Israeli Leadership Targets "Jewish Terrorism"

In the wake of the tragedy at the Jerusalem Pride event that left a young woman dead and others wounded, Israeli authorities are belatedly saying that they will focus on halting "Jewish terrorism" perpetrated by orthodox extremists.  It's a move America needs to emulate even if it means targeting a significant portion of the GOP base.  For far too long authorities in both countries have turned a blind eye towards the evil of far right religious fundamentalists.  The reality is that both the Jewish extremists and American Christofascists see themselves as above the law. The Washington Post looks at the long overdue development.  Here are highlights:

Israeli leaders proposed harsh new measures Sunday to curb “Jewish terrorism,” following a wave of extremist violence that left Israeli and Palestinian children dead in knife and arson attacks.

An Israeli teenager, described by her parents as a sweet and magical child, succumbed to her wounds Sunday after being stabbed by a Jewish extremist at a gay pride parade last week.

Hours earlier, thousands of Israelis held anti-violence rallies across the country protesting attacks by Israeli assailants against gays and Palestinians.

Israelis were reeling from the fast-moving violence of recent days that included Jewish settlers clashing with government forces at a West Bank settlement, the knife attack at the gay pride parade in Jerusalem, and a lethal arson attack in a Palestinian village that resulted in a toddler being burned to death.

Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon said on Sunday that Israeli authorities should be allowed to employ the same heavy-handed measures against Israeli terrorism suspects as the state uses against Palestinian suspects in the occupied West Bank, freeing the military to seek “administrative detention” against suspects, which would enable them to hold detainees for months, and sometimes years, in prison without presenting charges.

After speaking out against attacks by Jewish extremists and saying he felt shame that the violence had come “from my own people,” Israeli President Reuven Rivlin was deluged with threats on social media, leading his security detail to file a complaint with Israeli police because of fears that the leader’s life was in danger.

During a period of similar tumult two decades ago, a right-wing Jewish extremist shot and killed Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in 1995 as he departed a Tel Aviv peace rally attended by more than 100,000.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the government will have “zero tolerance” for Jewish extremists, vowing that Israel is committed to fight “hate, fanaticism and terrorism from whatever side.”

The spiral of violence began Wednesday when Israeli soldiers and police clashed with Jewish settlers at the West Bank community of Beit El.

The Israeli authorities were attempting to demolish two illegal structures at the Jewish settlement on the outskirts of Ramallah that were built without permits on private Palestinian land.

On Thursday, Israel’s gay community came under attack as a Jewish extremist stabbed six people at the annual gay pride parade in Jerusalem.

On Friday, arsonists set fire to two homes in the Palestinian village of Duma in the West Bank, burning a toddler alive and injuring three others. The investigation is under a gag order but it appeared that no arrests had been made.

 Again and again we see hate and violence as the chief fruits of religion.