism within years of Israel’s declaring independence.
Africa for Israel. Prayer for Israel at a mega church in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
It was this passage of Theodore Herzl, the father of political Zionism, that so later inspired Golda Meir to emerged as the builder of bridges between Africa and Israel:
“There is still one other question arising out of the disaster of nations which remains unsolved to this day, and whose profound tragedy, only a Jew can comprehend. This is the African question. Just call to mind all those terrible episodes of the slave trade, of human beings who, merely because they were black, were stolen like cattle, taken prisoner, captured and sold. Their children grew up in strange lands, the objects of contempt and hostility because their complexions were different. I am not ashamed to say, that once I have witnessed the redemption of the Jews, my people, I wish also to assist in the redemption of the Africans.”
Foundations were long ago established, and despite rocky interludes, the recent establishment of diplomatic relationships with Morocco, Chad, and Sudan are welcome developments.
Many Congolese believe not only that Israel has an important role to play in Congo and that Congo needs and wants to have an expansive relationship with Israel, but also that part of the reason Congo is “cursed” as a poor and largely undeveloped nation, rests on Congo breaking relations with Israel following Arab League pressure in the 1970s.
On one hand, Congo is so big and abundant with resources, yet these are largely undeveloped, the lack of basic infrastructure is jarring, and there are provinces with millions having virtually no fresh water or electricity. Poverty is widespread. People refer to “Rich Congo, Poor Congolese.” Nevertheless, Congo is a beautiful, colorful, and lively nation. There’s a great sense of national pride evident by flags being sold on street corners (not just around Independence Day), to singing joyful songs about their country as part of church worship services.
From Jerusalem to Kinshasa. The writer outreaching in Africa attending a press conference.
Congo is an important leader in Africa, and ally of Israel. There’s a sense that the time is ripe for relations to blossom. People confided in me that the heavy presence of Chinese, Indians, Pakistanis, and Lebanese in their country were more there to reap from Congo’s mineral wealth than to invest. Israel on the other hand, brings resources that will build Congo, not rape it. Israel would be well served to reopen its embassy in Kinshasa, where one in five Congolese live.
During my visit, as part of our wider “Africa Praying for Israel” initiative, I hosted a virtual Africa-wide prayer event, regarding Israel’s status as an AU observer member. Dozens participated from nations throughout Africa, offering fervent prayers each from their local perspective and in several languages reflecting their former western colonizers.
Much of the prayers focused on blessing Israel and being blessed. Relating to the diplomatic vote at the AU, one pastor noted that “Blessings come from blessing Israel” and referred to Genesis 12:3 as “God’s foreign policy statement.”
Body & Soul. A woman showing devine support for Israel with her body, mind and spirit.
Participants from South Africa and Nigeria expressed sadness and repented from their nations’ taking the lead in opposing Israel. They prayed for God to forgive their leaders, for not understanding the truth, for wisdom for African leadership and governments, and to remove the stain of those that label Israel an Apartheid state.
Since the leadership of Libyan dictator Muammar Qaddafi, Israel’s status in the AU has been a battle. It is a battle that persists. At the upcoming AU conference in February, they are set to vote on a wide agenda of items including Israel’s status. Prayers are encouraged and can be sent to Gen123Fdn@gmail.com to be brought to the Western Wall as well.
EPILOGUE FROM THE EDITOR
David E. Kaplan writes:
It was not to be. This article was written only days before the AU conference opened on the 18 February in Addis Abiba. Regrettably, even with all the prayers for good, evil prevailed when due to the grotesque opposition of South Africa and Algeria to Israel’s presence, the Jewish state’s delegation of observers were physically expelled from the opening ceremony.
Jews again are being thrown out! We have seen this before; now in Africa! Shame!
A video shows the Israeli delegation, led by the Deputy Director General for Africa at the Foreign Ministry, Sharon Bar-Li, unhappily leaving the conference hall after several minutes of agitated discussion. Responding to the incident, Israel’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Lior Hayat said:
“Israel takes seriously the incident in which the Congresswoman for Africa, Ambassador Sharon Bar-Li, was removed from the African Union hall despite her access badge accredited observerstatus. It is sad to see the African Union being taken hostage by a small number of extremist countries such as Algeria and South Africa, driven by hatred and controlled by Iran.”
The ambassador added:
“We ask African countries to oppose these actions that damage the organization of the African Union itself and the entire continent.”
When Israel was granted observer status in 2021, it was said at the time that the new status could enable Israel and the AU to forge stronger cooperation on various aspects, including the fight against the coronavirus and the prevention “of the spread of extremist terrorism” on the African continent. What happened may not be good for Israel, but for sure, it is far less good for Africa. There is so much that Israel can contribute to Africa. In the spirit of Herzl and Golda, Israeli is ready and willing as it showed being one of the first delegations to assist in the devastating earthquake in Turkey, a country too that has had a rocky relationship with Israel in recent years.
What shabbily occurred now at the AU conference in Ethiopia is a harsh reminder why Israel has rescued most of the Jewish community there and brought them safely “home” – to Israel.
When it comes to building bridges between Africa and Israel, it appears a lot more needs to be done – including, in the words of Jonathan Feldstein – a lot more praying!
