Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu is about to form the most right-wing in the country's history. Two ministers have been jailed for anti-Palestinians terror offenses, and one has been convicted and jailed twice on bribery/corruption charges. Netanyahu himself faces four separate charges of corruption.

Other incoming ultra-Orthodox fundamentalist ministers advocate segregating women in public spaces; cancelling the annual Gay Pride parade; dismantling the independent judiciary; and boycotting businesses of Israeli-Palestinians. Many of these proposals echo the Nuremberg Laws, which targeted German Jews.

We are heartened that 350 American rabbis have stated they will put these ministers in cherem and refuse to permit them to speak in their sanctuaries and to their communities. But most Jewish communal groups have been woefully silent in the face of this chilul hashem (desecration). This government is a perversion of Jewish values. We  who are Jews must speak out as Jews against it.

The Biden administration's approach has been woefully lacking. After the victory of the far-right extremists in the Israeli election, Secretary of State Blinken said: "we will gauge the government by the policies it pursues rather than indiviudal personalities."  This is course presumes that the politics of these "personalities" are divided from their "policies," which of course they aren't.

The supposed escalation of the US approach is equally feeble. As reported in Politico:

"Neither US official would say what leverage aside from rhetoric they would use to pressure Netanyahu...[But] they insisted they have options in the works and that Netanyahu can expect much more than sharply worded news releases from the State Department."

The US position must be much more robuts. It must declare publicly that this government violates the fundamental human rights which this country stands for.  It must announce that Itamar Ben Gvir, Bezaelel Smotrich and Aryeh Deri are persona non grata; that it will not permit them to enter the US; and the US embassy will not meet with them.

Our current laissez faire policy is unacceptable.  We must not let Israel's apartheid regime become an explicitly fascist one. We must stand for the principles of human rights, rule of law and tolerance we are known for; in the face Israel's intolerance, homophobia and Islamophobia.

We, the undersigned Jews, Muslims, Christians and others call on the US government to adopt these proposals and take immediate action agaist this racist Israeli government.

Image caption: "Crippled by Hate; salute the new regime"