Mahmoud Abbas’ speech triggered harsh criticism from friend and foe, and much outrage in Israel and the West.
The Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas was accused of anti-Semitism after he asserted in his opening speech to the Palestinian National Council (PNC) held in Ramallah on April 30 that the Jews of Europe brought persecution upon themselves because of usury, banking and their “social function” and not their religion.
“From the 11th century until the Holocaust that took place in Germany, those Jews – who moved to western and eastern Europe – were subjected to a massacre every 10 to 15 years. However, why did this happen? They say: ‘It is because we are Jews.’”
Israel, he said, grew out of a European colonial project that had nothing to do with Jewish history or aspirations. He cited “three books [written by Jews]” as evidence that “hostility against Jews is not because of their religion, but rather their social function” He cited Arthur Koestler’s book “The Thirteenth Tribe,” to support his claim that Ashkenazi Jews were descended from the Khazars, a Turkic people who converted to Judaism in the eighth century, and not from the biblical Israelites. Abbas said, “They are not Semites and have no connection to Semites, neither to Abraham nor to Jacob.”
The speech triggered harsh criticism from friend and foe, and much outrage in Israel and the West. The New York Times editorial board called for him to step down His declaration that he wanted the Palestinians to live in peace with Israel in an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel went unnoticed.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded: “Apparently the Holocaust-denier is still a Holocaust-denier,” adding, “I call upon the international community to condemn the grave antisemitism of Abu Mazen [Abbas’s nickname], which should have long since passed from this world.”
Jason D. Greenblatt, the White House’s Middle East envoy, said on Twitter: “President Abbas’ remarks yesterday in Ramallah at the opening of the Palestinian National Congress must be unconditionally condemned by all. They are very unfortunate, very distressing & terribly disheartening. Peace cannot be built on this kind of foundation.”
President Abbas’ remarks yesterday in Ramallah at the opening of the Palestinian National Congress must be unconditionally condemned by all. They are very unfortunate, very distressing & terribly disheartening. Peace cannot be built on this kind of foundation.
— Jason D. Greenblatt (@jdgreenblatt45) May 1, 2018
The United Nations special coordinator for the Middle East peace process, Nickolay E. Mladenov, commented: “Such statements are unacceptable, deeply disturbing and do not serve the interests of the Palestinian people or peace in the Middle East.” He added: “The Holocaust did not occur in a vacuum, it was the result of thousands of years of persecution. This is why attempts to rewrite, downplay or deny it are dangerous.” He cautioned: “Leaders have an obligation to confront anti-Semitism everywhere and always, not perpetuate the conspiracy theories that fuel it.”
David M. Friedman, the United States ambassador to Israel, maintained that Abbas had “reached a new low.” He blamed Abbas for the failure of the peace process saying, “To all those who think Israel is the reason that we do not have peace, think again.”
Abu Mazen has reached a new low in attributing the cause of massacres of Jewish people over the years to their "social behavior relating to interest and banks." To all those who think Israel is the reason that we don't have peace, think again.
— David M. Friedman (@USAmbIsrael) May 1, 2018
The US Holocaust Memorial Museum dismissed the remarks as “grossly inaccurate and an insidious type of antisemitism” asserting he was falsifying history. “The Nazis believed that Germans were racially superior and that the Jews, deemed inferior, were a threat to the so-called German racial community and had to be eliminated.”
Abbas’ controversial statements were prompted by his frustration resulting from Trump’s decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and to move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. The Palestinians aspire to declare East Jerusalem as the capital of their independent state. Also, the unwillingness of the right-wing Israeli government to make any concessions to reach an acceptable face-saving peace compromise leading to the bottleneck in peace negotiations.
A few days later the Palestinian president apologized saying he rejected antisemitism “in all its forms” and calling the Holocaust the “most heinous crime in history.” He stated: “If people were offended by my statement in front of the PNC, especially people of the Jewish faith, I apologize to them. I would like to assure everyone that it was not my intention to do so, and to reiterate my full respect for the Jewish faith, as well as other monotheistic faiths.”
However, Israeli leaders rejected Abbas’ apology whether publicly or by their silence. Avigdor Lieberman, Israel’s defense minister, rejected Abbas’ apology categorically. He wrote on Twitter: “Abu Mazen is a wretched Holocaust denier, who wrote a doctorate of Holocaust denial and later also published a book on Holocaust denial. That is how he should be treated. His apologies are not accepted.”
אבו מאזן הוא מכחיש שואה עלוב, שכתב דוקטורט על הכחשת שואה ולאחר מכן גם פרסם ספר על הכחשת שואה. כך יש להתייחס אליו. התנצלותו לא מתקבלת.
— אביגדור ליברמן (@AvigdorLiberman) May 4, 2018
Abbas alternates between recognition and denial of the Holocaust. In his 1982 doctoral dissertation submitted to a Russian university, titled “The Other Side: The Secret Relationship Between Nazism and Zionism.” In his thesis, he questioned the extent of the Nazi genocide, arguing that Zionist leaders collaborate with Nazi leaders to facilitate Jewish immigration to Palestine.
Abbas’ speech received mixed reaction among Palestinians. To most Palestinians, it reflected the collective Palestinian narrative. A dissenting view is voiced by Wasatia leader and peace activist professor Mohammed Dajani Daoudi, a staunch advocate of Holocaust education, who wrote on his Facebook account: “Israelis are upset with Abbas speech. Palestinians feel same about present Israeli leader’s rhetoric. However, while Abbas speech just words in the wind, The Jerusalem Declaration and claiming there is no more occupation of Palestinian Territories occupied in 1967 shows clearly an Israeli and US persistent policy to proceed with ethnic cleansing and making Israel an apartheid state.”
In another post, he wrote: “Those who are blaming Abbas for what he said, where were they when some Israeli leaders said worse things about the Palestinians? At least he apologized, but none of the Israel leaders ever apologized for what they have said or done to the Palestinians.” In another post, he wrote:
“For those who want me to condemn Abbas for saying what he said, let me tell them I do not believe in condemnation. As an educator, I believe in helping people to understand each other and learn from one another. I did not condemn Israeli leaders who demonized Palestinians, and I do not condemn Abbas for saying what he said. I would like to help others understand why people say what they say and move on keeping the dialogue ongoing until each sees the immorality of his position that required condemnation without having condemned it. Once you condemn it, then they would not care to listen. This is my philosophy.”
I share this philosophy, and I urge others to adopt it too. It is time to move on. That is the only way for reconciliation and peace.
An apology would show the moral courage of those committed to peace and their sensitivity to the victims and is not, as some may feel, demeaning or a betrayal of the cause. It is done if not for them, at least for the sake of making the future of their children brighter. Their willingness to apologize can easily heal the wounds thus, contribute to ending the cycles of generational conflict. In apology we avoid the retaliatory response and negative reaction from the “Other.”
The urgency here is for both Palestinian and Israeli leaders to stop the delegitimizing of each other and move on to recognize each other’s culture, history, heritage and attachment to the land. Both should apologize to each other for injuries they have inflicted on each other to set the stage for a genuinely comprehensive and just peace settlement.
However, when there is no apology, one releases the other to God for justice.
Dr. Zeina M. Barakat is a post-doctorate at Jena Center for Reconciliation Studies (JCRS), Friedrich-Schiller University in Jena, Germany. Her book From Heart of Stone to Heart of Flesh: Evolutionary Journey from Extremism to Moderation was published in 2017. Read other articles by Zeina.
