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Laura Celier, i24 News: You’ve been advocating for many years for Israel’s fair treatment at the UN. You’ve argued that it is often singled out for condemnation. You just mentioned a list of countries who are accused of grave human rights violations. Can you give us some examples where Israel has been singled out and other countries have kind of gotten away with things?
Hillel Neuer: Sure, I’m going to give you three quick examples.
Number one: In New York, at the General Assembly, there’s one resolution every year on Syria, one on Iran, one on North Korea, and 15 on Israel. No other country in the world has anything close to that amount of condemnation.
The Human Rights Council in Geneva: one agenda item on the world, one agenda item, at every meeting, on Israel alone.
And finally, next month, the Human Rights Council will hear from their Commission of Inquiry into discrimination in Israel. It’s headed by Navi Pillay, who has signed manifestos entitled “sanction apartheid Israel.” So she’s the “independent, neutral, objective” judge of the UN into whether there’s discrimination, and she’s literally lobbying countries around the world to “sanction apartheid Israel.” It’s absurd, it’s a violation of the UN’s founding principles, including impartiality, and only Israel gets that kind of treatment.
Laura Celier, i24 News: Do you have a theory as to why that is, why Israel is singled out when other countries aren’t?
Hillel Neuer: There’s realpolitik. There are 56 Muslim states; historically, they have sponsored these resolutions. Yes, there’s the Abraham Accords, but hasn’t yet changed things at the UN in a significant way. 56 Muslim states voting against Israel; they have an enormous amount of oil, they have UN votes - the UN works by vote trading - so there’s 56 votes for your country if you vote for the anti-Israel resolution, versus one vote from Israel if you vote no. And I would say there’s also a residual..
Laura Celier, i24 News: It’s like the Eurovision Song Contest.
Hillel Neuer: Right, but I would say, you know, there’s also residual antisemitism. The fact that, of all the countries in the world, it is only the Jewish state - and you go across the board at the UN: the General Assembly, World Health Organization, the Human Rights Council - one country gets singled out and demonized. It’s the Jewish state.
Laura Celier, i24 News: Alright, Hillel Neuer, thank you very much indeed.
Hillel Neuer: Thank you.
