NZ and Israel
I believe Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu is considering recalling his ambassador from Wellington over our role in the recent UN Security Council vote (the US didn’t veto it, for once) condemning Israel’s expanded settlement building on stolen Palestinian land in the West Bank. In my view, his excellency can pack his bags and leave tomorrow, if not sooner, taking his bosses’ toxic arguments with him.
In 1984, the new Lange Labour Government sent the South African Consul-General packing, telling him to come back when South Africa was a free, multi-racial democracy. Ten years later, that’s what happened.
The world has finally had enough of Netanyahu’s hoodwinking and his government’s general apartheid-like humiliation and oppression of 4.5 million Palestinians. This while Netanyahu whines that Israel is the real victim here, because of past events now resolved.
It is way past time, for a negotiated, diplomatic resolution of this conflict, and if Netanyahu has to be dragged, kicking and screaming to the peace table then so be it. John Watkins, Katikati
For many years the military power of the US has supported Israel whenever Israel has been in conflict with the Arab world, which in essence means that the US has condoned the Israeli theft of land from the Palestinian people.
Illegal settlements have been constructed on the land and the Israeli Army has prevented the Palestinian people from reclaiming their land. The Zionists are furious because the UN has recently condemned Israel over the settlements and the Israeli prime minister refuses to acknowledge that many people in the West who once condemned apartheid in South Africa now feel sympathy for the Palestinian people.
Back in 1967, I was a strong supporter of Israel. Now I am sickened when I see on TV how the Israeli Army supports the settlers by using excessive force against a people who want their land returned to them. Within Israel many people are opposed to the illegal settlement and it is important to understand that many decent Jewish people oppose the immoral and aggressive methods used by the Zionists to oppress a people with a similar DNA. If a Zionist Israel has lost me as an advocate then they have also lost tens of thousands of supporters in the West. Johann Nordberg, West Auckland
The resolution we co-sponsored at the United Nations against Israel is predicated on a lie.
The Palestinians do not own East Jerusalem which has always been known as the Jewish Quarter, or the West Bank, both of which were in the hands of the Jordanians until the 1967 war.
In the 19th century, threequarters of the population of Jerusalem were Jewish and the final quarter was divided between Arabs and Christians.
New Zealand was the only Western nation to co-sponsor this resolution. What does it say for our diplomacy and knowing who our true friends are. Pauline Alexander, Auckland