It is deeply troubling when a former mayor of Christchurch uses her public standing to spread falsehoods and antisemitic tropes against the State of Israel and the Jewish people. The recent statement alleging that Israel “bombed Doha, Qatar” is not only demonstrably false but also part of a wider pattern of malicious libel that fuels antisemitism in New Zealand.
The False Claim of “Bombing Qatar”
Israel has not bombed Doha, Qatar. No credible international media outlet, government, or military source has reported such an event. Fabricating acts of war to paint Israel as a rogue aggressor is reckless and dangerous. It inflames tensions, misleads the public, and contributes to antisemitic hostility against Jews in New Zealand and worldwide.
The Manufactured Casualty Figures
The claim that Israel has killed “over 60,000 innocent civilians” is another unverified allegation. These numbers originate from the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants, and whose figures have repeatedly been exposed as inflated and unreliable. Israel, by contrast, has consistently targeted Hamas military infrastructure while warning civilians to evacuate combat zones — measures unprecedented in modern warfare.
Recycling Antisemitic Tropes
The accusations that Israel “controls the US,” “crosses every red line in international law,” and has “become what the Holocaust was designed to prevent” are not policy critiques — they are classic antisemitic tropes. To claim that Jews, through Israel, manipulate global powers and embody ultimate evil is a repackaging of the same myths that justified centuries of persecution.
To equate Israel with Nazi Germany is not only a grotesque distortion of history but a profound insult to Holocaust survivors and their descendants. The Holocaust was the systematic extermination of six million Jews solely for being Jews. Israel’s defensive war against Hamas — a terrorist organisation that carried out the October 7 massacre and not only openly calls for Israel’s destruction, but still holds 48 hostages — is the opposite of genocide: it is the effort to prevent another one.
Misrepresenting Qatar’s Role
Qatar is not a neutral “Switzerland of the Middle East.” While it hosts a major US air base, it also bankrolls and shelters Hamas’s leadership, allowing terrorists who orchestrated October 7 to operate freely from Doha. This dual role is a major reason peace efforts have failed: Hamas negotiates from the safety of five-star hotels while Gazans suffer. Israel has never targeted Qatar, nor attacked foreign embassies or schools in Doha. Suggesting otherwise is sheer invention.
Dangerous Consequences of Libel
Spreading lies about Israel committing atrocities it has not carried out — such as bombing foreign capitals — creates a hostile environment for Jewish New Zealanders, who are increasingly being held accountable for these fabrications. This is how antisemitism thrives: through unchecked libel repeated loudly and often enough to sound like truth.
A Call for Responsibility
Public figures carry a responsibility to uphold facts. When they instead promote falsehoods and antisemitic tropes, they risk not only their own credibility but also the safety of the Jewish community and New Zealand’s reputation as a country grounded in truth and fairness.
Israel, like any democracy, is not beyond criticism. But criticism must be grounded in fact, not conspiracy. To spread baseless allegations of bombing Qatar and to demonise Israel with Holocaust inversion is not “criticism of Israel.” It is antisemitism.
