A few days ago, the Kuwaiti government announced that it will ban all screenings of Death on the Nile, a cinematic adaptation of Agatha Christie’s famous murder mystery.
The reason for the ban is its star, Israeli actress, and
former Miss Israel Gal Gadot.
Kuwait's
Al-Qabas newspaper claims that the ban was imposed following outrage
from social media users in Kuwait owing to Gadot’s support of the
Israeli army and her criticism of Hamas during the 2014 war in Gaza.
Yes, you read that correctly, the film is banned because its
star is a patriot and is critical of an internationally-recognized
terrorist organization that has carried out thousands of deadly terror
attacks in Isreal, including the indiscriminate firing of rockets, that
massacred, maimed, and orphaned innocent human beings since the mid-80s.
Previously, Kuwait also banned Gadot’s 2017 film Wonder
Woman. Lebanon, Qatar, Jordan, Tunisia, and other Islamic countries in
the Middle East and North Africa had also banned the film.
Last year in May, Gadot faced a vitriolic online
attack over her tweet about
the Hamas-led rocket attacks conflict in Isreal.
The following is the gist of her post:
"My country is at war. I worry for my family, my friends.
I worry for my people. This is a vicious cycle that has been going on for far
too long.
I pray for the victims and their families. I pray for our leaders
to find the solution so we could live side by side in peace.
Israel deserves to live as a free and safe nation, our
neighbors deserve the same."
She didn’t call for vengeance against any nation. She didn’t
name any terror organization. It was just a prayer for peace and hope for freedom,
peace, and safety for Israel and all its neighbors. A reasonable statement by
all means.
But Islamists and totalitarians never appreciate nuance, you either totally submit to their groupthink else
venom is mercilessly spewed.
Gadot was, among other bigoted insults, called a Zionist war criminal because of her two years of mandatory service in the Israeli defense forces.
The antisemites of the world developed ways to conceal their bigotry and claim their opposition is only policy-driven. Since they cannot openly express hatred for Gal Gadot because she is Jewish, they call her a Zionist.
Zionism is a Jewish nationalist movement that has had as its goal the creation and support of the Jewish national state of Israel. This is a movement of patriots. Every nation is founded on religious and cultural tenets. Israel has every reason to be proud of its heritage especially since it was formed after centuries of struggle and continues to be surrounded by enemies. A nationalistic fervor also unites people and serves as a morale booster.
Quite often words gain a totally new meaning owing to frequent
usage by bigots. The words ‘Zionism’ or ‘Zionist’ have become used as a coded antisemitic insult for bigots. Instead
of being blatantly antisemitic, they use dog whistles which are understood
perfectly among antisemites who hear them.
When confronted they say "We aren't against Jewish people,
we are against Zionism"
It is ironic that religious-nationalist dictatorship nations
that govern strictly by religious laws have the audacity to condemn the
nationalism of another country.
The ban on Gadot's films is an act of discrimination with
antisemitism at its core.
According to the Times
of Israel, 2021 was the worse year for antisemitic attacks in a decade,
seeing an average of ten incidents a day with the likelihood of many more
incidents not being reported. Reports also say that antisemitism
is on the rise in the US, with one in four Jewish Americans saying that
have been victims of bigotry.
It is interesting to note that the Palestinian-led Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel is never applied to life-saving medical inventions, pharmaceuticals, or surgical technologies pioneered by Israeli scientists and doctors. Israeli agricultural innovations and desalination technologies that are crucial for water management in desert countries are never prohibited. Governments know boycotts such as these would devastate their lives, hence they restrict their antisemitism to boycotting movies and soft drinks
So far, there has been no condemnation for the ban from both the Biden
Administration and Hollywood who never ceases to talk about standing up against bigotry.
In fact, Hollywood itself has displayed a shocking trend of
antisemitism in recent times.
The Academy
Museum of Motion Pictures which was launched late last year excluded
mention of the Jewish founders of various big Hollywood studios. The museum had skant reference to many of Hollywood’s great Jewish auteurs.
Showbiz people such as Emma
Watson, Susan Sarandon, Roger Waters, Dua
Lipa, Viola Davis, Javier
Bardem, Penelope Cruz, and even Israeli-born Natalie
Portman have expressed pro-Palestinian views. Recently Whoopi Goldberg indulged
in a ludicrous attempt to de-Judaize the motives behind the Holocaust.
Hollywood has also been accused of portraying rude
caricatures of Jewish people in its films.
Back in 2014, around 200 Hollywood biggies including Sylvester
Stallone, Seth Rogan, and Bill Maher signed petitions
critical of Hamas and defending Israel. Hopefully, these individuals will
reiterate their stand.
Washington’s record on confronting antisemitism has also been
disgraceful.
The Obama administration openly championed the Palestinian cause. Some
Democrats have even used the terms such as “apartheid
state” to describe Israel.
The Democrats are usually silent when Hamas fires rockets into
Israel. Congresswomen such as Palestinian-American Rashida Talib and Somalian-American Ilhan Omar are rabidly antisemitic and
pro-Palestine. The AOC-led Squad opposed funding of Israel's
Iron Dome that shield them from aerial terror attacks. Bernie
Sanders, who was raised Jewish and even lived in Israel recently expressed
support for Palestinian causes.
Hence both Hollywood and Washington have abandoned the US's
closest ally and the only pluralistic democracy in the Middle East.
South Africa during the apartheid era from
1948 to 1991 was subjected to a variety of international boycotts
and sanctions to protest against its institutionalized discrimination
of people of color. Historians have said that these embargoes
played a
crucial role in ending the darkest chapter in South African history.
A similar movement is desperately needed to confront systemic antisemitism. Civilized countries and key
individuals should break ties with counties that practice discrimination motivated by antisemitism
and hate for the state of Israel.
In 2020, President Trump’s peace deal has led to the normalization of relations between Israel and Islamic nations such as the UAE, Bahrain, Jordan, Oman, Morocco, and Sudan.
There is no place for systemic bigotry in the modern world.
The Jewish people have relentlessly been the target of unspeakable
persecution all through history.
Those choosing to remain silent have to understand that they cannot be a neutral party in this, ignoring or tolerating bigotry is the equivalent of endorsing bigotry.
Endorsing bigotry is also bigotry, it is time for these
bystanders to introspect about their stand and if they want to be on the right
side of history.
This article also appears on American Thinker
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