Why Barenboim is tone-deaf on Gaza
NewsIn 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.
Israel’s seige of Gaza should be condemned. As should Hamas atrocities in Israel. You can (and should) condemn both things.
The fact you see an equivalence in these two realities shows you are in a state of decerebration
Violence toward innocents is violence toward innocents.
The attack is horrendous definitely barbarian but the answer looks like revenge and not justice. Hunt down Hamas people part of these crimes or helpers but for the man of the street in Gaza, a lot are already victims of Hamas too, now Israel.
simply because his view is not based on double standard
So what’s the solution Norman?
I think we can all agree that the events of the past few days are truly appalling and tragic. But something like this has been brewing for some time, and certainly since Netanyahu’s government took on people who would wish to remove Palestinians from the entire region.
There are 2m Palestinians in Gaza, 3m in the West Bank, 1.5m in Israel proper. And who knows how many in the diaspora. These people have lived in these lands for many centuries. It’s their land too.
Barenboim has been rather brave in my opinion. There will be no peace in the region until there is a just settlement for all the people.
And what is a just settlement in your view? For the Palestinian leadership and a plurality if not a majority of the Palestinian population the just solution is a final solution: “Palestine from the River to the Sea”. I worked in the WB about a decade ago and had some level of optimism that the PA might reform and evolve into a decent government. The opposite has happened. It is a corrupt and ruthless dictatorship that oppresses its own people and indoctrinates hatred toward Jews. Israel is far from perfect, but treats its Arab citizens better than most EU countries have treated it minority populations over the past 70 years. Israeli Arabs comprise almost 20% of the Doctors in Israel; what is the percentage of medical professionals of N African decent in the EU. Don’t lecture Israel.
What’s the connection between North Africans in Europe and Palestinians in Israel?
North Africans didn’t live in Europe for hundreds of years before the Europeans came into Europe.
But Palestinians lived in Palestine for all this time.
Your comparison seems a bit off.
Hello Alank. I quite understand your reaction to my post. But it really isn’t for me to come up with just solutions to this most intractable situation. That really would be me lecturing Israel, and absurd coming from a mere English musician.
However, in another 25 years there will be a still more significant anniversary. If history is not to repeat itself (God forbid), it is for all the peoples of the region to come up with something better and fairer than the status quo.
Netanyahu’s Israel is steadily becoming a corrupt and ruthless dictatorship in itself. They’ve brought this attack on themselves after decades of oppressing the Palestinians. Now they want to seek massive revenge with little hope for reconciliation. Barenboim is on the right track at least.
Bring tone deaf is not the same as being wrong, the Bible took sides, it did not moderate its tone regarding the unrighteous.
If the Bible were written today, Hamas would be David and Israel Goliath, the Palestinians slaves and Netanyahou pharoah.
Is there any doubt which side the vengeful God of the Old Testament would be raining fire and brimstone upon?
In this ancient land of an eye-for-an-eye, a tooth-for-a-tooth, more Palestinians have died at the hands of Israel in more than half century of apartheid than the other way around.
As a lay observer, I don’t condone any of it, but it’s in the blood of the land and its peoples, the cycle will never end. Never.
Thank you, Norman, for not allowing Daniel’s obsequious attendance to Said’s hypocrisies to go unanswered.
Thank you for mentioning these points.
Barenboim’s condemnation of Israel for their seige of Gaza is supported by international law. The EU & the UN have both declared that Israel is in violation of international law with the Gaza blockade. https://www.barrons.com/news/total-siege-of-gaza-prohibited-under-international-law-un-1abc1549
My understanding is that the Oslo Accords were not necessarily the best or fairest chance at peace for all parties. Edward Said felt they were too heavily dominated by US & Israeli interests and did not serve the Palestinian people fairly.
Said’s role at Oslo was as an academic, an advisor, not as a political official. When he disagreed with the course of the Accords, he resigned. I’d think he was within his rights to do so.
