Western universality a 'fiction': French scholar recounts legal backlash over Israel criticism

By Muhammed Enes Calli

ISTANBUL (AA) - Since the start of Israel's war on Gaza a year ago, public criticism of Israel in the West has come with increasing risks, especially on social media.

Academics have been targeted, with some facing investigations and others subjected to online backlash for expressing their opposition to the Israeli government. French political scientist Francois Burgat is one of those who found himself in the spotlight after sharing his views on X, formerly Twitter.

Speaking to Anadolu, Burgat recounted his detention by French police in July in the southern city of Aix-en-Provence. The arrest came after a complaint from the European Jewish Organization, accusing him of "advocacy of terrorism."

“On Twitter, I wrote and I did not intend to be provocative, but I said I have much more respect for the leadership of Hamas than I have for the leadership of Israel. You know, this is nothing,” Burgat said.

He had posted that he holds "infinitely more respect" for Hamas leaders. “This was enough for a Jewish association called the European Jewish Organization to make a complaint against me, (claiming I was) promoting terrorism.”

Following the complaint, he was held by police, stripped of his shoes and belt, and interrogated. Now, he is awaiting a decision from a judge on whether the case will proceed to trial. He stated that he is not very optimistic, citing what he called an “insane” political atmosphere in France.

Burgat’s criticism of Israel has also led to restrictions on his social media presence. His Facebook account was recently limited after he shared an excerpt from his book detailing a 1992 meeting with former Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, whom Israel assassinated in an airstrike in September. The post was flagged as "promoting terrorism."

"I have the feeling that Oct. 7 has demonstrated or has completed the demonstration that the so-called universality of the West was a fiction, and that the West has withdrawn into the limits of its ethnic belonging," Burgat said. Reflecting on the situation, he argued that US President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, who is vying to succeed Biden, demonstrated that "they are a tribe."

"They are not entitled to speak in the name of universality."

- Freedom of speech under siege

Burgat asserts that rejecting Israel’s narrative can swiftly lead to accusations of supporting terrorism. He quoted former French President Charles de Gaulle, who once observed: “If there is occupation, there will be repression. If there is repression, there will be resistance, and then the occupier will label this terrorism."

But the political elite in France no longer espouse this logic, Burgat said.

Criticizing Israel can be particularly costly in European countries, according to Burgat, who acknowledged the few like Ireland, Norway, and Spain. He compared Israel’s response to the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas to France’s brutal repression in Algeria in 1945, which left tens of thousands dead in a single day over demands for independence.

The situation is even more precarious in the US, Burgat noted, where academics risk losing their jobs for linking Hamas’ actions to resistance rather than terrorism.

Burgat is not optimistic about the near future of free speech in Europe. He believes the West’s credibility on issues of freedom and human rights will continue to erode.

Israel’s offensive on the Gaza Strip, launched following an attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023, has persisted despite a United Nations Security Council resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire.

According to local health authorities, more than 42,000 people, mostly women and children, have been killed, with over 97,100 others injured since the conflict began. The Israeli onslaught has displaced nearly the entire population of Gaza amid a blockade that has caused severe shortages of food, clean water, and medicine.

Efforts by the US, Egypt, and Qatar to mediate a cease-fire and facilitate a prisoner swap between Israel and Hamas have failed, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu refusing to halt the offensive.

Israel is also facing a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its actions in Gaza.