Israeli diplomat booted out from African Union summit in Ethiopia
About the writer:
Jonathan Feldstein - President of the US based non-profit Genesis123 Foundation whose mission is to build bridges between Jews and Christians – is a freelance writer whose articles appear in The Jerusalem Post, Times of Israel, Townhall, NorthJersey.com, Algemeiner Jornal, The Jewish Press, major Christian websites and more.
While the mission of Lay of the Land (LotL) is to provide a wide and diverse perspective of affairs in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world, the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by its various writers are not necessarily ones of the owners and management of LOTL but of the writers themselves. LotL endeavours to the best of its ability to credit the use of all known photographs to the photographer and/or owner of such photographs (0&EO).
SA Rugby Board withdraws invitation to Israeli team – the Tel Aviv Heat
By Pamela Ngubane
For those who know little about the game of rugby, what’s ‘in play’ here, is less about the sport and more about the principle! The South African Rugby Union (SARU) has withdrawn an invitation to an Israeli rugby team – Tel Aviv Heat – to play in the 2023Mzansi Challenge tournament in South Africa due to the objections of several “stakeholders”.
Refusing to play Ball. An invitation for Tel Aviv Heat – the Israel-based Super Rugby Cup franchise – to participate in a provincial tournament in South Africa has been withdrawn by SA Rugby. (Photo by Levan Verdzeuli/Getty Images)
Who are these “stakeholders” and what is their agenda?
While the SARU tried to explain that they had “listened to the opinions of important stakeholder groups”, it failed to consult with either the Tel Aviv Heat or the Israel Rugby Union, or even the Israeli Embassy in South Africa prior to their mean-spirited decision.
It simply failed. It failed both procedurally and morally.
Scheduled to play in the tournament with four other international teams and six teams from South African provinces, Tel Aviv Heat was informed that the invitation had been withdrawn!
Let me make it clear that despite the publicity surrounding this development, the SARU decision disinviting Tel Aviv Heat from the upcoming Mzansi Challenge, does NOT represent the South Africa people. What it does represent is the shameless bullying of the Jew-hating Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Movement (BDS) movement resorting to, when they fail to convince anyone of the lie that Israel is a state perpetrating Apartheid.
‘Bokke’ on the Run. Tarnishing the Springbok image, SA Rugby announced that it had withdrawn an invitation to the Tel Aviv Heat to play in the Mzansi Challenge. Photo: SA Rugby website
South Africans across the board are increasingly experiencing the Jewish state as a partner for development and progress, as it consistently shows in its conduct when relating to other nations and peoples.
Just this week, South Africans, along with the rest of the world, have witnessed the work of the Israel Defence Forces (IDF), medics from Israel’s world-renowned Sheba Medical Centre, and countless Jewish and Israeli volunteers, in Turkey and Syria, where thousands need aid in the aftermath of the recent devastating earthquakes. And this is despite that Turkey has had a rocky relationship with Israeli in recent years and that Syria remains technically at war with Israel. That is the nature of Israel – it responds to people in need.
This selflessness brings to mind the words of a young Jewish woman conscript in the IDF (Israel Defence Force) I interviewed. When I asked her what Israel meant to her, she replied that no matter how people behave towards Israel and the Jews, “my country” will always lend a helping hand anywhere it is needed. She said this altruistic attitude was a part of her Jewish identity and that no amount of the world’s cruelty would change this about her people. This tenacious spirit has won the admiration of the friends and enemies of the Jews over the years.
Heat Wave in Tel Aviv. The Tel Aviv Heat (in blue) has been a success, both on and off the pitch, as it helps reignite the spirit of rugby throughout Israel.(photo credit: TSAHI REIZEL/COURTESY)
As the world seriously begins to seek to overcome the challenges that divide humanity and hamper our progress, Israel and the Jewish people are being recognised as “a light to the nations”. This is not just for their brilliant technological and scientific innovations and breakthroughs, but most importantly because they are willing to share this knowledge with all who are eager to listen and learn.
Africa in particular is embracing Israel as a partner for development who will not only advise but teach us how to recalibrate our thinking so we can ‘tackle’ – using rugby parlance – our problems with the aim to solving them permanently.
Israel’s willingness to get ‘into the ruck’ – again borrowing another rugby stratagem – with us in the fields of agriculture, water management, ICT, medicine, and entrepreneurship is why 44 out of 55 members of the African Union (AU) maintain increasingly strong diplomatic relations with the Jewish state.
Therefore, while the cynical BDS celebrates Tel Aviv Heat’s exclusion from the 2023 Mzansi Challenge, they will not be able to keep South Africans and Africans from seeing the truth about Israel in the long run. While BDS insist on fighting against the moves by African states to normalise relations with the Jewish state, their efforts will grow increasingly futile as Israel’s humanitarian achievements surpass these bigoted efforts to undermine Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish and democratic state.
Joel Joins In. South African rugby legend, Joel Stransky joins in the fray in criticizing the SA Rugby Board decision.
As I continue to work in the field of Israel advocacy, I daily draw inspiration from the incredible contribution the nation of Israel has made to humanity since its founding over 3500 years ago.