I’m not the best informed person about all of this, but I respect the fact Barenboim & Said collaborated to try to find meaningful ways to address this conflict. I admire what they attempted and what I see as a fair and thoughtful statement from Maestro Barenboim on the present situation. This is just my opinion. . .
And not only that. The Geneva convention IV forbids such ill treatment of civilians, as indiscriminate bombing, blocking access to food, water and medicine, collective punishments, disproportional use of force and so on. Moreover, Article 49(6) forbids forceful demographic changes by occupying powers, making Jewish settlements in Palestinian territory illegal. But, as we know, the “rules-based international order” in practice means “rules for you, exceptions for us”.
Hamas is a terrorist group which does not represent the majority of Palestinians in the same was as the IRA did/does not represent the people of Ireland.
Hamas and Hezbollah don’t care at all about their own people; they hate the Jews more than that. I can’t help wondering if Israel would be such a target if it wasn’t a prosperous, first world, economically progressive nation. But, then, people have fought over stone-age Afghanistan (because of its strategic importance, probably). Israel has had the temerity to make an economic power out of a small, arid piece of land!! The absolute hide of them!!
“Israel has had the temerity to make an economic power out of a small, arid piece of land!! ” a one-sided, blind comment. What cost to West Bank Palestinians?
According to Golda Meir Palestinians didn’t exist and the land was supposedly empty, ready to be settled by hard-working Jews to make the desert bloom. Israel was from the beginning a colonial enterprise and is the foundation of today’s problems.
Where is the false equivalency in suggesting that one can hardly denounce Hamas’ mass indiscriminate murder of civilians while condoning a “siege” and mass bombing targeting a trapped civilian population? If civilian killings are immoral (and they are, of course), then they are for everyone, especially for the IDF, which claim adherence to the highest standards of international law. And immorality on one side is no justification for immorality on the other.
The false comparison would be to suggest a civilian life is worth less on one side or the other. As Roméo Dallaire used to proclaim, “all humans are humans” – that’s the basis of human rights, and what Barenboim is striving for.
If I was surrounded by bigger neighbours who had sworn to see my destruction I might respond outside international law too! Who knows what I would do to survive, so I’m not casting the first stone at Israel.
If I claimed to behave morally and to be an upstanding member of the international community of states following international law – not even following, but leading it – I would simply not engage in blatantly illegal and immoral action.
Israel claims to be all that, and there is simply no practical justification for a “siege” or mass civilian victimization. They claim themselves to have the capacity to engage in precise, targeted action. Bombing civilians is not that – it’s pure immorality and illegality.
It’s a relief to see Barenboim, an Israeli citizen, have such an opinion on the conflict.
Violence should always be condemned. Actions by HAMAS should not be defended or supported. Nobody deserves to suffer like the Israelis did a few days ago. It’s for this reason, now that Israeli’s have experienced a tiny fraction of the pain that Palestinians have suffered for over five decades that I hope positive change will come for the Palestinian people.
Whilst we must condemn violence, whoever the perpetrator is, let us not forget that only one party has the ability to end this conflict… and it isn’t Palestine. Let’s hope Israel chooses the peaceful route and not the more genocidal.
“a tiny fraction of the pain Palestinians have suffered” I missed where Israeli’s cut babies heads off, raped women and paraded their bodies through the streets, murdered families in their homes. Muslims are taught from birth to hate the Jews. Not sure you can say the same about Israeli’s.
Jimmie , you are wasting your time . It’s like talking to the wall. They are a lost cause.
Totally. It’s naive to think that ‘settling with Palestine’ will end the regions hatred of Israel and Jews. You need to look back to history to see that there is no appeasing antisemitism. Where-ever they’ve gone they’ve been hunted and hounded. This latest iteration in Israel is only one chapter in that long saga and I stand with Israel.
Read Al Jazeera or any news source which presents the Palestinian side. You will see plenty of pictures of what Israel has done and is doing now.
The difference is that Palestinians aren’t flocking to US media to get on TV with their stories as Israelis are.
