Singer Lenny Kuhr had seen “terrible hatred” on the faces of the pro-Palestinian activists who disrupted her performance in a theater in Waalwijk. I could imagine something about that. No faces were visible on film footage, but I did hear a woman shout with the arrogant certainty that comes with this kind of activism: “Aren't you ashamed of supporting genocide?”
These pro-Palestinian activists are demanding more and more attention. They disrupt sessions in the House of Representatives – including a commemoration of former Prime Minister Dries van Agt, their favorite politician because of his (late) support for the Palestinian cause. They occupy station halls and intersections, deface a government office and now also harass good artists.
Why Kuhr? Because she has spoken out against Hamas' attacks and supported Israel's military operation against Hamas. She is also accused of having her two grandchildren serve in the Israeli army. I never realized before that you can be held responsible for the behavior of your grandchildren. Would the reverse also apply: that my grandchildren would become liable for this column? Then maybe I should hold back a little.
“The bear is loose,” Kuhr said NOS News, she had noticed that before. She meant the bear of anti-Semitism. It seems to me an observation that is difficult to refute. Jewish organizations are increasingly reporting anti-Semitic incidents and accusations. “It's good that the Jews are finally being dealt with,” is the gist. Eddo Verdoner, National Coordinator for Combating Anti-Semitism, said: RTL News that Hamas has also successfully increased divisions in Western Europe through its attacks. According to him, the taboo on anti-Semitism has been lost in the last fifteen years.
Who are these activists? The film images mainly show young people. Their action group Palestine Action NL is the Dutch branch of the British pro-Palestinian action group Palestine Action, it is assumed de Volkskrant. He gives demonstration training and smears buildings with red paint. In Het Parool four young activists recently talked about their motives. A 28-year-old woman said: “Staying silent is no longer an option. I see silence as a form of complicity. Gaza is the worst place in the world to be a child, 12,000 children have been killed since October.”
What struck me again was that none of these young people said anything about the horrific Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, in which 1,400 people were murdered. It's as if that didn't happen, or at least it's not important enough to mention. If you point it out, the well-known objection is: Israel had asked for it with all that oppression of the Palestinians. As if you can answer barbarism with barbarism. That's what Putin thought too when he had the terrorists of the Moscow massacre tortured and triumphantly revealed their violated bodies to the public.
Putin is no good, nor is Netanyahu with his far-right government clique. But is Hamas any good? They are, to paraphrase Lenny Kuhr, all terrible haters.
#Column #bear #loose