Arab-Israeli teen rounds on ‘hypocritical’ BDS campaign in UK address
Mohammed Zoabi criticised advocates of the boycott movement against Israel, saying it doesn't help achieve equality or a better life
An prominent Israeli Arab teenager has rounded on the “hypocritical” campaign to boycott Israel as he outlined his journey to becoming a high-profile supporter of the Jewish state during an address at University College London.
Mohammed Zoabi, who is preparing for his IDF service, said he was determined to ensure there was dialogue after another talk by an Israeli speaker at the campus was shut down last year.
The 19-year-old from Nazarath Illit previously had to flee Israel after receiving death threats over videos he posted online calling for the return of three kidnapped Israeli teenagers.
He said: “I’m sick of conflict, I’m sick of hatred, I’m sick of fearing for my life. I’m sick of so many things, but I think when you’re tired of something and not optimistic about the future, you don’t give up.”
At the talk, organised by UCL Friends of Israel and StandWithUS, he recalled the experiences that led him to his current views, starting with the rocket attacks during the 2006 conflict with Lebanon.
“I remember hearing a siren and hearing my mum yelling, grabbing me to the bomb shelter. She was screaming there was a rocket coming at us”, he says.
Their Christian neighbours were yelling for their children and upstairs a Jewish neighbour was calling to their kids in Hebrew. He recalls being struck by the way violence didn’t discriminate, how in that moment all fled the same threat.
The second turning point is the one which brought him to prominence. Following the 2014 kidnapping and murder of three Israeli teenagers, he was shocked into action. He explains: “At first I tried to understand and I couldn’t see any way of justifying that. I uploaded a video to Facebook calling for their return.”
The fallout was significant. Zoabi was forced to stay with friends in Israel and the US after receiving death threats. Since returning to Israel, he has been preparing to join the IDF, and is currently interning at StandWithUs.
On BDS, he said: “It is, in my opinion, harming the peace process more than it’s allegedly supposed to help it… It’s a lot of hypocrisy, a lot of double standards.”
“By boycotting my country, how are they helping me achieve equality? How are they helping us achieve a better life?”
He saw the videos of last October’s protests at UCL, and says he was shocked. He said: “One of the reasons I wanted this to happen was so people from outside the pro-Israel community would come… I think it’s important to ensure that there’s still a dialogue.”
Growing up with a Muslim Zionist mother and a Communist father, the importance of dialogue is something he says he has witnessed his whole life.
He said: “From a young age I was exposed to hardcore identity issues… The conflict was inside my house.”
He is a relative of controversial MK Hanin Zoabi, who represents the Joint List in the Knesset. “I’m proud she’s part of my family, not because I agree with what she’s doing but because she’s a person living in a democracy who lives and does what she wants and believes in,” he said.
Quoting a Hebrew idiom, he added: “We fell in between the chairs. We’re divided between two conflicts and nations and that problem is the main conflict for Arab citizens within their communities.
But he refuses to be simply defined, saying: “I’m not a Muslim Zionist, I’m a person… I don’t like it when people label me.
“When I label myself the first thing that comes up is me, Mohammed with a different story and a different narrative.”
Tamir Oren, a representative of StandWithUs, added: “People tend to stigmatize and see Israelis and Arabs as two negative peoples, who deal with one another in a negative way.
“It’s really important to hear one person speaking about two different narratives in a way that can actually create a new dialogue.”
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