While the history of this tiny nation is replete with dire experiences of national persecution and despair, there have always been outsiders who have watched in awe as the Jewish people emerged stronger after every trial.
It is my hope that Israel and the Jewish people will see these admiring friends shining brighter and cheering louder than the hateful bigots that try to tear them down.
So while the South African Rugby Union seemed to indicate that its intention behind its decision to withdraw the invitation to Tel Aviv Heat was “to avoid the likelihood of the competition becoming a source of division”, it will only, in the words of the statement from Tel Aviv Heat, “sow further division in South Africa and beyond by bolstering voices dedicated to vilify, demonize, and censor those who do not share their views.”
Let me conclude that when Israel’s friends become more fearless and vocal in her defence, we will see that far more people stand with Israel than against her and the Jewish people across the world.
The Plane Truth. Contrary to the lies South African BDS spreads about the Jewish state, here is the real Israel as it sends search and rescue equipment to Turkey in the wake of the devastating earthquake. What contribution has South Africa made to either Turkey or Syria besides ‘sending’ condolences?
About the writer:
A Social Science Honours graduate, Pamela Ngubane is a history teacher who was recently appointed as the General Manager of SAFI(South African Friends of Israel)
While the mission of Lay of the Land (LotL) is to provide a wide and diverse perspective of affairs in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world, the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by its various writers are not necessarily ones of the owners and management of LOTL but of the writers themselves. LotL endeavours to the best of its ability to credit the use of all known photographs to the photographer and/or owner of such photographs (0&EO).
Brought together by a love for music, it was love for country that would tragically separate them
By David E. Kaplan
I saw the article, then stared wide-eyed at the photograph.
I was reading a Ynet report and then, when I read the line that “Few Israelis have likely heard of the man named Meir Max Bineth”, I exclaimed:
“I’m not one of them.”
Being the Jewish festival of Tu B’Shevat (“The new year of the trees”) on the 5 February, the focus of the article was on this man from British Mandate Palestine whose passion for Jewish holidays pushed him to teach about the subjects to local Jewish communities abroad.1942 found him in Iran teaching about Tu B’Shevat – hence the article.
Max Bineth
What would follow next in his life is what I would write about in 2004, when his South African-born widow, Jane Bineth (née Davidow), passed away aged 83 in Savyon, Israel.
As a young woman out from Johannesburg in the late 1940s, Jane was trying to find her feet in Tel Aviv. Interested in classical music, she responded to a notice in the newspaper inviting music lovers to meet at a café in Shenkin, already a street ‘paving’ the way to what it is today, packed with cafes, restaurants and boutiques.
There she met Hungarian-born Meir, a cultured European who played a variety of musical instruments and who spoke six languages. They would marry, and in the few years that they would share together, they would dwell in the furtive world of deep undercover intelligence gathering.
New State; Young Love. Max and Jane Bineth marriage ceremony in Tel Aviv in 1950.
Prior to his marriage to Jane, Meir had been a secrete agent operating in Arab countries throughout the Middle East. It all started for him went he went to the UK in 1946 to study radio and electronics, believing these were the subjects of the future.
He used to use the bayit (club house) of Habonim – a Jewish youth movement – to train after hours. One of the members of the movement recalled that “he would pick up Morse broadcasts in English from Moscow and decode them at a speed of 60 words per minute and identify the different broadcasters.” It is no surprise that his skills attracted the attention of agents working for Aliyah Bet – the code name for illegal immigration to British Mandate Palestine – and in 1947 he was recruited. He operated as a communication technician building vital communication equipment for the voyages bringing the illegal immigrants as well as procurement of arms for the fledgling Jewish state as well as thwarting efforts of enemy Arab countries to acquire specialized military equipment. Max was a very busy man.
With the establishment of the State of Israel, Binet moved on to more dangerous missions. He joined the intelligence corps of the young IDF and in August 1949, he arrived in Iraq. Even though the decades have passed since then, there is no permission even today to reveal the details of his clandestine activities on Iraqi soil. However, one fact of history remains undisputed:
“The Iraqi government condemned him to death in absentia for his actions in its territory during this period.”
His final mission – now married with a child – was to Egypt, where he posed as a businessman representing various German firms, primarily ‘von Laufenberg’, a company manufacturing artificial limbs for the disabled.
Under Cover in Cairo. First leader of the Egyptian Republic, Mohamed Najib is seen here thanking Max Bineth (left) representing ‘Von Laufenberg’, the company that manufactured prostheses for Egyptian soldiers injured in the 1948 war with Israel. (Bineth Family Photo)
“How ironic,” his daughter Michelle Bineth-Dagan told me during the 2004 interview for Telfed Magazine. “Here was my father spying against Egypt and my mother had a 1953 photograph of my dad with the Prime Minister of Egypt, General Mohammed Naguib, who was honouring him for his contribution in rehabilitating Egyptian soldiers wounded in the war against Israel in 1948.”