Palestinians are fighting for their lives in the darkness with no food, water, electricity, fuel or medical supplies, all imposed by this Israeli blockade. Israel is gunning down hundreds of children in Gaza. Blowing up Mosques with worshippers inside. You want dead baby counts in Gaza? Ask UNICEF.
Neither side is blameless. But as you can see from comments here & reader comments in NYTimes & several other mainstream publications as well as the response by EU authorities, people are no longer buying the narrative of Israel as the perpetual victim.
Israel is a savvy, advanced nation capable of extreme aggression. They are also skillful at presenting a sympathetic image to western media & have made it an art form to maintain US funding & political support.
Sorry, we are just not buying Israel as the blameless victim this time. Those days are over. Human rights violations are human rights violations. Hamas doesn’t get a free pass and neither does Israel.
I thought Slippedisc was a left-leaning blog with right-leaning comment sections? Funny to see things reversed
How was SD ever “left leaning” with all the Asian stereotyping, slut shaming, diversity mocking, and general late male whining about “cancel culture”?
I’m left leaning and I deplore cancel culture, and a great deal of what is being done in the name of “diversity.” I do not stereotype Asians nor slut-shame, but I find the whole “woke” thing to be revolting. Especially anything that in any way restricts freedom of speech. I do NOT equate these things with “the left,” to whatever extent such a term is useful any more.
I consider the wokeists, from snowflakes and trigger-warners to cancellers to diversity-uber-alles types, decolonisers, historical deniers, etc., to be totalitarians who would make Orwell turn in his grave and should make all of us quake in our boots.
Don’t worry; if Donald Trump is elected there will be hope of peace for Israel. Nothing happened during his Presidency ANYWHERE within the purview of the USA. That’s a fact. But if you prefer ‘safe spaces’ in the USA and a leader who isn’t a bullying narcissist then I don’t imagine the situation in the middle east changing any time soon.
I don’t know whether the blog can typically be considered left-leaning but I will say that the main reason I read this website is that the right-wingers in the comment section provide a seemingly endless source of amusement for me, and I know it plays the same role for many of my colleagues. Was pleasantly surprised by the reasonable takes on this topic.
truely speaking: Who cares. as “Nick Shadow” calls people of this kind who want by thier own will turn any stone to gold: “The old fool”.
Tom Rakewell says “the old fool” of Father Trulove. Nick Shadow doesn’t use the phrase.
How convenient of Barenboim to preach his “ethics” from his safe, comfortable home in Berlin. If he were living in the line of fire in Israel, would he sing the same tune? Danny, move to Israel, or just shut-up!
Where Do you live ??
Irrelevant!!
I’m much more cynical about it than this. Perhaps some kind of financial assistance, for example, would be forthcoming for the Palestinians if one is so passionate about their welfare. Currency and aid is always more efficacious than talk, after all.
Barenboim and such refuse to face the music in the face of continuing atrocities. They fail to understand that terrorists seek to confuse and divide and weaken, to create an opening for their next move. And to undermine democracy itself. That is their main goal. The terror they cause is just a means to an end. Therefore, the only way out of the fog is to speak the only (barbaric) language they understand. Israel ought to go, then, into the Gaza Strip and raze it down to sand, and real soon. That will teach these people, both sides, something. For terrorists thrive on weakness and the weak.
P.S.: Never forget who elected Hamas to rule over Palestine: the Palestinians themselves. And this despite repeated failures in leadership and numerous calamities. In other words, with this latest assault, the Palestinians have forfeited their right to whine and whimper and beg.
Hamas got itself elected in 2007. It has failed to return to the electorate in the last 16 years, probably because it polls rather low. Not sure how much choice Palestinians have been given.
Exactly. Most Palestinians are more or less hostages to Hamas now, as Hamas is the terrorist gang running the prison that Israel has created in Gaza. And Israel’s retribution for Hamas’ horrific terrorism will likely hurt more innocent civilians than Hamas leadership, who have the greatest protection, supplies, money and very likely are already slipping out of Gaza. It’s a humanitarian disaster on both sides.
