CREDIT: "PRIME MINISTER NETANYAHU INTERVIEW WITH CNN'S WOLF BLITZER" BY ISRAELINUSA ON FLICKR (CC BY 2.0)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's chances of re-election look grim as he is being criticized in his own country.

While students here in London are gearing up for the big end-of-year crunch, students at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London, England are making headlines around the world. The SOAS just voted in favour of boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) against Israel. The vote took place shortly before Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was scheduled to appear before congress in the United States to voice his concerns over a potential agreement between the U.S. and Iran. The vote is just the latest indicator of shifting sentiment towards Israel that is occurring in Europe.

As recently as last year, Prime Minister Stephen Harper claimed that criticizing Israel is the new anti-Semitism, a statement that is tragically indicative of his inability to consider legitimate dissent. In reality, there are important questions that the international community has the responsibility to be asking. The relationship between Israel and Palestine is a regular news item after the recent period of unrest which left thousands of Palestinian civilians dead and the Israeli death toll under a hundred.

In the wake of the conflict, U.S. President Barack Obama rebuked the Israeli government for initiating development in East Jerusalem, which he believed would be an inciting action in the region.

Palestinians are in an incredibly difficult position as Hamas and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant are as much of a threat to their well-being as rocket strikes from across the border. The population at large may be unhappy with the actions of neighbouring Israel, but only a small fraction is willing to adopt violence in response. The majority who would pursue non-violent conflict resolution would actually jeopardize the safety of their families if they were to voice their opinion.

President Obama made a powerful statement when he was willing to criticize a decision made by the Israeli administration. Under the George W. Bush government, there was no room for anything other than dogmatic support for the country. By polarizing the debate and labelling critics of Israeli policy as anti-Semitic, Harper pushes those who have legitimate concerns to the fringe and groups them with those who have more militant views. The battle of predominately irrelevant propaganda between the pro-Israel camp and their critics serves no other purpose than to muddy the waters. Individual’s views are rarely changed by these jabs, but they reinforce beliefs on both sides of the issue and widen the chasm that prevents any possibility of conciliation.

Unconditional support for an ally in the Middle East is dangerous because of the volatility of the region. It may be unwise to align with a country as a whole when the leadership style can fluctuate dramatically.

Netanyahu is being criticized harshly within his own country as the countdown to a general election moves from months to just weeks. Leaked documents from South African intelligence indicate that Netanyahu knowingly misled members of the U.N. in 2012 when describing Iran’s ability to weaponize its uranium supply.

It’s an unsettling revelation that an ally that Canada unequivocally supports is willing to mislead an international panel on a matter of grave importance, and citizens should have the ability to voice their concerns without being unfairly shunned.
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