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Pro-Palestinian Protests Belie Understanding of History
(Sydney Morning Herald-Australia) Albert Dadon - The protests in Melbourne on Sunday against the presence of Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Silvan Shalom were a display of moral and intellectual bankruptcy. Describing Israel as an apartheid state and equating Israel with Nazism is not just an assault on historical fact; it belies any true understanding of the course of history. One wonders how those very students would respond if Melbourne, like Sderot in southern Israel, was the target of a relentless battery of rockets fired from terrorists against innocent civilians for eight long years. These protesters want an end to the conflict. They want a Palestinian state. So do the majority of Australian Jews and Jews worldwide. And so does Israel. Shalom is also Israel's Minister for Regional Development and has been negotiating with the Australian government to work with Israel on rehabilitating the Jordan River. Given how many Palestinians rely on the river for their livelihood - both in the West Bank and in Jordan - it is a project that will mainly benefit the Palestinian population. The writer is founder and chair of the Australia Israel Cultural Exchange and the Australia Israel Leadership Forum.