B’Tselem aims to help extend human rights, liberty and equality to all people
The organization met last week in Jerusalem with the PC(USA) delegation
JERUSALEM — Among the meetings the six-member delegation from the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) held last week during their time in Israel-Palestine and Jordan was with B’Tselem, the Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories. B’Tselem says it “strives for a future in which human rights, liberty and equality are guaranteed for all people, Palestinian and Jewish alike, living between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea,” a future that’s only possible, B’Tselem says, when the Israeli occupation and the apartheid regime end.
B’Tselem is Hebrew for “in the image of” and is taken from Gen. 1:27. It’s an independent, nonpartisan organization funded solely by donations, including grants from the PC(USA). The delegation met with Sarit Michaeili, B’Tselem’s international advocacy lead, and Dr. Yoav Shemer-Kunz, B’Tselem’s European Union advocacy officer.
“We are registered with Israel and follow Israeli law,” Michaeili said. “Our working language is Hebrew. Our staff is Israelis and Palestinians, a very mixed staff. We operate in civil society and we aim to present reality — truthfully, factually and accurately.”
“The vast majority of our resources in terms of research [comes from] Israeli authorities,” including police and other government sources. “We stand by Palestinians, and of course it would make sense we are not popular in Israeli society because Palestinians are viewed by so many Israelis as the enemy. But when former service [personnel] like Breaking the Silence are pariahs, it says a lot.”
B’Tselem also reports on “the systematic policy-based human rights violations perpetrated by Israel.”
“Today we are adamant Israel isn’t going to give up control over the Palestinian people, land and resources,” Michaeili said. “In the beginning was the occupation, which by definition is temporary. These days, we don’t operate within that framework. … Today we think the occupation is permanent, and we don’t need to make the case for it.”
Israel wants to “not take responsibility” for the people living in occupied territory, “but use its power to take over the land and property of the people who live there. It’s not about occupation,” Michaeili said. “We say the presenting reality in Israel is one regime, only one force between the river and the sea. It is a fundamentally undemocratic situation.”
The last three years have been marked by “massive democracy backsliding, even as it pertains to privileged Jewish Israelis,” Michaeili said, “People like me, privileged Israelis, are beginning to deal with massive effects on their freedom of expression. … We are activists, but we are in better position than all types of Palestinians when it comes to accessing rights under the Israeli regime.”
“It’s an abhorrent situation,” she said, “and we will do whatever we can in a nonviolent civil structure. The only way it ends is through external pressure.” Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, must call for elections by Nov. 26.
“It’s our obligation” to say that the Israeli military is committing genocide in Gaza, Michaeili said, adding she’s gone to “pretty much every anti-war demonstration” since the war between Hamas and Israel began on Oct. 7, 2023. “I feel responsible; that’s why B’Tsalem is calling [its report] ‘Our Genocide.’”
“We are trying to stop it, get accountability, and try to make sure it doesn’t expand to the West Bank,” Michaeili said. “If something similar happens in the West Bank, we could see the same Israeli policies that led to genocide in Gaza expand to the West Bank. We have been trying to call that out.”
“We are all aware of the [political] situation in the United States. I’m not going to say you need to help us” because “we are fully aware of what you face with your own government,” she said. “I don’t have the words to describe the enabling of the genocide in [the Biden] administration, but it could get so much worse. We need the United States.”
Things won’t change, she said, “until Israel’s policymakers are made to pay a price in terms of diplomatic and economic action that needs to be taken. We have called on the international community to take all action they can to stop the genocide. That accountability is a clear step in implementing policy.”
While B’Tselem appreciates the PC(USA)’s financial support, “the most important thing you are doing is talking to congregants about policies that would better support the rights of Palestinians,” she said.
“Even mild criticism is immediately sanctioned,” Shemer-Kunz said. “People say very different things off the record and on the record. They cannot say things on the record or even online.”
According to Michaeili, “once you leave the realm of simplistic social media soundbites and come to visit Palestinians and Israelis, ultimately you can develop a well-informed opinion. You can talk about issues with deeper understanding about such things as families’ experience in the Holocaust.”
“It’s the same thing with Palestinians,” she said. “People can learn about the trauma they’ve experienced” through the Nakba and other traumatic events.
“We are totally committed to continue the struggle for justice,” Michaeili said. “It’s the only thing that enables a level playing field for people around the world. We don’t have any other option.”
“Public opinion is with us,” Shemer-Kunz said. “Governments may not be, but if you ask people, it’s very different.”
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