They have the same ‘choice’ as the people of Europe when Hitler invaded Poland in 1939. How many people lost their lives again: was it 55 million?
THAT was what it took to get rid of German terrorism. Just imagine, if you will, people fleeing Europe and appeasing the Third Reich? What would Europe look like now?
Sometimes people have NO choice but to fight for their patch. Life is cruel and hard and only the strong survive. Wishing your enemies away never works.
Same for ‘the migrants’ decamping from the rest of the world, leaving their women and children without soldiers or hope of a reversal of fortune in countries destroyed by corruption and violence.
How many European ‘migrants’ left Europe during WII? Or did all Europeans stay here hoping for a “reversal of fortune”? Asking for a friend.
What are they supposed to do specifically?
If they don’t know and you don’t know then nobody but terrorist thugs can prevail.
And what have you fought for politically with your life lately, while trying to make your family survive in a f•••g ghetto? Do you understand, how high your horse is? And you didn‘t even climb into the saddle yourself.
Netanyahu and the USA have only themselves to blame, creating an open air prison in Gaza, contaminating water supplies, creating the sanitation crisis with blockaids. Eventually people are going to hit out, enough is enough.
It’s that simple, eh? Sorry I didn’t think of it myself.
Barenboim is right. There is no military solution, and mass slaughter in Gaza simply retrospectively justifies the appalling actions of Hamas, which is not only wrong but ridiculous.
I tend to lean in your direction; I just don’t know. But I think comments like his right now are unwise, regardless of their possible validity. Too soon.
Daniel gets my upvote.
It’s pretty hard to negotiate with a faction that claims, in their charter, that you should not be allowed to live.
Bingo. Oh, but look over there….!!!
Most Israeli civilians butchered, lived in Kibutzim and belonged to the most peace leaning portion of Israeli society. Those are the people that offered medical aid to Gazza, and demonstrated against Netaniahu. I envy all the people who know best, and preach Israel what to do. I wish they tried their advice first on their front door with the likes os ISIS. Personaly I am at a loss. I always supported compromise. Even unilateral withdrawls. Now I know we are facing genocide, What compromise is posaible? And for what purpose? Condeming the “siege” is realy insane. What is Israel expected to do on the Gazza border? Leave it open? And what would constitute a proportional response? Put yourselves in Israely shoes. How would any nation react? How did others react in the past when faced with such blatent barbarity? As for DB: Great artist do not always have great political minds.
Bravo; and your last sentence is apposite. It’s quite the reverse, in fact, since they are usually saturated in emotion to begin with.
Yaron, prior to this Hamas act, look at the actions of Israeli settlers. They have been entering Gaza, disrupting Palestinian life & land & harassing innocent Palestinians. Israelis are encroaching on land agreed to as Palestinian & often doing so violently. https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2023/6/29/no-singing-no-joy-how-settlers-ruined-a-palestinian-wedding
Israeli soldiers have harassed Muslim worshippers at the Al Aqsa Mosque repeatedly.
We abhor the violence of Hamas, but the EU and now many US citizens are not OK with blindly subsidizing Israel with military aid with our tax dollars any longer. We are no longer parties to your outrage.
I am truly sorry for your losses, but our tax money should go to benefit our own country, not your war.
Edward Said’s widow, Mariam Said, spoke yesterday at a conference in Brazil.
https://menafn.com/1107222364/Mariam-Sa%C3%AFd-Keeps-Edward-Sa%C3%AFdS-Legacy-Alive
Mrs. Said serves as co-chair with Daniel Barenboim of the Barenboim-Said Foundation & their organizations in Berlin (Barenboim-Said Akademie), Spain (West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, Sevilla) & Palestine (Barenboim-Said Music Center in Ramallah). These organizations are all rooted in the goal of improving communication between young Israeli & Arab musicians as a pathway to peace.
