Why Barenboim is tone-deaf on Gaza

In scenes reminiscent of Holocaust and ISIS atrocities, 1,500 Hamas invaders left more than a thousand Israeli civilians dead, almost all of them unarmed. The victims included babies, some of whom were slaughtered in unspeakable ways. Many young women were raped and murdered, their bodies defiled. At least 150 hostages were taken, including orphans, babies and an elderly holocaust survivor.

These are the verified facts of the past four days.

Daniel Barenboim, in his response last night, called these actions ‘an outrageous crime’.

However, he went on to condemn Israel’s subsequent siege of Gaza in even stronger terms: ‘a policy of collective punishment, which is a violation of human rights.’ In doing so he creates a false equivalence and a dangerously distorted view of a horrendous situation.

What created this imbalance in Barenboim’s mind? He cites his formative relationship with an Egyptian-Palestinian academic: ‘Edward Said and I always believed that the only path to peace between Israel and Palestine is a path based on humanism, justice, equality and an end to the occupation.’

That is not entirely so. Said, when the best chance for peace presented itself at Oslo in 1991, militated against it and resigned from the Palestine National Council. Barenboim remains hostage to Said’s world-view. The Middle East tragedy has moved on, and Barenboim has failed to listen.