‘Sign’ of Friendship. As a token of friendship, see the signature (top) of General Mohamed Naguib President of Egypt 1952-1954 in this postcard Max Bineth sends to his daughter Michelle. ( Bineth Family Photo)
Jane and her daughter Michelle, who was a child of two at the time of his posting to Cairo in 1951, joined Max and were part of the cover. Recalling conversations with her mother, Michelle described their life:
“as being very comfortable. My parents had a very hectic social life. They were part of the cocktail circuit, attending parties, where they mixed with foreigners in the diplomatic and business communities and of course Egyptians in government and the military. One of the primary tasks was to get close to the many former Nazis, who had found refuge in Egypt. Some of them were scientists, who were helping Egypt develop missiles that could threaten Israel.”
The Spy who Loved Me. While under cover in Egypt as a businessman representing German companies, Israeli spy Meir (Max) Bineth is seen here dancing with his beloved South African-born wife Jane at a cocktail party in Cairo. (Bineth Family Photo)
Max was passing on vital information to his Israeli contacts:
“until things went terribly wrong and set into motion a chain of event that ended tragically, leading to my mother’s bitterness to her dying day.”
The secrete lives of the Bineths came crashing down in what became referred to as the “Lavon Affair”, after Defence Minister Pinhas Lavon, who was forced to resign.
Conducted in Egypt in the summer of 1954, the Lavon affair was a ‘false flag’ operation, whereby Israeli military intelligence had setup a spy ring of young local Egyptians in the Jewish community with the purpose of blowing up US and British owned civilian targets – like cinemas and libraries – all timed to detonate several hours after closing time so there would be no casualties. The attacks were to be blamed on local nationalists with the aim of creating a climate of instability to induce the British government to retain its troops in Egypt’s Suez Canal zone. While the operation caused no casualties among the population, it did lead to the deaths of four of the Jewish operatives, one of whom was Max. It also led to a scandal that dominated Israeli politics for well over a decade.
The incident had been euphemistically referred to in Israel as the “Unfortunate Affair” or “The Mishap”(In Hebrew: HaEsek HaBish).
Israel publicly denied any involvement in the incident until 2005, when the surviving agents were awarded certificates of appreciation by Israel’s State President.
“My father,” said Michelle, “was not part of this spy network but was ordered by his senior officer in Israel to pass on money to them. He had met Marcelle Ninio, a young member of the group on a few occasions. She was the last to be captured and under torture, gave a description of my dad’s car, which led to his arrest.”
Michelle and Jane were in Europe at the time visiting family and so escaped the physical horrors that were to follow. “The psychological scars never left my mother until her last breath.”
After a few months of interrogation and torture, on December 24, 1954, “my dad slit his wrists in his prison cell on the day before his trial. He realised there was no way out for him and did not want to give the Egyptians the pleasure of hanging him,” the fate of two others, Dr. Moshe Marzouk of Cairo and Shmuel Azar of Alexandria.
Max in Court. One of the thirteen accused of spying, Max Bineth enters the Supreme Military Court in Cairo for the start of the trial in December 1954. This is the last known picture of Bineth alive before he committed suicide by slashing his wrists in a Cairo cell. (AP Photo)
Failure has no father and for many years this bizarre and embarrassing affair was shrouded in secrecy. Strict censorship ensured that the Israeli public was fed little or no accurate information and key protagonists were routinely referred to as “X” and “The Third Man”, a reference to the 1949 Orson Wells’ movie of the same name. To this day, the truth as to who gave the orders in the Lavon Affair remain a mystery.
In 1959, President Nasser agreed to transfer the body of Max (Meir) Bineth to Israel on condition that the arrangement would not be publicised. Max was secretly buried on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem in the presence of a few members of the family. “My mother was only told about the burial at the last moment.” The reburial only became public knowledge following the peace agreement with Egypt in 1979.
Jane, who passed away in 2004, never remarried. From his cell, he wrote to Jane before he ended his life. These were a few of the lines:
“My dear – there is no other way out. I came to this conclusion out of caution and consideration. It is becoming impossible to bear this… I am also thinking of you. …..Jane, you must remarry, Michelle needs a father, and I hope you live as planned. You and Michelle can plant a tree in our garden on my birthday. I love you, I love you… Of all the contributions I wanted to make for a better future for everyone – now Michelle is my only contribution. I wrap my arms around you and Michelle. May God bless you and grant you peace and happiness. Jane my dear, hold me tight….”
While Jane did fulfill what she believed was her dear husband’s dying request to bring up their daughter in the Land of Israel, she did not fulfill the part where he called on her to marry again. “ She had many suitors,” said Michelle her daughter, “but she never married again. Father was the only knight for her.”
Father and Daughter. Daughter Michelle Bineth-Dagan proudly holds up a photograph of her father Mair Max, who spoke six languages, loved music and played various instruments. He also painted and kept a diary of his experiences.
