How much worse can it get?

On the evidence so far we are already facing a new (Jewish) year which is plumbing the depths of insanity and unbelievable imbecility.

Love embraces from the UAE and Bahrain notwithstanding, the prospects for far less positive outcomes materializing remain high.

Quite often we find ourselves in uncomfortable straits because of our own stupidity rather than the malign behaviour of those who seek our demise.

Multiple examples abound but the following developing situations should help to illustrate the explosive minefields ahead.

First off from the imbecility ranks are our “friends” at the UN Human Rights Council. This collection of human rights abusers and complicit fellow travellers whose obsessions with Israel are legendary managed the almost impossible feat of proving that there is no limit to which the UN can stoop in its quest for irrelevance. What other conclusion can one arrive at after the election of China, Russia, Pakistan and Cuba to fill vacant seats on the Council? Instead of investigating and condemning human rights violations in these countries the next meeting of the UNHRC will as usual focus entirely on the Jewish State. As Christians are imprisoned and tortured in Pakistan, Moslems rounded up and sent to “re-education camps” in China and Tibetans’ religion and culture obliterated, the world yawns and the anti-Israel resolutions keep flowing. The fact that the rest of the international community, (except the USA and Israel) supports this ongoing farce is indicative of moral degeneracy on a grand scale.

Iran executes its top wrestler and rounds up his brothers on specious allegations. In actual fact, the real reason this has occurred is because they expressed doubts about the Mullahtocracy now ruining their country. Where does this leave the International Olympic Committee? The answer is silent and mute in the face of blatant abuses of human rights. Once again instead of standing up for those oppressed the IOC maintains its traditional stance of looking away and pretending that it is business as usual. Just as in 1936 when the Nazi Berlin Olympics were given a seal of approval and subsequent Games taking place in countries with horrific records the shameful refusal to expel Iran highlights hypocrisy on a grand scale.

Turkey’s latter-day Ottoman sultan continues to threaten all and sundry. Not content in illegally occupying the northern part of Cyprus as well as Syrian territory he now threatens Greece. His blatant behaviour grows apace as journalists and opposition figures are arrested and his campaign against the Kurds elicits no response from those countries which every Monday and Thursday condemn Israel for non-existent crimes. He recently proclaimed “some countries in our region did not exist yesterday and they may not exist in the future. We will continue to raise our flag in this region forever.” Can anyone explain why Turkey is still allowed to be a member of NATO and why the UN and the EU remain mute and dumbstruck? Shades of 1930’s moral cowardice and appeasement return again. We should know where that ended up.

France and its long-suffering citizens have once again woken up to Islamic terror running amok. It was inevitable of course that years of turning a blind eye to the brewing cauldron of incitement and inculcation of hate among its Moslem residents would one day culminate in ever-increasing terror acts. This reluctance to call Islamic terror exactly what it is and refusal to do anything about it is not confined to France but is the politically correct stance of most of Europe, Scandinavia, the UK and elsewhere. It is not only Jewish communities which feel the brunt of this terror but it has now spread to the general population. It is important not to tar all Moslems with the same brush but running away from meaningful countermeasures only makes future catastrophes inevitable.

Is Israel obliged to provide life-saving treatment to someone who has spent his whole life plotting, planning and promoting incitement and terror against Israelis as well as rewarding murderers who carry out these foul deeds? Should someone who has consistently spread lies and bad mouthed the Jewish State in the media and international forums receive special treatment at the Israeli taxpayers’ expense?

These and other questions are currently being debated because Saeb Erekat, the Secretary-General of the Palestine Liberation Organization and close adviser to President for life, Mahmoud Abbas, is in “ a hospital in the 1948 areas” (as announced by a PLO statement) receiving world-class medical care for COVID 19. For those not acquainted with PLO/PA terminology “1948 areas” refers to all of Israel which needs to be “liberated.” The irony of someone who promotes boycotts, divestment and sanctions and who tells Palestinian Arabs not to have anything to do with “the colonialist, apartheid State” doing exactly the opposite is a perfect example of the hypocritical incitement emanating from Ramallah.

In recent speeches as reported by PA media, the PA chief “peace” negotiator (a misnomer if ever there was one) offered these choice pearls of wisdom: “normalization with the occupation constitutes a knife in the back and permits the spilling of Palestinian blood. Settler gangs go wild the latest example of which is the spitting on Palestinian cars and property in order to transfer the Corona disease to them. The wild desire to get rid of the Palestinian people in any way. Palestine is between two epidemics today. At a time when our entire people is dealing with the Corona Virus and fighting to get rid of this epidemic in order to save lives – it is dealing with the colonialist occupation epidemic with the same determination”

One needs to wonder why given these lies Erekat ended up in an Israeli hospital. Surely he could have taken the VIP helicopter offered by the Hashemite King of Jordan and flown to Amman. That would have been quicker than travelling by road in an ambulance from Jericho. Even better might have been a trip to Turkey where his best friend Erdogan would have arranged medical treatment. The PA has suspended payment for hospitalization of its citizens in Israeli hospitals. Who is going to pay for this expensive care? The Israeli taxpayers no doubt?

Some maintain that as “a light unto the nations” we are obligated to save those dedicated to our demise no matter how distasteful that may be. Given that logic, Adolf Eichmann should have been hosted for life and no doubt paid a pension on reaching retirement age. The agony and frustration experienced by families of those murdered in terrorist attacks as they witness one of the chief apologists for these acts being helped by our Government is understandable.

Does any sane individual really believe that if he recovers Erekat will miraculously recant his previous litany of lies and become an ardent supporter of fraternity with the Jewish State? When Arafat died Israel was accused of poisoning him in a repeat of the old medieval blood libel. If the same should happen to Erekat it is almost predictable that the same poisonous accusations will once again be circulated.

It is unsurprising that the world’s media and politicians have ignored this. After all the spectacle of Israel saving the life of its enemy hardly fits the usual stereotype that has been created over the years.

The year is still new but anyone with a keen sense of reality should be able to discern what lies ahead. In other words to use an old well-known expression – you ‘aint seen nothing yet!!

Michael Kuttner is a Jewish New Zealander who for many years was actively involved with various communal organisations connected to Judaism and Israel. He now lives in Israel and is J-Wire’s correspondent in the region.