Edelstein. 'Victims turned into war criminals'
Photo: Haim Zach
Judge Richard Goldston. Accusations
Photo: AP
Minister Edelstein: Goldstone Report anti-Semitic
Peres in Berlin, Netanyahu in Auschwitz, Lieberman in Budapest and Edelstein at UN headquarters in New York all plan attack UN report into Gaza war on International Holocaust Day. 'It's not an easy connection, but we must learn the lessons from what happened,' information minister tells Ynet
Israel
to launch attack on Goldstone Report on Holocaust Day. The world will mark International Holocaust Day on Wednesday. Monday will see President Shimon Peres
fly to Berlin and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
leave for a visit to the Auschwitz death camp in Poland. They will be joined by Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman
in Budapest and Information Minister Yuli Edelstein in New York.
Israel's political echelon plans to slam then distortions in the Goldstone Report
on International Holocaust Day of all days, in order to point to an anti-Semitic trend which blames the victims of Palestinian rockets.
Before meeting with United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, Edelstein referred to the report accusing Israel of committing war crimes in Gaza, calling it "anti-Semitic".
Israeli Response
Military officials finalizing Israel's response to Goldstone Report, which accused Israel of committing war crimes; NYT publishes findings that contradict report's claims. Judge Advocate General: Goldstone Report a vicious lie
The information minister is expected to tell the UN chief that the report "must not be an expression of the new anti-Semitism, which is directed at Israel's soldiers."
Israel is scheduled to release its version of the incidents in which it was accused of committing war crimes during Operation Cast Lead on January 29. The report, which is being finalized these days, refutes many of Judge Goldstone's accusations in the report adopted by the Human Rights Council in Geneva and discussed by the General Assembly in New York.
In some cases of erroneous or improper conduct by Israel Defense Forces soldiers, Israel will present the actions taken against those responsible for these acts.
Israel will argue that the report is misleading and false, as Minister Edelstein told Ynet before leaving for New York.
"The connection between the Goldstone Report and the international Holocaust memorial day is not an easy thing. On the other hand, however, we must learn the lessons from what happened. Then too, those who yelled out were told that Hitler is a clown and that all the gloomy predictions of the 1930s were nonsense.
"On the Holocaust memorial day of all days, which also marks the battle against global anti-Semitism, we must discuss this connection, because today the soldiers of the Israel Defense Forces are accused of harvesting organs, murdering children and raping women."
According to Edelstein, "After World War II and the establishment of the State of Israel, anti-Semitism is not directed at Jews but at Israel and the Israelis. The Goldstone Report, the publications in Sweden about organ harvesting and similar reports, are simply a type of anti-Semitism."
He added that the UN secretary-general must "stop this serious phenomenon in a report he will submit. He must not assist those who have turned the victims of thousands of fired missiles into war criminals."