The B’nai B’rith Anti-Defamation Commission (ADC), Australia’s leading organisation fighting anti-Semitism and all forms of hatred, has denounced a report by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), which consists of 18 Arab countries, that accuses Israel of being an apartheid state, saying that Israel, “has established an apartheid regime that dominates the Palestinian people as a whole.” The report also accused the Israeli regime of being “designed” for the “core purpose” of apartheid, which it defines as “serving the ‘intention’ of racial domination.” U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley deplored the report and called on the U.N Secretary-General to “withdraw the report altogether”. Over the last two days, United Nations Under-Secretary General and Executive Secretary for the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), Rima Khalaf, announced her resignation after U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres asked for the report to be taken off the ESCWA website. A U.N spokespersons said that, “The secretary-general cannot accept that an under-secretary general or any other senior U.N. official that reports to him would authorize the publication under the U.N. name, under the U.N. logo, without consulting the competent departments and even himself”.
Dr Dvir Abramovich, Chairman of the ADC, issued the following statement:
“True to form, a U.N agency is once again peddling the anti-Semitic lie, through a biased report, that Israel is an apartheid state. We applaud U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley for calling on the U.N secretariat to renounce this inflammatory report and are heartened that the Secretary General has called on ESCWA to withdraw this document. This report, authored by long-time advocate against Israel Richard Falk, is riddled with unfounded accusations, and seeks to depict the Israeli regime as criminal and discriminatory, offering not a single constructive analysis or solutions to move the Israeli-Palestinian conflict forward. We echo the call by U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations and others for this report to be immediately withdrawn. We also welcome the statement from the U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in which he distances himself from the report and notes that this false document “does not reflect the stance of the secretary general,” though we note with concern his remarks that this report does have the “imprimatur of a U.N. body”.
For further information please contact Dr Dvir Abramovich on 9272 5677.