Jeremy Corbyn faced fresh criticism over his handling of antisemitism allegations after Labour’s sister party in Israel said it had had no reply to a letter its leader [Isaac Herzog] sent to him a month ago expressing dismay and inviting him to Jerusalem to see the Yad Vashem Holocaust museum.
Visits to Yad Vashem are something of a walk of shame given some of its past visitors. Here's John Vorster, a one time president of apartheid era South Africa and a nazi internee during WWII:
The picture is from Yad Vashem's own website.
And apart from Israel's own leaders, Vorster isn't the only racist to have graced Yad Vashem with his presence. Here's Poland's Michal Kaminski of the virulently nationalist, Civic Platform Party visited Yad Vashem too:
Here's Tony Greenstein on Kaminski:
Kaminski led the campaign against a national Polish apology for the burning alive of up to 900 Jews in Jedwabne by Poles in 1941 (see ) Kaminski was formerly a member of the fascist National Revival of Poland Party.Vorster and Kaminski are just the kind of people you might expect to turn up at the jewel in the Zionist crown. That tribute to Jewish suffering that says that no-one else matters and Israel can do no wrong.
And so to Corbyn:
Herzog invited Corbyn to bring a delegation to Yad Vashem to witness that the last time the Jews were forcibly transported “it was not to Israel but to their deaths”. An Israeli Labour party official confirmed that it had “not had a reply” after rumours circulated in the Jewish community in London that no response had been received in Jerusalem or issued from London.So no answer from Corbyn so far so we can only hope that if he does ever answer he won't make that walk of shame.
But not content with implying that Corbyn has done something wrong, rather than the first thing he's done right since this whole orchestrated smear campaign began, Toby Helm (The Observer journo who wrote the piece) managed to take do something no self-respecting journalist should ever do. He took a Zionist's words at face value. Let's see that again:
the last time the Jews were forcibly transported “it was not to Israel but to their deaths”Now that's just not true. There have now been many instances of Jews being forced to go to Israel when they haven't wanted. Even West Germany back in the 1980s handcuffed Soviet Jews and bundled them on to El Al planes bound for Israel. Poland had an antisemitic campaign in the 1960s where an agreement with Golda Meir had Jews being forced to go to the Israel they didn't even approve of. And with the collapse of the Soviet Union Jews who wished to go elsewhere once again found themselves being forced to go to Israel. For that unhappy episode, see 972 Mag.