On Monday, February 18, 2019 Hundreds of anti-Zionist Jews of New York protest outside the IDF office in #NYC against Israel's persecution of religious Jews who refuse to serve in the Israeli army. The rally was demanding the the United States grant asylum for anti-Zionist Jews who are persecuted under the Israeli regime.
In particular the rally was demanding justice for Rinat Bas Chadva, a religious Jewish girl, 19 years old, who has been arrested on January 22, 2019, for refusing to serve in the Israeli Defense Force [IDF]. She is now enduring solitary confinement in an Israeli military prison.
Numerous protest are being held in Israel and abroad in defense of Rinat and of other conscientious objectors.
Text of speeches
I would like to start today, to quote the words of our honorable President of the United States, president Donald Trump, on December 6, 2017, when in a very unfortunate situation, he declared that Jerusalem is the capital of the so called State of Israel. and I'm quoting his words: “Jerusalem is not just the heart of the three great religions, but it's now also the heart of one of the most successful democracies in the world. Over the past seven decades, the Israeli people have built a country where Jews, Muslims, Christians and peoples of all faiths, are free to live and worship according to their conscience and according to their beliefs”. Honorable president: I’m very unfortunate to tell you: please go visit Kelah shesh [Prison #6], go visit Kelah Arba [Prison #4], go to the offices of the rescue organizations, which have been established to rescue our daughters and boys from the clutches of the Zionist army. You will see that this is unfortunately not true. Orthodox anti-Zionist Jews, in the so-called state of Israel, are not free to live and worship according to their conscience and according to their religious beliefs. It's far far from the truth, honorable president.
You go on to say: “This sacred city should call forth the best in humanity, not pulling us back and down, to the old fights that have become so totally predictable”. Honorable president: what the Zionist state of Israel is doing, this is bringing us back to the very old dark days of communist, of religious persecutions throughout the Jewish exile.
You keep on to say, honorable president: “So today, we call for calm, for moderation, for the voices of tolerance to prevail over the purveyors of hate. Our children should inherit our love, not our conflicts.” Honorable president: we don't see any voices of tolerance for religious freedom in this so-called State of Israel. We constantly experience the purveyors of hate, we don't see any love and we don't ask for love. We just ask them: “just bug off Orthodox religious Jews. Let us live in peace and practice our religion as we wish”.
Now I would like to quote, honorable president, the obligations of the nations under the Commission of Human Rights Resolution 1998/77, which reads as follows: “Bearing in mind that it is recognized in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, that everyone has the right to life, liberty and security, as well as the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion and the right not to be discriminated… Recognizing that conscientious objection to military service derives from principles and reasons of conscience, including profound convictions, arising from religious, moral, ethical motives… Recalling article 14 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which recognizes the right of everyone to seek and enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution.”
Dear friends: Asylum means that the United States of America, under universal human rights are obligated today to open their doors, to open their embassies, to allow visas and citizenship for anyone in the State of Israel that is persecuted. We Orthodox anti-Zionist Jews would wish to abolish our Israeli citizenship. We don't need it. It has been forced on us. We have been living in historic Holy Land generations and generations before the onslaught of Zionism. We wish and pray every day for a peaceful dismantlement of the Zionist State, but meanwhile, while this regime is there, they're not going anywhere and we are religiously persecuted, we beg from the USA and from any other countries of freedom, from Canada, Belgium, England, Australia etc. etc. and the European Union, please open your doors, so our people would go free and serve the Almighty as they wish.
I would like to end with a finishing point. We recognize and we honor the United States of America that opened their doors after World War II and the Holocaust, we are now over 70 years practicing freedom of religion in this blessed country. We pray to the Almighty that this should stay until we await the Messiah. We would like that our brethren in the so-called Zionist State of Israel, should share the same level of freedom and peace, that their brothers in the countries throughout the world share. Blessed be hashem. Amen.
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Those Jews who resist the Israeli army draft, are imprisoned and treated like the worst criminals, only because they simply want to remain faithful to their Jewish beliefs. When their community comes out in peaceful protest, to advocate for the prisoners, the Israeli police beat them in the streets, with murderous violence.
No other country forces traditionally observant Jews, to abandon their religion.
A nineteen year old girl, that didn't want to be drafted and ran away from the army, she ran away and they arrested her and they are holding her in terrible arrest. We plea that everyone who can do for her, should see that the Israeli government should sat free Rinat bas Chedve. Please set free.
And we cry out: IDF, stop the draft!
Rabbis predicted long ago that if the State of Israel were to be established and would continue to last, religious Jews would be persecuted to the point where they would be unable to go on living in the State of Israel. Unfortunately, that time has now come.
We came out in the streets as delegates of the worldwide Jewry and we appeal to the world to have mercy on our brothers, suffering in prison under the hands of the Israeli regime. If the United States government, the State of Israel's chief supplier of military aid, would take the Israelis to task, for their persecution of Judaism, it would certainly have an effect.
We cry out here in the streets: Israeli government, shame on you!