According to Michelle, her motherresented that the honour bestowed on other Israeli agents – such as Eli Cohen, (“Our man in Damascus”) – had been denied to her husband. Israeli Minister of Defense, Yitzhak Rabin tried to correct this injustice. Some thirty years later in September 1987, when Rabin, handed Jane, her husband’s Lieutenant Colonel rank, he said:
“It was an unusual, remarkable, high-risk mission that Max Bineth was running. Unfortunately, and to our great regret, he fell on duty, while on his watch. In the course of time, certain affairs got mixed and Meir was linked, by mistake, to another affair (referring to “The Lavon Affair),one he had nothing whatsoever to do with. Meir went on a separate security-intelligence assignment, which had nothing to do with the other events that took place that year. He fell while serving the State of Israel and for the State of Israel. Meir’s service improved Israel’s security capabilities greatly and they have become far, far better than they would have been, had Meir not performed so well on his mission.”
Sounds of Silence. Article following widow Jane meeting with Israeli President Chaim Herzog in 1986 notes that “The meeting with the President does not erase the bitterness of 32 years of silence.”
Later, a street in Kiryat Shaul in Tel Aviv was named Rechov Meir Bineth. Do people walking this street know who Max Bineth was or the contributions to Israel’s security he made and of his ultimate sacrifice?
Israeli journalist, author and military commentator Gad Shimron rightly asks:
“”How did it happen that a man who deserves to stand in the first row of the Israeli pantheon of heroism was forgotten on the fringes of the public consciousness of the country he served and for which he gave his life?”
It was thus heartwarming, that all these tumultuous years later in 2023 that Max is being remembered on Tu B’shvet. When Max was teaching in Iran in 1942 to the Jewish community about the ‘New Year of the Trees’ festival, the mass slaughter of six million Jews across Europe was taking place and a Jewish state was still a dream to be hard fought for.
Today, a region that was mostly arid desert has over 200 million trees and Jews have a secure and vibrant homeland – ISRAEL.
Like the trees he so loved, the legacy of Max Bineth is ‘rooted’ to this land.
While the mission of Lay of the Land (LotL) is to provide a wide and diverse perspective of affairs in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world, the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by its various writers are not necessarily ones of the owners and management of LOTL but of the writers themselves. LotL endeavours to the best of its ability to credit the use of all known photographs to the photographer and/or owner of such photographs (0&EO).
A good question for both Jews and Arabs in the wake of the deadly terrorist attacks in Jerusalem
By Jonathan Feldstein
In case you missed it, just over a week ago Israel suffered back- to-back terror attacks during Shabbat (the Sabbath) leaving seven dead and several more injured, some seriously. I was grateful for the many friends reaching out from all over the world, anxiously enquiring how we were. This has happened before, so my response was to write a series of updates of “How We Are”.
Taken by Terrorism. Only 14 years of age, Asher Natan, one of the victims of the terror massacre in Jerusalem’s Neve Ya’akov neighborhood. (Courtesy)
Palestinian Arab terror in Israel is not unique, and in the past year it’s been on the increase. However, there was something particularly disturbing about these recent attacks. Part of the reason that terror attacks like these can take place is that Jerusalem is a mixed Jewish/Arab city, roughly two thirds and one third respectively. Jews and Arabs interact widely with virtually no impediments. It’s the norm to see Jews and Arabs shopping together, working together, on public transit, in the hospitals as patients and medical personnel, and much more. So an Arab in a Jewish neighborhood is not new, and rarely suspicious.
Of course, all this debunks the lie of Israel practicing Apartheid against Arabs, but that matters little to Israel bashers when it’s Jews being attacked and killed!
For a few days at least, the attacks were an explosive topic of conversation. Terror attacks don’t take place every day. The norm is the intermingling of Arabs and Jews more than a terror attack, though the threat of an attack exists all the time. Nevertheless, these shook up many Israeli Jews maybe because:
– they took place on Shabbat, the day of rest or
– of the relatively high number of casualties or
– the bigger attack took place outside a synagogue or
– one of the Arab terrorists was just 13!
No Kidding! Out to kill, this was the gun used by a 13-year-old Palestinian in a shooting attack near Jerusalem’s Old City on January 28, 2023. (Israel Police)
And then again, maybe because for months now, there’s been a steady wave of terror attacks leaving dozens of Israelis dead and wounded, and each one takes its toll and tension is compounded.
In addition to being in the news in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks, the attacks were the inescapable subject of many individual conversations.
Of course, there is the grief for an among the families of the victims, that played out on national media in ways that were very personal and heart wrenching. And then there immediately followed the inevitable exchanges of conversations, discussions and questioning between friends and colleagues. In speaking with one friend who works in a setting where many Arab and Jews work together, there was a sense of tremendous stress. My friend didn’t know whether her Arab colleagues were celebrating the deaths, or whether any of them might be the next terrorist to attack, either at her place of work or somewhere else. A colleague who noted that her demeanor was not her normal friendly engaging self, asked if she was okay. She opened up candidly. They discussed their mutual stress and concerns. What is noteworthy is that my friend is an Israeli Jew, and her colleague who expressed concern is a Palestinian Arab.
Another friend expressed tremendous tension in her academic setting which also has a demographic mix of Israeli Jews and Palestinian Arabs. On any average day, it was not uncommon for her to engage in intense conversations with her Arab colleagues; sometimes leading to understanding, while other times to prickly friction. But this was no ordinary day!
