As the coronavirus pandemic intensifies, so does the temptation for hard-right governments to politically weaponize the outbreak to consolidate power, delegitimize critics, promote the leader as savior and settle old political scores. That, according to Yossi Melman, is exactly the playbook that Israel’s caretaker Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is following.
For Anshel Peffer, Netanyahu’s maneuvering marks the first time that Israel’s democracy has been shut down. Eva Blum-Dumontet explores why the OK given to the Shin Bet to track civilians’ movements and communications is so dangerous.
If Israel is in virtual lockdown and its health care system under intense pressure, spare a thought (and a prayer) for Gaza, which confirmed its first two cases this week, and which has no capacity at all to deal with a wider outbreak. Shannon Maree Torrens outlines why Israel must step up and take responsibility. George Zeidan notes West Bank Palestinians’ familiarity with living under curfew – and the surprising competence, so far, of the Palestinian Authority. Seraj Assi and Zach Foster recall how Jews and Arabs cooperated closely the last time a plague struck the area.
In America, the Trump administration faces mounting criticism for its equivocal approach. Noah Berlatsky declines the president’s call for a national day of prayer, pointing out the evangelical and exclusionary assumptions behind it. Jonathan Tobin asks whether Trump recognizes the cruel ethical choices that U.S. doctors will have to face, and how Jewish tradition regards the utilitarian rationing of care, especially regarding the elderly.
The coronavirus crisis is fertile ground for conspiracy theories. Edan Ring describes the wildly irresponsible conspiracy theories, scapegoating and disinformation being spread by Israeli media and politicians, often targeting Israel’s Arab citizens. And Louis Fishman delves into how the pro-Erdogan media has found the ‘hidden hand’ behind COVID-19: the Jews. | | | |
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