Muhammad Idrees Ahmad

Carter’s recent book on Palestine, despite its various shortcomings, is a valuable contribution to the debate. Besides rattling the Zionists, it has opened up the debate in the American mainstream media for the first time. Earlier in the year, when Mearsheimer & Walt published their paper on the Israel Lobby, it generated heated debate but still failed to make it into the networks. Carter has finally succeeded in breaking the taboo, not just on the subject, but also on Israel being called by its true name – Apartheid.

While it is important to support Carter as the attack-dogs of the Lobby rush to smear and silence, the flaws in his argument need pointing out. Israel’s Apartheid obtains not only in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, but also within its pre-’67 borders through various laws that discriminate against its 20 percent non-Jewish citizens. Carter is also wrong in suggesting that AIPAC’s activities are perfectly legitimate as unlike other similar lobbies, it is not registered as an agent for a foreign government hence allowing it to have a much more invasive presence and insidious grip on the American political establishment.  

I have just received my copy of the book, I’ll review it here later. For now, I would like to remind all that it is important that this time we do not allow the debate to be buried under a pile of the lobby’s defamatory manure.