Netanyahu refuses to attend this year's commemoration of 80th anniversary of liberation of Auschwitz

(MENAFN) Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will not attend this year's commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz due to the threat of arrest following an international warrant issued by the International Criminal Court in The Hague. This creates a striking paradox in history, a scenario unimaginable until recently. The image of Netanyahu landing in Poland, only to be arrested at Auschwitz under a banner reading "Labor Liberates," is an astonishing thought—especially given that Netanyahu, as the Israeli Prime Minister, is barred from participating in an event commemorating the suffering of his own people due to the looming threat of international law. While the German Chancellor has the right to attend, Netanyahu is forbidden. Eighty years ago, the liberation of Auschwitz marked a pivotal moment in history, a time when the survival of Jews seemed uncertain. Today, the dangers faced by Jews are vastly different, and Israel's actions reflect a shift in power dynamics. Following Auschwitz, Jews were empowered to take extreme actions, and Israel’s current path under Netanyahu's leadership is an expression of that shift. The Prime Minister's decision to avoid Auschwitz symbolizes the stark contrast between Israel's past and its present. The very place where Jews once sought refuge from unimaginable horrors is now the place Netanyahu fears to visit, highlighting the role of symbolism and historical justice.

While world leaders will attend the January 27th ceremony, Netanyahu will not. The International Criminal Court seeks his arrest for war crimes, crimes which bear unsettling similarities to those committed during the Holocaust. The distance between Auschwitz and Gaza is vast, but the parallels between the two are becoming increasingly apparent, as noted in recent reports of the situation in Gaza. Though it has always been taboo to compare modern-day atrocities with the horrors of Auschwitz, the brutal reality emerging from Gaza—especially as Palestinians face mass deaths and destruction—forces us to reconsider the comparison. The absence of formal extermination camps in Gaza does not diminish the disturbing realities unfolding there, as mass graves and evidence of ethnic cleansing begin to surface. October 7, 2023, marked a significant shift for Israel, echoing a momentous historical turning point. While the Six-Day War in 1967 led to the loss of Israel's humility, the events of October 7 are seen as a loss of humanity. The damage in both instances is profound and irreversible.

As the 80th anniversary of Auschwitz is observed, the absence of Israel's leader—a country born from the ashes of the Holocaust—is itself a symbol of the historical and moral crisis Israel now faces. Netanyahu’s exclusion from Auschwitz, due to the war crimes charges against him, stands as a poignant reminder of the country's transformation and its troubling future. The focus on Netanyahu's legal troubles, including the Hanny Belvis and Feldstein scandals, underscores the gravity of this moment in history.

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