As a remarkable aside, the largest non-governmental sponsor of the Barenboim-Said Akademie in Berlin is the Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach Foundation. Krupp was a convicted Nazi war criminal who made fortune supplying munitions to Hitler in WW2. When he died, his fortune passed to a philanthropic foundation bearing his name.
The Barenboim-Said Foundation is now tapping that ill-gotten fortune to pay for the musical education of young Israeli & Arab musicians in Berlin. To me, this is pure genius & absolute justice. Well done, Barenboim-Said Foundation!
“Every fortune begins with a crime.”
-Balzac
So what’s the solution? War and conquest?
Whoever condemns Israeli blockade of Gazza should consider the alternative: Leaving the way clear for Hamas to bring in more weapons. Is it a sane way to behave? Did any other nation in history behave like that?
Now this is the really insane thing: Israel cut water end electricity supply to Gazza only 12 hours into the Hamas attack. Yes, I repeat: The inhuman Israeli monsters kept supplying Gazza all that time. Would any other nation do the same?
International law is a strange kind of law. It binds one side only. Faced with the realities of life and death, how would any of you deal with 2,000,000 people who support 40,000 armed men dedicated to a Holly War made for comfy by the side-benefits of rape, sadistic torture, looting and mass murder?
It’s so easy to have high moral principles from afar. DB had been living outside Israel for very very long. He has no practical advice to give – I wish I had one – but he dares preach morality. Well, morality stipulates that the perpetrators of crime be brought to justice. Is it a realistic expectation? Morality stipulates that further crimes be prevented in advance. Is this a realistic expectation? Well I would be happy to recieve a reallistic advice how to achieve that without use of violence.
Tommorow I will carefully examin your advice. In the meantime I shall return to the social media to find out who are the 40 behaded children found in a Kibutz I visited just a few day ago.
International law was framed by academics and lawyers, who should mostly be avoided much of the time because they live in ivory towers with little to no real life experience. This is precisely what Dr. Thomas Sowell says, and he adds that “they have a top-down approach because they always know what’s best for everybody else”.
Stopping arms entering the region is pure fear mongering, and something that could easily be achieved without switching off the water and power and denying relief aid from entering the region… all of which is basic humanity and enshrined in international law. Innocent people exist on both sides of this conflict.
Did any nation, ever, keep providing its enemy during war?
Do you expect Israel to provide water & power to the headquarters of Hamas and to it’s weapons industry?
Did The UK USA or USSR behaved like that towards the previous NAZI regime?
How many nations 100% control the power and water supply of another? And since when was Palestine a nation in the eyes of Israel?
Norman, you are 100% correct. Barenboim is wrong. A major goal of Hamas is to “raise the banner of Allah over every inch of Palestine.” Hamas opposed the Oslo Agreements (which had a lot of potential) and President Clinton’s talks at Camp David. They’ll tolerate a few Christians (it creates good PR), but would prefer if they all convert to Islam. Members of the group don’t sit around discussing preferred pronouns, marriage equality, DEI initiatives, or rights for LGBTQIA individuals. They aren’t overly concerned about improving the situation of women. They despise Arab moderates almost as much as they hate Israel. They take a break from violence every now and then when it’s convenient for them, but they are an evil group from top to bottom. They won’t go without a fight, and they won’t hesitate to take others down with them. Let’s hope they are completely crushed.
I for one am sick of pompous, preening, privileged liberals like Barenboim. And Edward Said was a hugely overrated as a ‘thinker’ – every bien-pensant liberal fawns over him, but he’s arguably a classic case of the emperors new clothes.
Barenboim is right. It does not matter whether atrocities are committed by Israelis with tanks or by Palestinians with pickup trucks. We are on the side of peace and real reconciliation, and can only be sad that that process has been derailed by both sides for over 30 years. May all sides step back and recognize the humanity and legitimate needs of the other, and work for the betterment of all, not just some people.
Bravo! Magnificently stated.
Remmember your advice when an ISIS death squad enters your home.
