If you go down to the woods

As a lifetime sufferer of FOMO (fear of missing out), I received the invitation with some excitement. Who, after all, wouldn’t want to attend a Tu B’Shvat celebration that was to take place at Constitution Hill in Johannesburg?

Unlike the Friday night Shabbat dinners hosted by the South African Jews for a Free Palestine (SAJFP) and friends, this wasn’t to be a bring-your-own-vegan-potluck dinner to be held somewhere in a shelter just off Surfer’s Corner in Muizenberg. (I’m not making the vegan thing up.) Nope, this festivity required that participants bring only their gloves, for reasons unexplained, as they commemorated Israel’s “war crimes and genocide” together in the Nakba Memorial Forest. (I had no idea that Johannesburg even had one.)

In essence it was to be a festival of love and beauty, fuelled by communal togetherness that embodies only hatred for the Jewish state and all it represents.

The invitation, titled, “Between River and Sea: Genocide and Ecocide” required the use of a modern-day lexicon to decode. “Environmental genocide” as a concept was new to me. So too was the word “ecocide”. That said, considering the mosquito infestation we’ve experienced this year, I was quite keen to find out where I could pick up some “ecocide” for myself. I thought perhaps the talk to be given by David Fig – not making this up either – would provide some tips on the use of chemicals to eradicate the darn pests.

Perhaps that’s the reason for the gloves?

The invitation also promised time to reflect not only on Israel’s “war crimes” but also undertook to relate its type of war crime to crimes against the environment.

I assumed that there would be a deep focus on tunnels, as well as Hamas’s use of this environmental technique not only to preserve the ecosystem, but as a strategy to reverse the ravages of global warming. A global affliction known to be caused by the egregious Israeli subterfuge to make Palestinians hotter each year. Dehydrating them degree by degree (in Celsius).

The grand finale of the jam-packed event was a Q&A session hosted by renowned jurist and international authority, Jo Bluen, on South Africa’s case against Israel at the International Court of Justice. Not to be missed.

Apparently, all were welcome.

Of note during the current Israel conflict is the prominence of vocal non-Zionist Jews. Although small in number, someone unfamiliar with the workings of the Jewish community might mistakenly believe that they represent a meaningful percentage. The reason is obvious in that many detractors of Israel, keen to prove they are anti-Zionists and not antisemites, parade them as exhibits to make their point.

Whether it’s the Neturei Karta on the one extreme or the SAJFP, both are, of course, free to have their view. As are proud Zionists. All are free to celebrate Tu B’Shvat as they see fit. Be it in the Nakba Forest in Johannesburg or Jerusalem Forest in the holy city of Jerusalem. But it’s worth noting that the festival of Tu B’Shvat celebrated by the anti-Zionists has its roots in the Biblical verse, “When you enter the land of Israel and plant a tree…” which must be slightly awkward for those commemorating “genocide” and “ecocide” and actively demonising the Jewish state. All while wearing gloves. So as not to get their hands dirty.