Israel Belongs in the African Union
The African Union (AU), “is a continental body consisting of the 55 member states that make up the countries of the African Continent. It was officially launched in 2002 as a successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU, 1963-1999).” Israel had good relations with the OAU since its founding, and enjoyed observer status. In 1971, Israel “hosted a delegation of conciliation, composed of the presidents of four African states (Senegal, Nigeria, Zaire, and Cameroon).” Israel was recently restored as an observer nation of the AU after its removal orchestrated in 2002 by then-president of Libya, Muammar Gaddafi. However, there are seven Arab nations leading the effort to have Israel removed from the AU again: Egypt, Algeria, Comoros, Tunisia, Djibouti, Mauritania, and Libya. Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, and Yemen “confirmed their solidarity with the seven.”
South African Dr. Peter Wandwasi is head of the UN Independent System-Wide Evaluation Mechanism Secretariat and an independent doctoral research supervisor at the University of South Africa. In a recent article entitled, Africa has an ally in Israel, Dr. Wandwasi stated:
The admission of Israel on 22 July as an observer state at the AU, notwithstanding dissent…is a significant recognition of the strategic centrality of Israel to African countries.
Israel has diplomatic relations with more than two-thirds of African countries.
Globally, Israel is an active member of the family of nations, committed to the improvement of the wellbeing of humanity across the globe.
The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) (later the Palestinian Authority (PA)) was given observer status on the AU in 2013. The PLO is also campaigning against Israel’s inclusion in the AU, signing a letter of protest addressed to the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki.
The central reason Israel’s detractors claim that the Jewish State should be banned from the AU is that “Israel… continues to occupy Arab lands, refuses to establish an independent and sovereign Palestinian state, and continues to violate the rights of the Palestinian people and their property.”
Let us consider each of these false claims.
Israel continues to occupy Arab lands
In 1947, the United Nations (then the League of Nations) voted to partition British Mandate Palestine (historic Israel) into two regions, one Arab and one Jewish. The Jewish partition did not include Judea and Samaria, the Jewish heartland. The Israelis agreed but the Arab nations, led by Egypt, rejected the partition plan and began a series of wars against the Jewish State. In 1967, Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Iraq, and Lebanon attempted for a third time to annihilate Israel, but Israel prevailed reclaiming Judea, Samaria, and a reunified Jerusalem for the first time in almost 2,000 years.
The Israelis are not occupying Arab land. They are living in Israel, their indigenous homeland.
Israel refuses to establish an independent and sovereign Palestinian state
The Palestinian people are led by Palestinian Authority President, Mahmoud Abbas and his Fatah party. The PA and Israel are the final negotiators of peace and, since Israeli independence in 1948, the Palestinians have rejected four proposals that would have led to a Palestinian state: 1993, 2000, 2005 (when Israel withdrew from Gaza), and 2008. That Israel, “refuses to establish an independent and sovereign Palestinian state” implies that Israel can indeed establish a Palestinian state. Ultimately, this can only be done by the Palestinian leaders as they agree on a peace deal with Israel.
Israel continues to violate the rights of the Palestinian people and their property
Here is an example of the problem of both language as well as context, as the accusation of Israel violating Palestinian human rights is an oft-repeated, spurious claim. First, language. In a poll conducted in spring 2020, it was revealed that, “the proportion of non-Jewish people who define themselves primarily as ‘Palestinian’…stands at around 7%,” and that there is, “a sizable increase in the number of Arabs who define themselves as Israeli - that number rose from 5% last year to 23% this year.” So, for the purposes of this piece, “Palestinian” refers to the residents of the Palestinian Authority (West Bank) and Gaza.
Second, any discussion of Israel’s handling of Palestinian human rights must be had in the context of Israel’s relationship to Fatah which governs the Palestinian Authority, and the terrorist organization, Hamas which governs Gaza. Both Fatah and Hamas pose varying threat levels to Israeli security ranging from payment for “martyrs” who kill Israelis to constant missile launches at Israeli civilians. Security checkpoints, blockades of land and sea into Gaza (blockades that both Israel and Egypt maintain), and demolition of the homes of terrorists who have harmed or killed Israelis are often what Israel’s critics call “violations” of Palestinian human rights. One may not be in favor of Israel’s security measures, but those measures must at least be considered in their proper context.
While discussing the issue of human rights and Israel’s critics, we should well remember that Mauritania, Libya, Qatar are all states in which massive slave labor—especially of Africans—is both commonplace as well as part of the national economy. Surely, the Trans-Saharan Slave Trade is something worthy of the attention of the AU. In Yemen, civilians are routinely killed in the ongoing fighting between Iranian and Saudi-backed forces. According to United Nations spokesman, Rupert Colville “hundreds of protesters, or anyone alleged by security forces to be a demonstrator, are being arbitrarily arrested” in Algeria, and that around 70 people were reportedly currently detained “for exercising their legitimate human rights.” Mauritania, Libya, Qatar, Algeria, Jordan, Kuwait et al are hardly in a position to condemn Israel for its security measures while they engage in such gross human rights violations with no pretense of concern for their safety.
The Abraham Accords have seen multiple Arab or Muslim nations normalize ties with Israel including Sudan, Morocco, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain. Trade between Israel and its new regional partners is expected to reach $1 billion this year. This is good news for the entire region. Accordingly, strengthening the historic, ancient bonds between Israel and her African neighbors would mean even more peace and prosperity in the region and the world. It was, after all, Israel and not the Arab league or PLO that worked with African nations helping them to develop their infrastructure – building roads, hospitals, schools and so much more – when these nations gained their independence from colonial powers.
Israel’s enemies remain mired in the conflict of the past. Israel and her allies are moving toward a future of peace.