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Human Rights Watch Director Spreads Op-Ed Calling Zionism, White Supremacy 'Birds of a Feather'

Israel and Confederate flags / Twitter
August 29, 2017

The executive director of Human Rights Watch on Tuesday shared an op-ed on Twitter that argued support for Israel is comparable to support for white supremacy.

"Many rights activists condemn Israeli abuse & anti-Semitism," tweeted Kenneth Roth. "Some white supremacists embrace Israel & anti-Semitism."

Roth's tweet linked to an op-ed posted to Middle East Eye and written by a Palestinian activist.

"Birds of a feather: White supremacy and Zionism," wrote Nada Elia.

Elia noted several instances of social media posts that show homes in the United States flying both Confederate and Israeli flags.

"The reasoning behind the linking of the two symbols—white supremacy and Zionism—is far from torturous," Elia argued. "The two are not strange bedfellows, but rather natural allies."

"Both represent a desire to establish and maintain a homogeneous society that posits itself as superior, more advanced, more civilized than the 'others' who are, unfortunately, within its midst, a 'demographic threat' to be contained through border walls and stricter immigration law," she added.

"American fascism, then, is holding up a mirror to Zionism," she wrote.

Human Rights Watch, a non-governmental organization with the self-described mission of defending "the rights of people worldwide," has long denied allegations it is biased against the state of Israel. Jewish organizations such as the Anti-Defamation League have accused it of being overly focused on Israel, and of giving Palestinian sources more credence than Israeli ones.

In 2009, Human Rights Watch founder Robert Bernstein disowned the organization in a New York Times op-ed, claiming it held a double standard when it came to Israel.

Published under: Human Rights Watch