Israel accusing EU of undermining democracy by funding NGOs campaigning human rights in Gaza is not only bizarre but also tells us a great deal about the EU-Israel links.
Quite recently an Israeli diplomat accused the EU of funding several NGOs who campaign for better human rights in the Gaza region. Now Israel playing down that there is any need for better enforcment human rights in Gaza would be something that can be expected, but actually Israel pointing figures at the EU is certainly something quite unexpected. It can mean two things, either the reaction of the EU following the Israeli raid on the ships bringing humanitarian help to Gaza was received with anger and hate in Israel or Israel is so sure of its close links with the US that it sees now harm in laying accusation on such an important block of countries like the EU. The real reason could even be a bit of both, with the need to retaliate against the EU’s response to the flotilla raid harshly and without care, relying on the US support. One can thus easily conclude that the EU-Israel relations have suffered a huge setback.
However, disregarding what this accusation tells us of the EU-Israel relations, it tells us a lot more about Israel itself. To be so certain of its own position that it can go around accusing such an important block of countries such as the EU is quite remarkable, especially so in the times when Washington is trying to follow a more hard-line position on Israel. Another remarkable thing about Israel that we learn is how paranoid it can be. Seeing funding to an organisation such as Amnesty International as a threat to its own democracy makes one question just how ‘democratic’ the stat really is.
