By Steven Plaut
On January 2, 2009 in the middle of Israel’s “Cast Lead” military operation against entrenched terrorists in Gaza, a group of Israeli far leftists held a disruptive protest of solidarity with the terrorists, opposing Israel’s military operation there. It took place near the Sdeh Dov regional airport (a small airport near Tel Aviv, but from which some Israeli Air Force planes operate). The protesters wore masks and had make-pretend blood spilled on their clothes. They called their protest a “Die In.” None of the protesters was known to have participated in any Die In protests against the thousands of Hamas rockets fired from Gaza into Israel.
The protesters handed out fliers accusing Israeli soldiers of committing atrocities. At one point the protesters lay down on the road to block entrance into the air force section of the airfield, disrupting military traffic. The protesters prevented pilots from entering the base. The protesters were repeatedly ordered by the police and army to desist and move off of the road, but refused. Sixteen of the protesters were arrested and were indicted for disturbing the peace, entering a military area without permission, disrupting traffic, and creating a public nuisance. The police did not use Tasers against the leftist protesters, as they tend to do when arresting “settler” protesters.
The 16 were indicted and tried before Judge Hadassah Naor in Tel Aviv court. A few days ago the verdict was announced. The anti-Israel protesters were all acquitted. Protected speech, you see. You can see the verdict in Hebrew here http://www.nevo.co.il/psika_word/shalom/SH-09-1025-259.doc
In 1993-5, shortly after the atrocious “Oslo Accord” was announced, Moshe Feiglin organized street protests against the “deal.” Feiglin is today a Knesset Member from the Likud, but back then was head of a grassroots protest movement calling itself “Zo Artseinu.” Like “Im Tirtzu” today, the Fascist Left in Israel denounced Zo Artseinu as a fascist organization. In one of their protests in 1995, the Zo Artseinu protesters blocked a traffic intersection, a civilian intersection, not one on which military traffic rode. Feiglin was arrested and indicted. Not for creating a public nuisance, but for sedition. Expressing opposition to Oslo in a street intersection was deemed sedition. Two others were indicted with him for the same thing, although charges were dropped against Benny Elon when he was elected to the Knesset. Feiglin was convicted in 1997 and sentenced to six months community service. No it was not the same judge as in the above case but it was the same court. For years Feiglin’s “criminal conviction” was used by Ariel Sharon and Bibi Netanyahu to prevent him from running in Likud primaries.
Feiglin has also been repeatedly arrested for the crime of moving his lips in quiet prayer while visiting the Temple Mount.
The conclusion from the above could not be more clear. Leftist traitors in Israel enjoy unlimited freedom of speech, which includes their right to sabotage the operations of an air force base. and otherwise break the law. Anti-Left protesters in Israel do not enjoy freedom of speech at all. When they exercise freedom of speech, they are guilty of sedition. And of course also of murdering Yitzhak Rabin.
Something certainly is rotten in the state of Israel. And until that rot is purged entirely, the state is in mortal danger!