Israel has dealt a blow to the jihadists who threaten its existence. The country passed a terror bill that allows for much stiffer punishments and deterrents against terrorism. Once the law was passed, Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked said: “The terrorist attacks in Orlando and Tel Aviv show that, more than ever, terrorism can’t be allowed. There are no excuses.”
Her statement was criticized by Maretz Chairwoman Zehava Gal-On, who stated that “whoever tries to use terrorism in Paris or Orlando to act like all terrorism is a result of radical Islam is trying to remove responsibility for 49 years of occupation, the fuel and the motivation of terror.”
Gal-On’s reaction was abhorrent in its minimizing of the sufferings of those murdered at the hands of Islamic jihadists. One need not think that all terrorism is the result of “radical Islam” to be able to grasp the magnitude of this global scourge. Islamic jihad is rooted in an ideology that teaches conquest by the sword; it not only poses an existential threat to the state of Israel, but is a ubiquitous force. Its goal is global conquest. As for her use of the word “occupation”, one wonders whether Gal-On is asleep, given the necessity for Israel to defend itself against attacks by surrounding Arab states that attempted to obliterate it upon its founding in 1948 and again in 1967, not to mention the Hamas, Fatah and PA charters, which all call for Israel’s destruction.
Gal-On continues with her rant in referring to the law as “racist and totalitarian”. Let’s hope that Gal-On spoke up when Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas declared that not a single Israeli would be allowed to live in a future Palestinian state.
Folks like Gal-On turn a blind eye to the virulent racism by Muslim Arabs against blacks and against Jews.
A Huffington Post article identified Muslim Arab racism against blacks as the great taboo and stated that “any attempt to confront persistent Arab racism is shouted down by appeals to Arab/African solidarity against the neo-colonialist West.”
The new anti-terror law also extends to charity groups that finance terrorist groups, opening the possibility of declaring them illegal and imprisoning some of the individuals involved in such groups.
“Terror bill passes into law”, by Lahav Harkov, Jerusalem Post, June 15, 2016:
A wide-reaching law codifying the government’s response to terrorism passed 57-16 on Wednesday evening, after six years of negotiations and review in the Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee.
The law, which the committee debated intensely since the fall but dates back to 2010, creates a new catalogue of offenses to match up with “the modern challenges of terrorism.”
After the law passed, Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked said “the terrorist attacks in Orlando and Tel Aviv show that, more than ever, terrorism can’t be allowed. There are no excuses.
Terrorism can only be defeated with appropriate punishments and deterrents. The 2016 model of terrorism will receive a 2016 response.”
Constitution, Law and Justice Committee chairman Nissan Slomiansky (Bayit Yehudi) pointed out that the bill cancels 60 British Mandatory emergency statutes, and instead builds on Israel’s experience in fighting terrorism.
“The law that passed today in the plenum shows how to fight terrorism uncompromisingly, while protecting human rights,” he said.
Though the bill had support from some in the opposition, some disagreed with Slomiansky’s assessment that it protects human rights.
Meretz chairwoman Zehava Gal- On said she supports fighting terrorism, but the battle must be undertaken morally.
“The challenge in a democratic state is to fight terrorism while protecting basic rights,” she said.
“Whoever tries to use terrorism in Paris or Orlando to act like all terrorism is a result of radical Islam is trying to remove responsibility for 49 years of occupation, the fuel and the motivation of terror.”
Gal-On called the law “racist and totalitarian.”
Joint List MKs Ahmad Tibi and Osama Sa’adi released a joint statement saying the bill is “draconian in that it expands security services’ authority and the occupation rule, while blocking the right to resist the occupation.”
MK Haneen Zoabi (Joint List) said the law “has one goal: to prevent citizens from criticizing, expressing opinions and starting a grassroots political struggle against the occupation, encourage boycotts and think outside the box.”
Saying the law institutes a “thought police,” Zoabi claimed it could lead to someone being convicted of terrorism over a Facebook post.
For the first time, the law lists as a specific crime the digging of attack tunnels. It also mandates that a conviction for being a terrorist mastermind – even if the person did not participate in his minions’ terrorist acts – carries a lifetime prison sentence.
Previously, masterminds often received lighter sentences because prosecutors had to attempt ad hoc to fit the crime into other old-school offenses on the books.
Those using biological and chemical weapons for terrorist purposes can also receive a life sentence.
Charity groups which indirectly but substantially contribute to terrorist groups can be declared illegal, and many categories of those involved in such groups can be sent to prison by association.
Here, the law’s concept was to better stop terrorism financing by cutting through straw-man companies which might serve dual legal and illegal purposes.
Connected to those efforts, the defense minister can now seize financial assets even before indictment and conviction, if the assets relate to terrorism, much the same way he can issue administrative detention orders. Until now assets could only be seized at the indictment and conviction stages.
In addition, those funding terrorists can be fined up to 20 times the amount for which they were convicted of providing to terrorist groups.
This radical change recognizes that today’s terrorists may sometimes be more deterred by losing money than by prison sentences……