Netanyahu Compares UN and Nazi 'Slander of Jews'

By AS Staff

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Monday met visiting Polish Foreign Minister Grzegorz Schetyna, and addressed the report released Sunday regarding last summer's counter-terror operation against Hamas in Gaza.

Netanyahu praised his guest as "the foreign minister of a free proud and independent Poland, on whose soil the defamation of the Jewish people happened when the Nazis controlled Europe."
"The attacks on the Jews were always preceded by the slander of the Jews. What was done to the Jewish people then is being done to the Jewish state now," he said, indicating the international boycott movement and UN reports and resolutions condemning Israel. "We won’t accommodate that. In those days we could do nothing. Today we can speak our mind, hold our ground. We’re going to do both."
Explaining the new report on last summer's war, Netanyahu said, "the report demonstrates unequivocally that our military actions during that conflict were in full accordance with international law, that Israel was exercising its legitimate right of self-defense."
Commenting on Hamas's actions, he continued, "we fulfill our responsibility to protect our people against terrorist who perpetuate and perpetrate a double war crime. Hamas terrorists deliberately target our civilians while deliberately hiding behind their civilians. That’s a double war crime."
"And I think that it under-scores the fact that there is a travesty here. Because even though we’re fighting, Hamas terrorists who are committing the double war crime of targeting our civilians while hiding behind their civilians, Israel operates in accordance with the highest standards of international law. We take every step to avoid civilian casualties, including on the enemy’s sides."
UNHRC probe
Hinting at the UN Human Rights Committee (UNHRC) probe that is to be released soon and is anticipated to be biased in presenting foregone conclusions upon which the probe was established, he added, "we don’t do this because of some UN committee."
"We do it because this is deeply ingrained in our values. We don’t shrink from investigating ourselves when necessary and Israel’s mechanisms to investigate our own military are second to none. I say that without any hesitation. There is no country that investigates its military for possible wrongdoings more that Israel. There is no such country in the world. We examine all such allegations professionally, thoroughly, where they’re subjected to an independent judicial review by military and civilian courts."
Turning his attention directly to the UNHRC investigation, he argued, "Israel was pronounced guilty before the investigation even began."
"They appointed a person to head this committee who was being paid by the Palestinians," he said, referencing Canadian lawyer William Schabas who previously was contracted to work with the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) terrorist group, and who stepped down from the probe following the revelation.
"This committee has more resolutions against Israel than against North Korea, Syria, and Iran combined. This tells you of what we’re dealing with. So this campaign, these attacks against Israel, these investigations against Israel have nothing to do with human rights. They have everything to do with politically inspired attacks in a cynical effort to de-legitimize Israel using UN bodies."
Speaking about Palestinian Authority (PA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, Netanyahu noted that on Sunday Abbas "called for the labeling and boycotting of Israeli products. This is definitely not the language of peace. We will continue to resist boycotts, defamations, de-legitimization. We’ll do that internationally, we’ll do that locally if we need to, and our hand will remain stretched out for peace for any partner that wants to have peace with us."