Driven to Kill. 21-year-old Alqam Khayri, the suspected gunman in a Jerusalem terror shooting on January 27, 2023, that killed seven people, is seen in an undated photo at Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque. (Social media)
On the day immediately following the terrorist attacks, my friend reported that there was very little interaction between the Arabs and Jews. The Arabs largely kept to themselves speaking in Arabic rather than engaging their Jewish peers. The same was true with the Jews who were fearful and even angry that terrorist attacks take place at all, much less are celebrated with candy and cake being distributed in Arab communities.
Probably thousands of conversations like this took place with the undertone from an Israeli side that incidents like these make us feel unsafe even around Arab colleagues and peers with whom we interact regularly. In the news the same week, an Israeli Jewish woman reportedly protested being put in a maternity ward room with an Israeli Arab woman. Tension is thick.
Two days after the attack, I was pulling into a gas station to fill up my car. Ahead of me was a brand-new Mercedes E200 convertible. Stunning. It also had green and white Palestinian Authority license plates. At the pump, I commented to its owner, whose name I leant was Mohammed that he had a beautiful car. He smiled proudly. I asked him how much it cost. Also with pride he responded:
“300,000 shekels.”
That’s about $90,000.
I posted this interaction with a picture of the car on my social media,noting that despite the myth used to blame Israel for an array of suffering of Palestinian Arabs, not all Palestinian Arabs are poor refugees. This attracted a range of comments from calling Mohammed a terrorist (after all, where else would he get the money), and calling me out for playing on anti-Arab stereotypes. I pushed back, sorry that anyone would read that into my comments, but that in this case, I tried to poke a hole in some of the misperceptions that people have about Israelis and their relations Palestinian Arabs.
Often, when people have biases, they cannot consider anyone else’s position. That’s too bad. I also noted that it was too bad that my critics missed the human moment of me engaging Mohammed and his proud response. It’s easy to overlook and disregard the part about the Orthodox Jewish Israeli “settler” initiating a civil human conversation with a Palestinian Arab over his prized motor vehicle.
Conversing over a Convertible. Despite the tension and suspicions following terror attack, this brand-new Mercedes E200 convertible caught the attention of the writer to engage with Mohammed its proud owner at a gas station.
My conversation also debunks the misperception that there’s apartheid here; that Jews and Arabs don’t and can’t get along and that we dehumanize them. Someone unaware, or unwilling to be honest, would be surprised at the frequency of civil interaction and basic human respect and decency that really is the rule even where I live in the Judean mountains.
Despite the very real tension that people were naturally feeling in the wake of the Shabbat terror attacks that left Jews dead and injured, the personal engagement as I encountered, continues. How are we? It’s complicated.
About the writer:
Jonathan Feldstein - President of the US based non-profit Genesis123 Foundation whose mission is to build bridges between Jews and Christians – is a freelance writer whose articles appear in The Jerusalem Post, Times of Israel, Townhall, NorthJersey.com, Algemeiner Jornal, The Jewish Press, major Christian websites and more.
While the mission of Lay of the Land (LotL) is to provide a wide and diverse perspective of affairs in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world, the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by its various writers are not necessarily ones of the owners and management of LOTL but of the writers themselves. LotL endeavours to the best of its ability to credit the use of all known photographs to the photographer and/or owner of such photographs (0&EO).
Americans may well ask just how many deals did House speaker Kevin McCarthy strike with the extreme far-right to finally grab with glee; the prized gavel?
What more could he offer beyond his last pair of socks. House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) places his hand over his mouth as he stands inside the House Chamber during the voting for a new Speaker of the 118th Congress. (REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst)
The sorry outcome was that while at the same time the USA marked the second anniversary to the January 6 insurrection, on the House floor, Republican lawmakers – who either supported the rioters or helped breathe life into former President Donald Trump’s “big lie” about the 2020 election – were on their nefarious path of not for “We the People” but “We for ourselves”.
Uproar in the House. The voting for the House speaker was tense as right and extreme right of the Repulican Pary battle for supremacy. In the end, ‘deals’ to the extreme faction assured Kevin McCarthy’s ascension to the ‘Hollow Crown”.
Sound familiar?
Israelis can similarly ask:
How many deals did its Prime Minister have to make to hold onto perpetual power?
It is only too evident when we ‘expose’ ourselves to the news, becoming a daily diet of political depravity. Today’s tarnished gem was reading the headline news in The Jerusalem Post that was nothing less than a threat:
Israel will have ‘no government’ if Deri can’t be minister, Shas MK warns
The report goes on to say that Shas MK Ya’acov Margi said he would recommend Shas’s Council of Torah Sages dismantle Israel’s government if Aryeh Deri can’t be a minister.
Deciding Deri’s Fate as Minister. Shas party members sitting in court to hear petitions demanding the annulment of the appointment of Shas leader Arye Deri as a government minister due to his recent conviction on tax offenses at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem, on January 05, 2023. (photo credit: YONATAN SINDEL/FLASH90)
“Dismantle” the Government? For Aryeh Deri? The same Aryeh Deri who in 1999, was convicted of bribery, fraud and breach of trust; and given a three-year jail sentence. In January 2023, Israel’s Supreme Court ruled that Deri was not allowed to hold a position as a cabinet minister due to his conviction for tax offences, hence the proposed Deri Law which would amount to nothing less than what judiciously-minded MKs are saying is “state-sanctioned corruption”.
