Scott L. Levin, Mountain States Regional Director, sent the following statement to the Boulder City Council, urging them to oppose a pending proposal to establish a Boulder/Nablus Sister City relationship:
Boulder City Council Resolution No. 631 (Establishing Sister City Affiliation Policy for the City of Boulder) “recognizes the existence of people-to-people relationships through the establishment of sister city affiliations” and “encourages exchanges of diverse cultural, educational, artistic, scientific, and professional ideas and programs.” The City of Boulder has adopted, and is to be applauded for, a careful and deliberate process by which it evaluates whether to enter into a sister city relationship, a relationship that necessarily involves the credibility and reputation of Boulder and its governmental leaders.
A proposal has been made for the City of Boulder to enter into a sister city relationship with Nablus, a town in the disputed territory located on the West Bank of the Jordan River, approximately 30 miles north of Jerusalem, the capital of Israel. The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) opposes the establishment of such a sister city relationship with Nablus at this time.
From the inception of the Nablus sister city initiative the proponents have demonstrated they are primarily motivated by political considerations and not by the ideals of encouraging the exchange of “cultural, educational, artistic, scientific, and professional ideas and programs.” A review of the Boulder Nablus Sister City Project website (www.bouldernablus.com), as well as the postings of its founder and one of the lead coordinators of the sister city relationship, Guy Benintendi, on his blog (guybenintendi.blogspot.com) leave no doubt that a major purpose for the establishment of the sister city relationship is to promote a pro-Palestinian political agenda using divisive and derogatory anti-Israel and anti-Jewish expressions. For instance, a report about a trip to Nablus found on the Project website states, “While the emphasis [is] on citizen-to-citizen diplomacy and bringing the two communities together, we also need to promote the understanding that the sister-ship is a powerful expression of solidarity with the people and city under occupation [emphasis added].”
Going beyond one-sided anti-Israel rhetoric, the blog postings of Mr. Benintendi dredge up ancient anti-Semitic myths and promote animus toward the Jewish people. First, he alleges the dual loyalty of representatives of the United States government that he incorrectly claims have citizenship in both the United States and Israel. He identifies primarily Jewish advisors and officials in the Bush and Obama administrations, but also – perhaps mistakenly – identifies some who are not Jewish. His list of those he falsely claims to have dual citizenship and allegiance include, Michael Mukasey, Michael Chertoff, Paul Wolfowitz, Richard Perle, Douglas Feith, “Scooter” Libby, Elliot Abrams, Ari Fleisher John Bolton and Rahm Emanuel. Mr. Benintendi states:
To say that someone has duel [sic] citizenship is to say that s/he has duel [sic] allegiance. Why these people are selected to represent the interests of the US when they clearly have a bias for another nation is beyond me, but select them we do [emphasis added].
Mr. Benintendi also made highly offensive comparisons equating Palestinian terrorist suicide bombers to Jewish fighters against the Nazis in the Warsaw Ghetto uprising:
To believe that it was noble for the Jews in Warsaw and the partisans in Paris to fight back, but ‘terrorism’ when the Palestinians do so is to turn history on its head in a misguided attempt to justify an inhumane and brutal oppression [emphasis added].
And, incredibly, Mr. Benintendi’s virulently anti-Israel perspective is expressed in his belief that Israel’s efforts to protect its civilian population against the murderous rocket attacks perpetrated by Hamas, which is designated by the United States and European Union as a terrorist organization, is no different than those acts of violence by Hamas against Israelis and Jews:
And again, let’s be real here: If the Israeli and US governments regularly use terrorism as a means to achieve their ends, doesn’t it seem incredibly hypocritical and disingenuous of them to stigmatize Hamas for advocating similar tactics, particularly since Hamas is the low-powered actor in the Middle East drama [emphasis added]?
These postings and statements reveal the true purpose of Mr. Benintendi and many of those actively supporting the establishment of a sister city relationship between Boulder and Nablus.
It is also important to note that until recent elections in Nablus, many representatives of its government might not have been able to enter the United States and have the people-to-people relationships central to a sister city relationship. Prior to elections held at the end of 2012, most of the members of the city council of Nablus were members of a political party affiliated with Hamas.
To be clear, ADL supports direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian people to achieve a solution to the conflict that will result in two states for two people, living side by side in peace and security. Once that goal is reached, arrangements like the Boulder sister city program will no longer be needlessly drawn into the politics of the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. Until that time, it is highly unlikely that entering into such a relationship will be able to meet the laudable goals of the Boulder Sister City Affiliation Policy to promote “exchanges of diverse cultural, educational, artistic, scientific, and professional ideas and programs” without engendering rancor and division within the wonderful city of Boulder.