Netanyahu's UN speech was that of a Jew, not an Israeli

By Yaron Ezrahi

Benjamin Netanyahu's address at the United Nations General Assembly last month was the speech of a proud Jew and not that of a liberal and sober Israeli. It was the speech of a victim reopening the wounds in order to again stir support, and not the speech of a brave and daring Israeli striving to solve the largest threat to the future of Israel and its citizens - a speech in which the drama was reserved for a reference to the tragedies of the past and not to processes that stir hope for the future. It was a speech that moved Netanyahu's supporters abroad and among the Israeli right wing and made them stand tall, and contributed nothing to dealing with the dangerous rift between us and our neighbors.

As Nachum Barnea wrote, Netanyahu "was at his best" during his speech; but really it was only Netanyahu at his best, not in our best interests and not an Israeli prime minister at his best. It was a speech that exposed the Diaspora mentality of the prime minister, a speech from the school of Golda Meir (who also talked with Jewish pride and in fluent English) and not that of a leader with a vision and real goals intended to advance the well being of the Israeli public.

It is no coincidence that the problematic analogy between Iran and Nazi Germany appeared at the beginning of his speech and the part about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict was left for a brief appendix at the end.

Can one suspect that Netanyahu used the conflict with the dictator from Iran to distract attention from his responsibility to freeze construction in the settlements as an effective means for progress toward an arrangement?

But even when he appealed to the Arab world with a call to recognize Israel as a Jewish state, Netanyahu erred, perhaps not by chance. As may be recalled, every time Yasser Arafat wanted to intensify the conflict and flee from negotiations, he wore a kaffiyeh and turned to religious symbols such as the Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Hamas turned the collective Muslim identity into the fundamental element of the Palestinian rejectionist position. Against this backdrop it seems that Netanyahu's decision to wear a skullcap was meant to spark Muslim zealotry and rejectionist views and weaken the Palestinian Authority in the face of Hamas opposition. The responses from the Palestinian side were predictable.

Is it not obvious that the attempt to replace negotiations between the Israelis and the Palestinians with an interreligious conflict between Jews and Muslims is the cherished goal of the extremist enemies of peace on both sides?

Therefore it seems the demand for recognition of Israel as a Jewish state is an ostensibly sophisticated distraction on the part of a veteran peace rejectionist.

Furthermore, is there a single Muslim anymore who today could recognize a Jewish state that occupies a Muslim population? Recognize a Jewish state where a group of law-breaking Jewish extremists leads the elected government by the nose, in order to expand the borders of the country, against the wishes of most of the population in the country and the world?

Can the Palestinians be expected to recognize a country where the right-wing leaders in the government announce every morning that the battle of the settlements is the continuation of the War of Independence, that Israel is still a country in formation with no constitution and no borders?

In light of all this, Netanyahu's rhetoric victory on the world stage is a Pyrrhic victory that does not auger well for the Israeli public that he is supposed to represent. It was an emotional speech by a public relations minister that focused on Holocaust deniers, and not by an Israeli prime minister looking out for Israelis yearning for quiet and stability.

Netanyahu, "at his best," missed the rare opportunity to promote the burning Israeli interest to reach an agreement that will prevent the next wave of violence.

The writer is a professor of political science at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.

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