I am also on the side of peace. Had been for years. That’s why I supported Israel’s unilatetal withdrawl from Gazza. My partners in this were members ok kibuts Nir-OZ. Shortly after Israel left Gazza Hamas took over. For manny years now they had been using it as a basis for attacks against Israeli civilians.
I just recieved news that my partner in the quest for peace is dead. So are most members of his community. Including very old people, mothers toddlers and babies. Their’s have not been accidental deaths. They were smoked out of their homes, captured, TORTURED, RAPED, DISMEMBERED AND SLOWLY ROASTED. Please spare me your kind hope of peace and compromise. It’s time to fight for our survival.
Who is the man in the photo with Bahrenboim? He looks like Alan Hovhaness.
A lot of Hamas supporters are weighing in. It reminds me of the fact that Hitler and Stalin (and Putin) were and are music lovers and Reinhard Heydrich was a fairly good violinist. I would imagine that he enjoyed playing quartets.
If you are suggesting that there are “a lot of Hamas supporters” “weighing in” here on SD, I suggest you are wrong. I don’t see much support for Hamas here, and would hope not to. What I do see is a recognition that there are such people as innocent civilians in Gaza and they, too, are victims of this atrocity and the response it was designed to engender.
This inability to differentiate between populations and those that govern their countries or territories is a continuing thorn in the side of reasoned debate on issues like anti-Semitism. Some of us do not equate anti-Semitism with the notion that the government of Israel is beyond criticism.
Thank you, V. Lind.
Mr. Rosen, no one here supports Hamas. No one. Readers who question Israel’s ethics and respect for human rights laws are not supporting Hamas, nor are they anti-semitic. Many are Jews themselves. Here’s Bernie Sanders: https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/4250011-sanders-israels-siege-of-gaza-a-serious-violation-of-international-law/
Don’t play that card with us, Mr. Rosen.
Barenboim is getting ready to go to pasture, so he is trying to stay relevant. Stay out of world affairs, maestro.
I can’t believe the comments here. Disgusting.
Israeli families were slaughtered this Saturday at their homes, by inhuman terrorists.
More than 1000 people. From age 0 to 100.
Babies were crashed against the walls. Kids were beheaded. Brothers and sisters were tied together, and then were abused, shot and burnt to death. Parents were murdered before their children. Children were murdered before their parents. Women in all ages were raped. Dozens were kidnapped.
Those barbarians will have no place to hide. Israel will reach each and every one of them and the people who sent them.
You who philosophize disgrace and criticize all fears
Take the rag away from your face
Now ain’t the time for your tears
BD (not DB)
I recommend this excellent book by Samuel Katz:
“Battleground — Fact and Fantasy in Palestine”.
Revised edition, April 2002.
Taylor Productions, Ltd
New York
All good people who think that animals that kill children and old people are criminals and those who applaud them are innocent, you who do not know how to divide things into good and bad, everything is in the middle with you, wait what will happen to you in a decade. Let’s talk when you see beheaded babies in your towns.
Morons!!! And maestro Barenboim the first of you. And a pure evil!
You’re right, it *is* a false equivalency. Israel has been committing crimes against the Palestinians for decades. No civilians deserve to die surely, but that’s on both sides, and if Israel decides to carpet bomb Gaza in response to Hamas’s attacks, then they must be condemned for it.
Oh, shut up and go to learn a history from 1948, but real one. I am sorry for you. When you’ll change your paradigm well be to late…for now, go on after Barenboim. No sense to discuss…
P.S And no, there is not carpet bomb on Gaza. One more poisonous lie.
It’s interesting to see how much the Palestinians are universally condemned for their support for Hamas.
Where is the universal condemnation of Netanyahu and his brand of corruption from the international community, especially the U.S.? The U.S. seems to coddle his type of faux machismo.
It’s really rich for Netanyahu to call for the dismantling of Hamas as a corrupt terrorist organization (which they undoubtedly are), while he himself continues in power.