Vashti Media Despite representing only a fraction of the Jews attending pro-Palestine marches, Neturei Karta have become the poster children of Jewish anti-Zionism. But under the surface lie some uncomfortable truths.
Halfway along the route of the mass Palestine solidarity demonstrations that have regularly filled central London’s streets since Israel’s latest bombardment of Gaza began, about a dozen ultra-Orthodox Jewish men line up, donning full-body placards proclaiming anti-Zionism a “true Torah demand”. With their large furry streimels, shoulder-length payot and long black coats, they certainly stand out in the crowd. Many marchers stop to shake their hands, thank them for coming and take selfies with them.
Though they represent only a fraction of the Jews who attend these demos and organise for Palestinian liberation, they seem to have become the poster children for Jewish anti-Zionism. In some ways this is understandable: their Jewishness is far more visible than that of most, and for those who have become accustomed to seeing images of kippah-wearing men assaulting Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, or taking to the Knesset podium to call for another Nakba, their presence is likely a breath of fresh air. Yet there is more to their ideology than meets the eye.
The men in question are members of Neturei Karta, a fringe Haredi group mainly found in the US and Jerusalem, but with a small UK contingent. While they have long been derided as extremists by the mainstream Jewish community for their staunch anti-Zionism and their unsavoury beliefs about the Holocaust, their attendance at pro-Palestine protests has often been used by anti-Zionists to dispel the myth that opposition to Israel necessarily equals antisemitism. The particularities of their stance toward Palestine-Israel, however, remain poorly understood among both their supporters and detractors.
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