They say a man is judged by the company he keeps. And it appears Jeremy Corbyn has friends who are regarded as enemies of Israel. As a result, his victory raised quite a few eyebrows in the Israeli Labour party. It seemed that the UK Labour party, our ideological counterpart, had now turned its back on us. After all, Corbyn, well known as a harsh critic of Israel, had been elected by almost 60% of Labour party members. Furthermore, perhaps calling Corbyn a “harsh critic” is an understatement in light of some of his statements.

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The Israeli Labour party is itself a harsh critic of the Israeli government’s policy. We fiercely object to the current government’s settlement policy; we oppose its social and economic policy; we speak up loudly and clearly as to its short-sightedness when it comes to reinitiating talks with the Palestinian Authority. However, there is a clear line that one must draw, and which separates our views from those of the new British Labour leader.

Delegitimising the State of Israel is a declaration of war on the people who wake up every morning and fight for social democratic values. It is a war against the only place in the Middle East that holds free elections. It’s a war against the place that supports one of the biggest Pride marches on the planet and the only one in the region. It is a war on the Israeli Labour party, which has produced female leaders, one of them a prime minister, and in which 30% of MPs are women. It is also a war against our struggle for Israeli social democracy, which was inspired by the universal model of the welfare state, designed by William Beveridge, and which is also under attack from neo-liberal forces within Israel.

I am confident that the values we share are greater than the ones that set us apart

Our common social-democratic values stand in complete contrast to those of Hamas and Hezbollah. They choose violence over peace and oppression over freedom. Surely their ideal society is not one in which many of us would like to live. These are terrorist organisations that have vowed to destroy the State of Israel. It is one thing to criticise the Israeli government, it is something else to befriend terrorist organisations as a means of opposition.

This is particularly disturbing when one views the Middle East from a bird’s eye view, seeing the horror and destruction that rules much of the lands surrounding Israel. It is clear to me that Corbyn was elected not so much for his views on the Middle East, but perhaps for his views on other issues. However, the fact that nearly 60% of UK Labour voters supported Corbyn creates a challenge to the future relationships of the two Labour parties.

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A few months back, before Corbyn’s election, I was delighted to receive an invitation, in my role as a member of the Knesset, to speak at a panel during the Labour party conference in Brighton, so I am glad that the new leader has decided to follow tradition and attend this week’s annual Labour Friends of Israel reception – but we’d be deluding ourselves if we pretend that there won’t be some wariness in the room, probably on both sides.

I am confident that the values we share are greater than the ones that set us apart. The Labour parties in both countries have a strong social-democratic ethos, and while leaders are re-elected periodically, the members and the broad foundation of the parties remain. I look forward to a fruitful dialogue during the upcoming party conference and hope all those who share our social democratic values can weather the challenges together.