Will the Real Apartheid Please Stand Up?
Israel Votes
On Tuesday, Israel held elections for the first time since the October 7 massacre in 2023 (the last election was in 2022). It was a highly anticipated event with many issues on the table, such as the Haredi draft dilemma and the state commission of inquiry into the security failures of October 7. Leaders of a multitude of parties campaigned with and against one another. The current coalition comprising of Benjamin Netanyahu of Likud, Itamar Ben-Gvir of Otzma Yehudit, and Bezalel Smotrich of HaTzionut HaDatit (with others) went to bat against Gadi Eisenkot of Yashar! and Naftali Bennett of B’Yachad, among others, who formed the opposition/change bloc.
Israelis showed up in record-breaking turnout. Michael Dickson of StandWithUs wrote on X that by noon it had been “the highest turnout in any Israeli election for 53 years”, since the immediate aftermath of the Yom Kippur War in 1973. The Jerusalem Post reported that by 12 p.m. Israeli time 31.5% of eligible voters had already cast their ballots and the number rose to 44.9% just two hours later.
Among the Israelis who made it to the ballot boxes were the Arabs who live in the Jewish state. 78% of the Arab sector cast their votes for the 26th Knesset, according to Amit Segal, who spoke to Dan Senor on the Call Me Back podcast.
Yes, you read that right. The Arabs who supposedly live under a Jewish apartheid regime made their way to the polling stations, showing up en masse to what was the most consequential election in modern Israeli history.
Understanding Apartheid
The anti-Israel crowd loves any buzzword that can possibly paint Israel in a bad light, no matter how false or inaccurate. A popular term often abused is “apartheid”. The Rome Statute defines apartheid as an “institutionalized regime of systematic oppression and domination by one racial group over another racial group or groups and committed with the intention of maintaining that regime” by committing “inhumane acts”. Anti-Israel protestors, activists, and “critics” incorrectly — and deliberately — use the apartheid narrative to profane Israel as a tactic in their anti-Jewish smear campaign.
Apartheids have precedents around the world. The United States once enacted an apartheid-adjacent system under the Jim Crow laws following the emancipation of Black Americans after the Civil War (1861-1865) and before the Civil Rights Movement. During this time, Black Americans were segregated in every aspect of American society, from institutions and classrooms to movie theaters and water fountains. In a more contemporary sense, South Africa governed with the same system for nearly half a century in the years following World War II and ending only just over 30 years ago. The white minority-led government ruled with an iron fist and caused terrible suffering and death among Black South Africans. The South African apartheid ended with the negotiations between Nelson Mandela and Prime Minister Frederik Willem de Klerk to hold multiracial elections, resulting in Mandela as the first president of South Africa.
Examining the Claim
So where do the claims of Israel’s apartheid against Arabs come from? The answer, as with any topic pertaining to Israel, is complex and requires a deep, robust understanding.
There are two facets needed to investigate the nature of the apartheid allegation. One primarily concerns the relationship between the Israeli government and the Arabs of the Gaza Strip, as well as Arabs who live in Judea and Samaria, colloquially known as the West Bank (as it is literally a bit of land lying west to the bank of the River Jordan). The cry of apartheid here quickly unravels on the grounds that Israel does not govern Gaza. It didn’t before October 7th, and since then the extent of Israel’s presence has been that of the military, which holds some territory for defensive purposes, and rightfully so. The terrorist organization Hamas is the only ruling power in the Gaza Strip, and its inhabitants are subjects of Hamas’s apocalyptic regime. Israel has not claimed Gaza as its territory by annexation, has not enacted official laws to govern the strip, and has not absorbed any Gazans as its citizens.
The argument also falls apart on the same grounds with regard to Judea and Samaria. But this is even more intricate. Judea and Samaria are divided into three regions: Area A, Area B, and Area C. Area A is under full control of the Palestinian Authority, the ruling body of the Arabs who live in Judea and Samaria, both in civil and security matters and is completely null of any involvement of Israeli government administration (with the exception of absolutely crucial security operations); nor are any Israeli citizens permitted to enter Area A. Area B is under joint control between Israel and the P.A. Israel maintains a security presence while the Palestinian Authority holds civil control. The same blanket prohibition of entry to Israelis is less prominent here but as with Area A, certain parts of Area B are also Judenrein. Israelis are legally prohibited from even taking a wrong turn into Area A and risk serious injury or even death by “Palestinian civilians” and, while not explicitly warned not to enter, face similar dangers with the less stringent Area B. Lastly, Area C is under the full authority of Israel and Arabs who live there are subject to Israeli civil and military law.
This three-area system was set up by the Oslo Accords in the 1990s. It is cumbersome and fragile, with high tensions up to and including physical violence between Jews and Arabs in and around those regions. Over the years, a security system along the border of Israel has been put in place to vet those coming in and out of Judea and Samaria because of the excessive violent, deadly attacks Arabs have committed against Israelis, particularly the Second Intifada (2000-2005).
If the Israeli government’s place in Gaza and Judea and Samaria constitute a foundation to support the apartheid claim, it is impossible to defend because it is actually of little relevance as illustrated by the relationship Israeli authority has to each region, which is for security purposes in Areas A and B.
The second facet of the apartheid myth would be the lives and status of the Arabs who are citizens of Israel. It is worth mentioning that hardly any of the anti-Israel mob can even fathom the idea that Israeli Arabs are even a concept, and there are a select number of videos that circulate on social media highlighting the genuine disbelief of people who meet and converse with Arab Israelis, unable to understand how their identity comes into play at all. But I digress.
Israeli Arabs make up about 1/5 of Israel’s demographics. That means 20% of Israeli citizens are Muslim or Christian Arabs, including Bedouins and Druze. While obviously a minority, these Arabs are anything but second-class citizens. They are fully recognized citizens. They can vote and hold office. They are not legally barred from owning property, obtaining employment, or pursuing education. Israel has churches, mosques, and Arab schools. Most importantly, they have equal protection under the law. This is by definition not apartheid. That does not mean there is no prejudice against Arabs or that life is always easy for them as a minority. The point is that Arabs having full rights as equal citizens — the same as Jews — living in the State of Israel conclusively proves that they are not living under apartheid, and it is all the more farcical and erroneous to assert that Israel is an apartheid state.
Troubled Waters
It is the case that coexistence between Jews and Arabs has a home in Israel. It is also the case that there is much work to be done to ensure that Arab violence is kept in check on both sides of Israel’s borders. Arabs from Judea and Samaria still carry out attacks against Israelis and this absolutely warrants the current security status quo. Tuesday’s election in the Jewish homeland brought into question the long-term safety of Israelis and raised concerns about the nature of the Arab bloc.
The most recognizable Arab party, Ra’am, is actually an Islamist party led by Mansour Abbas (not to be confused with Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the Palestinian Authority who just postponed elections from the Arabs and is currently in year 21 of his 4-year term). Mansour Abbas has drawn criticism for his refusal to name Hamas as a terrorist organization, “a decision that has raised suspicion from many Jewish voters”.
Indeed, there is quite a presence of anti-Zionism among Arab party members which, again, would not be able to even be remotely expressed if there was a legitimate apartheid in Israel. The other issue making headlines in the immediate aftermath of the election is the Shin Bet’s investigation into potential Qatari and Turkish interference that may have amplified the Arab voter turnout.
The resulting government of the election is yet to be determined. What is certain is that the Arab sector in Israel is unconfined, and those who lament any misperceived hardship on their behalf are in for a rude awakening. Perhaps inquiring about the lives of Jews in Arab countries in the centuries before Israel’s rebirth would give them a little perspective.