While Aryeh Deri as a convicted felon, a fraudster, who should have no right to hold public office or be anywhere within striking range of public funds, now has his salivating pack of supporting party hacks attack the High Court in media interviews, in what appears to be a coordinated threat that the Knesset would respond to a ruling against Deri by curbing the High Court’s powers.
Deri, who is currently serving as Vice Prime Minister, Minister of Health and Minister of the Interior and Periphery, says:
“I will not resign, no matter what the High Court rules.”
Future Uncertain. Currently serving as the Vice Prime Minister, Minister of Health and Interior, Aryeh Deri has been disqualified from holding office by the High Court that will have implications for the future of Benjamin Netanyahu’s government and the judiciary itself. (Reuters/File Photo)
Are these the characters we should get accustomed to representing us in parliament, never mind holding top positions in government that effect the destiny of the Jewish state and hence the Jewish people?
Is it any wonder that our steadfast guardian – the Supreme Court – is under threat with the proposed legislation conjured by a legal sorcerer by the name of Yariv Levin, who goes by the misnomer of ‘Minister of Justice’?
As I wrote last week in my article ISRAEL UNDER THREAT FROM ITSELF, we need to protect and not undermine the Supreme Court because unlike other democracies such as the US and UK that have two tiers of government offering checks and balances, Israel has only one house – the Knesset; and so the Supreme Court is all “We the People” have against an a reckless and unchecked legislature.
We cannot afford its weakening hence the mounting protests with last Saturday nights protest in Tel Aviv attraction over 80,000 people and many more protests to follow. Busses are being arranged from all over the country to bring people to these protests.
And who else is Bibi beholden to? It is all very well our wordsmith PM trying to reassure a sceptic citizenry with “I did not go to them; they came to me,” when we see what he assembled to form his contrived coalition.
Another of his “came to me” coalition partners is Religious Zionism Party leader MK Bezalel Smotrich, who in a recent recorded conversation is revealed saying to a businessman that he would actively take measures against the LGBTQ+ community and that it would not hurt him politically. Smotrich can be heard saying, “Sephardic, traditional people, you think they care about gay people? Nobody cares. They say that they don’t have a problem with them, ‘you think I care if you [Smotrich] are against them?”
Is this who Bibi has to be in bed with to survive politically? The question is rhetoric – we know the answer – it is emphatically “yes”.
No wonder Yesh Atid party leader MK Yair Lapid says:
“The Smotrich tapes remind us time and time again how weak Netanyahu is and how dangerous it is that he is held captive by racist extremists.”
The sad truth is that if Netanyahu is a “captive”, so are we to this insane trajectory in our politics. This is not Zionism but the antithesis of Zionism.
Until recently, journalist, commentators and academicians were quick to voice their view that there is no ‘left’ in Israel anymore. Well, who are the protesters congregating in their thousands to protest against this extreme Likud right-wing government?
Come Hell or High Water. It was both as over 80.000 people braved the intense rain to protest in Tel Aviv against judicial overhaul, viewed as undermining Israel’s democracy.
Actually, they may not be ‘left’ in a political sense, but all that is “left” of a sensible citizenry who see the present regime as a ‘clear and present danger’ to our future.
As I write, I read that the High Court on Wednesday 18 January 2023 has ruled 10-1 in a “Bombshell” decision that Deri cannot be a minister. He cannot retain his positions as Interior and Health minister! With all the threats, how now will Deri and the Prime Minister respond? Members of Deri’s Shas party have warned they may quit Netanyahu government if he is forced out. Clearly, this is not the last round but one of many more to follow.
There is now a war between competing visions for this country. Whose vision will prevail?
While the mission of Lay of the Land (LotL) is to provide a wide and diverse perspective of affairs in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world, the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by its various writers are not necessarily ones of the owners and management of LOTL but of the writers themselves. LotL endeavours to the best of its ability to credit the use of all known photographs to the photographer and/or owner of such photographs (0&EO).
As president of the BRICs bloc (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) in 2023, should the ANC government not exercise moral responsibility and apply foreign policy consistently?
By Rowan PolovinNational Chairman, South African Zionist Federation
Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Naledi Pandor, is fundamentally concerned with one international issue over all others, what she calls “the ongoing flagrant abuse of the human rights of Palestinians” which, in her view places “a moral responsibility on South Africa to act.”
It is remarkable that Pandor is able to command such exclusive action from the ANC government over a territory smaller than our beloved Kruger National Park, whilst remaining deafeningly silent to the cries of Ukrainians last year and numerous other serious human rights issues in Africa and around the world. Moreover, she blames Israel for the ongoing conflict with the Palestinians, and absolves all responsibility and agency from Hamas and the Palestinian Authority.
Dressed to Discriminate. While consistently failing to condemn Russia’s barbaric war of aggression against the Ukrainian people costing the lives of tens of thousands of civilians, South Africa’s Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor – feeling most at home in a Palestinian headscarf – will always rush to virulently denounce the Jewish state following any clashes between Israel and Palestinians.
The Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO), and the South African public, should hold Minister Pandor accountable for her statement. Indeed our government certainly does have a moral responsibility to act decisively to assist global communities when it comes to the protection of human rights. Especially when they are being abused at a rate that only South Africans could begin to comprehend.
The United Nations has confirmed that 170 deaths were recorded as a result of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in 2022. While the loss of innocent lives on any side of a conflict is tragic, the vast majority of those casualties were Palestinian militants. By contrast, according to the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, over 6 900 people were killed as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. It is estimated that 408 of these fatalities were children.
This is utterly devastating, and we are no strangers to this level of violence in South Africa, where over 7000 citizens were murdered in just the second quarter of the 2022/23 financial year. Tragically, over 550 of those deaths were children, according to the national crime statistics report as released by Minister of Police, Bheki Cele, last year.
But, of course, it is easier for the government to deflect attention someplace else.
Rampant Crime, Misguided Ministers. Nonthando Booi holds a picture of her murdered niece, Siphokazi Booi. While more than 7,000 people were murdered over three months (July-September) in 2022 in South Africa, the government prefers to deflect public attention elsewhere, like on the Middle East. (Photo Kaylynn Palm / Action Society)
South Africa’s foreign policy appears to be singularly limited to Israel-bashing. This position prevents our country from playing any meaningful role in finding a peaceful solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The ANC government’s obsession with Israel also precludes us from benefiting from the changing landscape of the Middle East and Africa. The Abraham Accords, where peace and normalisation has been achieved between Israel, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, as well as Morocco and Sudan here in Africa, has effectively ended the Arab-Israeli conflict.
More countries in the Middle East and Africa could follow suit in 2023. The Negev Forum working group recently concluded groundbreaking meetings between these countries, focusing on food security, water technology, clean energy, tourism, health care, education, coexistence and regional security. Does SouthAfrica want to be left out in the cold, and lose out on the advantages of these strategic partnerships?
The Outsider. While initiatives like the Negev Forum Working Groups hosted by the UAE on January 9-10, 2023 in Abu Dhabi with senior officials from the governments of Bahrain, Egypt, Israel, Morocco, the UAE, and the US discussed opportunities to advance initiatives that “encourage regional integration, cooperation, and development, for the benefit of their populations and the wider region that include initiatives to strengthen the Palestinian economy and improve the quality of life of the Palestinian people,” South Africa opts to be left out in the cold and lose out on the advantages of strategic partnerships.
Back home, our foreign policy decisions are irrational. Last week, ANC International Relations Committee Chair, Lindiwe Zulu, confirmed that the ANC had resolved to simply not take sides in the Russia-Ukraine war. She added that it would also be supporting China in its dispute with Taiwan. But the ANC went further. Its January 8th anniversary statement of this year calls on Western governments to end sanctions on global human rights abusers such as Iran, Syria, Zimbabwe and Venezuela. The ANC has a remarkable willingness to be on the wrong side of history just so long as it retains its Cold War friends.
The ANC could be positioned to act as mediators between warring factions, people and states, given its own experience of great pain and suffering at the hands of a political authority that abused South African human rights in ways we are only beginning to come to terms with today. The collective trauma suffered by millions of South Africans should have left us at war with one another for decades – and yet, under the leadership of President Nelson Mandela, the ANC was able to do something fundamentally extraordinary. It shifted people’s perceptions of one another, in a way that enabled us to see beyond any illusion, that we are all South Africans and that this territory is home to everyone residing within its borders. Different religions, traditions and languages were not barriers to our social cohesion – but rather a celebration of our diverse, yet collectively shared humanity.
South Africa’s political leadership changed the trajectory of the conflict present in our country. And as such, our country is in a strong position to assist other states with doing the same. But when Minister Pandor turns a blind eye to almost all international human rights violations to discriminate over Israel, one cannot help but wonder what has happened to the ANC and its international credibility.
If the abuse of human rights is the starting point for Pretoria’s commitment to assist foreign states with local causes, where is the South African initiative on Ukraine or many other conflicts closer to home? Will we stand by idly while Russia continues to put hundreds of Ukrainian children in early graves? Why have we not seized the opportunity to become world leaders in changing perceptions and illusions that alienate human beings from one another?
Blind Sided. While photos like this of death and destruction in Ukraine that will likely lay the groundwork for future charges of war crimes against Russia, South Africa’s ANC government prefers to look the other way, advocating instead “to not take sides” in the Russia-Ukraine war.
Our country should seek to apply its foreign policies with uniformity, and show a degree of courage and leadership at the same time. South Africa holds the Presidency of BRICS in 2023 – will we use this position of leadership to hold Russia and others to account? Or will the ANC government continue to pick and choose its moral responsibilities based on its nostalgic political relevance of yesteryear?
About the writer:
Rowan Polovin National Chairman, South African Zionist Federation
While the mission of Lay of the Land (LotL) is to provide a wide and diverse perspective of affairs in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world, the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by its various writers are not necessarily ones of the owners and management of LOTL but of the writers themselves. LotL endeavours to the best of its ability to credit the use of all known photographs to the photographer and/or owner of such photographs (0&EO).