The “only democracy in the Middle East” once again resorts to force in order to silence dissent:
“[T]he American academic Norman Finkelstein has been arrested and ordered deported from Israel. Finkelstein arrived in Tel Aviv earlier today on his way to the Occupied Territories. He was immediately detained and told he is banned from Israel for ten years. He’s expected to be deported tomorrow. Finkelstein is known one of the most prominent academic critics of Israel’s occupation of the West Bank and Gaza.”
Apparently Finkelstein was arrested on “security” grounds, illustrating once again that Israel’s definition of “security” is far removed from the conventional use of the term. He can at least count himself lucky that he is not Palestinian, in which case he would now be facing the very real possibility of torture and years of detention without trial, or else he might simply have been shot.
Activist Sam Bahour writes:
‘Dear friends,
ACT NOW: Flood the Israeli Ministry of Interior with faxes, emails, calls. DEMAND THAT DR. FINKELSTEIN BE PERMITTED TO ENTER ISRAEL IN ORDER TO REACH THE OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY!
Minister of Interior Mr. Meir SHEETRIT
Israeli Ministry of the Interior
2 Kaplan St., Qiryat Ben-Gurion
P.O. Box 6158, 91061 Jerusalem
Tel. +972-2-670-1411 / +972-2-629-4722
Fax: +972-2-670-1628or
Mr. Meir SHEETRIT’s numbers at the Knesset
Telephone 1: +972-2-640-8410
Telephone 2: +972-2- 640-8409
Fax: +972-2- 640-8920
Email: mshitrit@knesset.gov.ilIt is now Friday night and the Ministry will be closed through Saturday for the Jewish Sabbath. Thus, if you are in the US please call your congressman and senator NOW and advise them a Jewish American U.S. citizen is being denied access to Israel!!
Also, CALL the STATE DEPT’s Hotline for American Travelers: 202-647-5225 and let them know this is happening and is in violation of international law.
If you are an Israeli, please start working the phones…this denial of entry is all being done in your name!!
The only ‘democracy’ in the Middle East strikes again,
Sam’
You heard the man.