Left-wing Democrats criticize Israel while ignoring Arab rioting and calls by Hamas for more violence.
By World Israel News Staff
Leading voices on the left-wing of the Democratic Party ignored Palestinian violence over the weekend and instead criticized Israel over a court-ordered legal process in Jerusalem.
Arab residents of Jerusalem have been rioting for the past several days as Palestinian leaders whipped up incitement over a court order to evict several Palestinian families. They have been living in homes that were owned by Jews before the neighborhood was captured by Jordan in 1948.
For the past 15 years there has been a legal battle over ownership of several buildings in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of Jerusalem and earlier this year the Jerusalem District Court upheld an earlier court decision that the buildings were owned by the Jewish group Nahalat Shimon. Four Arab families were served with an eviction notices.
Israel’s Supreme Court was set to rule Monday on an appeal of the eviction but canceled the hearing, citing “all the circumstances” surrounding the decision.
Senator Bernie Sanders sided with the Palestinians after Knesset Member Itamar Ben Gvir of the Religious Zionism party set up an office in Sheikh Jarrah. Arabs rioted at the move. The city had already seen weeks of violent attacks by Arabs against Jews.
“The United States must speak out strongly against the violence by government-allied Israeli extremists in East Jerusalem and the West Bank, and make clear that the evictions of Palestinian families must not go forward,” Sanders tweeted late Saturday.
He was joined by Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) who tweeted: “We stand in solidarity with the Palestinian residents of Sheikh Jarrah in East Jerusalem,” adding that she considered Israel’s actions in the city “state violence.”
On Saturday night, rioting continued in the Old City as Arabs attacked police forces on the Temple Mount following evening prayers.
“An Israeli police officer called on worshipers on the Temple Mount [at the] Al Aqsa Mosque to go home after the prayer was over, and many did, but hundreds of Palestinian rioters refused and kept throwing rocks and firecrackers, injuring 18 police officers,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Arab Affairs Spokesman Ofir Gendelman tweeted.
Israel’s ambassador to the United States, Gilad Erdan, slammed the criticism of Israel by what he called hypocrites.
“The scenes from Jerusalem are disturbing but what is more disturbing is the hypocrisy of those who are cynically politicizing these events, inflaming tensions and holding Israel to a double standard, while ignoring the basic truths and realities in this sensitive and holy city,” Erdan tweeted.
“It’s time to stop this unhealthy obsession with Israel and look at the truth. Are these protestors calling for freedom to worship? No! Are they calling to halt evictions? No! They are using their holy site to lob firebombs and chant to destroy Tel Aviv,” Erdan said.
Earlier this weekend the Hamas terror group in Gaza posted calls for violence on social media.
“The decision has been made. The mortars are ready. Tel Aviv will become a ghost town, with the help of Allah,” Hamas said.