A furious Netanyahu underscored the lopsidedness of the accusations leveled by US senators against Israel that it was committing human rights abuses, while failing to mention Palestinian terrorism and incitement by the PA leadership.
By: Aryeh Savir
Sen. Patrick Leahy. (AP/Lauren Victoria Burke)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded harshly to accusations leveled against Israel by US senators led by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) that is was abusing the Palestinains’ human rights.
“The IDF and the Israel Police do not engage in executions,” Netanyahu stated on Wednesday, responding to allegations that Israeli forces engaged in extrajudicial killings, “Israel’s soldiers and police officers defend themselves and innocent civilians with the highest moral standards against bloodthirsty terrorists who come to murder them.”
Israel has been contending with a six-month wave of Palestinian terrorist attacks, which have claimed the lives of 34 victims and wounded over 200.
Leahy and 10 other Democratic Congressmen wrote a letter to US Secretary of State John Kerry calling for an investigation into alleged Israeli and Egyptian war crimes and human rights abuses. In the letter, they demanded the suspension of US military aid to the two countries if allegations prove true.
“Where is the concern for the human rights of the many Israelis who’ve been murdered and maimed by these savage terrorists?” Netanyahu asked rhetorically. There is no mention of human rights abuses or war crimes committed by the Palestinian Authority (PA), which is a beneficiary of US aid.
“This letter should have been addressed instead to those who incite youngsters to commit cruel acts of terrorism,” Netanyahu said, relating to incitement by the Palestinian political and religious leadership, which has been a driving force behind the wave of murderous attacks.
“In light of these reports, we request that you act promptly to determine their credibility and whether they trigger the Leahy Law and, if so, take appropriate action called for under the law,” the lawmakers wrote Kerry.
The Leahy Law stipulates a halt in US military aid for foreign countries whose security forces are found to have committed abuses.
The State Department has yet to respond to the report published by Politico in Wednesday.