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Catherine
traced back the decade-old Israeli settlement project through
documents, maps and pictures
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By
Hadi Yahmed, IOL Paris Correspondent
PARIS,
February 26 (IslamOnline.net) - Lucas Catherine, a Belgian researcher
and expert on Arab and Mideast affairs, lashed out at the
anti-Semitism bugaboo used by Zionist lobbies to head off any
criticism to Israel and abort any endeavor to restore Palestinian
rights.
In
an interview with IslamOnline.net marking the release of his new book Palastine
la derniere colonie? [Palestine..The Last Colony], Catherine
braved the pressures of the Zionist lobby in Europe which scares
people off so as not to unmask Israeli practices against Palestinians.
Vocalizing
his staunch support for the Palestinian cause, the expert boasted
being an anti-Zionist but repudiated anti-Semitism allegations.
The
Zionist lobby in Europe is trying to terrorize people with the
anti-Semitism charges but most Jews in Europe realize that the whole
issue is nothing but an Israeli scheme to pressurize advocates of
Palestinian rights, he added.
Catherine
recalled that during his trips to several Belgian cities most Belgian
Jews were reluctant to have Israel as their representative.
They
believe that Israel is the cause of problems facing Jewish minorities
around the world, he added.
Bogey
Having
lost so many diplomatic battles, the latest being over its separation
wall in the West Bank, Israel is only using anti-Semitism clichés to
cover up its crimes, said the Belgian expert.
Catherine
asserted that the idea is not new to the Zionist mindset, adding it
dates back to 1923.
In
November 1923, Vladimir Jabotinsky wrote in the Russian Rassvyet newspaper
that Jewish settlements (in Palestine) can not be protected or
separated from locals (Palestinians) except through building an iron
wall, he recalled.
The
International Court of Justice (ICJ) wrapped up Wednesday, February
25, three-day hearings
into the legality of the Israeli controversial barrier.
The
U.N. General Assembly called
on the ICJ in December 2003 to rule on the legality of the
wall , although any verdict is advisory and non-binding.
Land
Confiscation
The
Belgian researcher pointed out that the method currently used by
Israel to lay hands on Palestinian lands in the West Bank and Gaza is
the selfsame one used before the creation of Israel in 1948.
In
his new 300-page book, he traces back the history of the Israeli
settlement project using Israeli documents, maps and pictures.
Catherine
lived for a long time in Israel and visited Palestinian villages razed
to the ground in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
The
statements came amid a heated debate across Europe over the issue of
anti-Semitism.
A
play by French comedian Dieudonne M'Bala M'Bala was taken off
stage over accusation of anti-Semitism.
American
superstar Mel Gibson’s new movie "Passion for the Christ"
also came under fire by Jewish leaders who said it would fan
anti-Semitism.
Gibson,
who produced, directed and co-wrote the film, has
said repeatedly that he is not anti-Semitic and that the
project was a deeply personal expression of his own faith.
Last
month, a diplomatic row erupted in neighboring Sweden when the Israeli
ambassador was kicked
out of the National Gallery of Antiquities after vandalizing a
work of art, saying it was a terrible insult to the Israeli people.
The
work’s Israeli-born creator rejected the charge, saying the work had
a message of openness and conciliation.
A
recent E.U. Commission survey which disclosed
that some 59 per cent of Europeans believe Israel is more dangerous
than North Korea and Iran, was immediately dismissed by Israel as
anti-Semitic.
