The Double Standard

The amount of criticism hurled at Israel during Operation Protective Edge was enough to last supporters of the Jewish State for a lifetime. Countless calls for restraint from both the Obama administration and United Nations became increasingly frustrating; the end of the conflict should have brought an end to the reproach. However, as tensions continue to soar in Jerusalem, just the opposite has happened. The Obama administration and the United Nations are steadfast in their commitment to having a double standard for Israel.

In recent days, the United Nations has called an emergency meeting to discuss the building of settlements in East Jerusalem; they are essentially castigating Israel and claiming these settlements are what stand in the way of peace in Jerusalem. The Obama administration has held this view for years, with the President himself highlighting the settlements as the major stumbling block to peace.

Meanwhile, neither the Obama administration nor the United Nations cite a Hamas operative running over and killing civilians at a Jerusalem light rail station as a stumbling block. They also exclude the attempt on Yehuda Glick’s life by an Islamic Jihad operative as something preventing peace in Jerusalem. Neither the Obama administration nor the United Nations acknowledge the fact that terrorists throwing Molotov cocktails at Israeli motorists might impede peace, in fact they say this is not terrorism. Neither the Obama administration nor the United Nations make mention of the fact that Mahmoud Abbas hailed the terrorist who ran civilians over as a hero, nor do they make mention of the fact that as recently as today he called for the “use of all ways necessary “ to defend the Temple Mount. They also ignore the fact that both the Islamic Jihad and Hamas (which are both designated foreign terrorist groups per the United States State Department) are calling for increased resistance, read violence, against Israel. In the eyes of the Obama administration and the United Nations, such declarations do not incite violence and do not ultimately stand in the way of peace; only buildings do.

The Obama administration and the United Nations routinely ignore the Palestinian Authority’s efforts to prevent peace, yet routinely reprimand Israel, because of their ludicrous, unfounded double standard for the Jewish state. We witnessed it all summer, and the hypocrisy has continued into the fall. In response to the attack at the Jerusalem light rail station, the Obama administration “condemned the attack in the strongest possible terms.” The three-month old baby who died was an American citizen, and though state department wished the family its condolences, it never outright called this a terrorist act. By contrast, when a Palestinian-American teenager was killed by IDF troops as he hurled Molotov cocktails at motorists on a Jerusalem highway, the State Department demanded an immediate probe into the incident; such a demand was absent in response to the baby’s death. This begs the question; does the State Department care more about the circumstances surrounding the death of some of its citizens more than others? The State Department then went a step further and declared that hurling Molotov cocktails at motorists is not terrorism. I have to wonder what they would call it if someone, who admittedly hated Americans, started hurling Molotov cocktails at motorists on the Beltway.

As for the United Nations, it spent the better part of the summer condemning Israel for what it deemed was the use of “disproportionate force,” even though Israel was defending herself from terror as so many nations have done in the past. Meanwhile, the United Nations has remained silent in response to the terror attack at the Jerusalem light rail station, as well as in response to the assassination attempt on Yehuda Glick’s life; terrorist groups have claimed responsibility for both of these events. If the United Nations is holding all parties to the same level of accountability, then they need to condemn these acts as well. The United Nations wastes no time condemning Prime Minister Netanyahu for building settlements in East Jerusalem, yet remains completely silent in response to Mahmoud Abbas hailing a murderer as a hero, and in response to his calls for using whatever means necessary to protect the Temple Mount. If the United Nations is going to condemn one side for what it views as an incitement of violence, then it must do the same when the other clearly calls for violence. The United Nations has also remained silent in response to Egypt bulldozing homes along Gaza border communities; this summer they wasted no time condemning Israel for any destruction Operation Protective Edge caused. While the United Nations has made the construction of homes in East Jerusalem its most pressing current issue, they missed the Islamic State lining up thirty men in Iraq and shooting them all to death, and the kidnapping of some thirty more girls in Nigeria by Boko Haram. Surely, the actions of terrorist groups that are jeopardizing the lives of civilians should be more paramount issues than settlement construction.

Buildings are not what stand in the way to peace; calls for resistance and hailing terrorists as heroes does. If the double standard was unclear before, it is strikingly obvious now. The Obama administration and the United Nations never miss a chance to chastise Israel; they also never miss a chance to turn a blind eye to the actions of the Palestinian Authority, Islamic Jihad and Hamas that truly prevent peace in Jerusalem.