Israel must be pressured economically, culturally: Pundit

Press TV has interviewed Lawrence Davidson, professor at West Chester University in Pennsylvania, to discuss the remarks made by Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying the occupied Golan Heights “will forever remain in Israeli hands.”

The following is a rough transcription of the interview.

Press TV: It seems that across the board everyone has condemned what Netanyahu said?

Davidson: Right, and I think your prior guest really nailed it, at least partially nailed it and that is that the Israelis do not recognize international law, they do not feel bound by it and they are not going to react to these criticisms unless they are essentially pressured, severely pressured to do so and I think that that can only happen in one of two ways. One is they are militarily pressured and that is not likely or they are economically and culturally pressured which is more doable at least in the immediate future through the boycott movement and other ways of sort of isolating the Israelis economically and culturally.  

Press TV: It is interesting isn’t not that the same EU and the same US which are criticizing Israel essentially will let it go ahead and do whatever it wants anyways in Golan Heights?

Davidson: Right. I think that no one wants to do what is necessary, no state or institution like the UN has the political will to do what is necessary to bring diplomatic relations, stop aid, stop economic commerce, this sort of thing. They do not want to do that. They have not got the will to do that and so they have got no leverage. That is why the BDS movement for instance is a movement of civil society where people generally are organizing to put pressure on the Israelis. 

And by the way I would point out that your last guest was wrong when he simply referred to the influence of Jews. The BDS movement, this movement to pressure the Israelis culturally and economically is in fact led in many instances, not completely but in many instances by American Jews and European Jews as well.

So I think we have to be careful and make a distinction between, say Zionists who support Israel, then they could be Jewish or Christian, and those Jews who have become really disgusted with how Israel behaves and stand against it.

Press TV: And the final issue I wanted to speak about is the OIC then, certainly as an organization which represents so many Muslim nations with all their riches and influence can be doing a lot more on such issues, can’t it? 

Davidson: Sure but they have not got the political will either. I mean they are running, they are sort of gun-shy because they have been militarily defeated every time they try to go against Israel and by virtue of going against Israel they are essentially going against the US militarily and so they cannot do that.

They can do more in that they should not have commerce with Israel and I believe now that there are commercial ties growing, say between the [Persian] Gulf nations or at least some of them and the Israelis, that should be eliminated, that should be stopped. 

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