Gilad Erdan, the Ambassador for Israel at the UN, believes that the fraudulent charges of the Palestinians regarding the coronavirus vaccine are nothing short of blood libel in today’s time. He did not hold back in stating this on Tuesday to the United Nations Security Council.
He began his speech by saying that he wanted to shatter the most recent blood libel that was being spread by the Palestinians. Erdan labeled the accusations as ‘grotesque’ and ‘false’ and the complete opposite of the campaign of the government of Israel to vaccinate the people of the country.
According to the Ambassador, the occupying power has not given any vaccine to the people of Palestine because it is not their responsibility to do so.
The same accusation was made by the PA at the Executive Board Meeting of the WHO on Tuesday.
Erdan informed the UNSC that as per international agreements, the Palestinian Authority itself is responsible for providing the healthcare that its people need. He stated that the same logic applies to healthcare as it does to the education system in Palestine.
He explained that the PA had revealed to Israeli authorities that they were intending to purchase the vaccines from the government of Russia. Erdan added that Israel had decided, and consequently announced that it will facilitate the transfer of vaccines.
The Ambassador further went on to explain that ever since the Pandemic first struck, Israel and a couple of other UN bodies have been working together to assist the people of Palestine. According to him, the medical staff in Palestine was trained and supplied with essential equipment required to combat the deadly disease.
Erdan asserted that whoever decides to join the campaign of lies concocted by Palestine is either unaware of the facts or simply motivated by anti-Semitism or politics. He also noted that the charges were made by the Palestinians on the eve of the International Holocaust Remembrance Day.
In the opinion of the Ambassador, history is filled with instances where crises are used to blame the Jews and spread anti-Semitism. He then went on to express hope that the members of the council will focus only on the facts and prevent this ‘bigoted tradition’ from continuing.
In other news, a city in Belgium, Antwerp, has a very unhappy mayor at this time. Nearly 15,000 Haredi Orthodox Jews reside in the area, who have all been warned that their failure to abide by coronavirus measures could trigger a wave of anti-Semitism.
A right-wing politician, Bart De Wever, has good relations with the Jewish community in the city. However, he revealed that the Jews are currently facing a lot of backlash and the proof is in his inbox. On Sunday, he released a statement stating that the community’s refusal to follow safety guidelines is only paving the way for anti-Semitism in the country.
Previously, the mayor had been forced to initiate a two-week shutdown of a synagogue. The police had determined that the shul, located on Van Spangen Street, had violated coronavirus measures at least twice, which prevented prayers in groups.