The Iran deal: How far will Americans go in extending “special status” to Israel?
This past week saw the horrible murder-by-arson of 18-month-old Ali Dawabsha, killed in the middle of the night by cowardly assassins who set his home ablaze as he and his family peacefully slept. His father died days later, and his mother’s life hangs in the balance. Their crime? Simply existing on their rightful land, a land that Jewish settlers and Netanyahu’s government wish to appropriate. The very presence of Palestinians on land Israel wishes to permanently annex is an affront to these settlers. It also saw the death of 16-year-old Shira Banki, one of six people attacked at a gay pride event. Yishai Schlissel, an ultra-Orthodox Jew, who carried out a similar attack in 2005, was arrested at the scene. In both cases the purity of the notion of Israel as a Jewish state was at the center.
These terrible events happen to coincide with another event that is forcing Americans to reconsider just how far they will go in extending “special status” to Israel. I am talking, of course, about the Iran deal. Let’s return to a key moment in the debate: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s appearance before Congress.
