Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (right) meets with his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu during his visit to India in 2018 (Associated Press)

The Israeli newspaper Haaretz published a lengthy article about the history of relations between India and Israel, based on what was revealed by thousands of Israeli documents that became available to the public.

These documents reveal how, from the mid-1960s onwards, Israel established relationships with Hindu nationalist parties in India, as Israeli diplomats knew they were dealing with extremists motivated by hatred of Muslims.

The newspaper saw - in the article written by Itay Mak - that the visit made by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in July 2017 to Israel has become a symbol of the transformation in relations between the two countries, which until the 1990s were cold and tense, while today they include extensive trade. Scale, massive arms deals, military, police and counter-terrorism training, tourism and diplomatic cooperation, Modi also supports Israel in international forums.

The excellent relations - according to the newspaper - since Modi took office in May 2014 can be explained primarily by the common interests between the two countries, and the fact that both leaders are right-wing nationalists with authoritarian tendencies.

Modi heads the ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, and was also formerly active in its paramilitary group, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. He was banned from entering the United States for nearly a decade after he was deemed responsible for a massacre of Muslims in the state of Gujarat in 2002.

Under his leadership, observers say, India's democratic space has been dramatically reduced, journalists and opposition activists have been criminalized, arrested and sometimes killed, and the Muslim minority has been persecuted, discriminated against and dehumanized.

The newspaper delves into the history of relations between India and Israel, as Foreign Ministry documents released to the public in the Israeli archives over the past two years show that Israel’s relationship with the far right in India, especially the Bharatiya Janata Party (in its previous incarnations), is not new but began in the middle of The sixties.

Although Israeli diplomats knew well that these elements were extremist and whose ideology was based on hatred of Muslims, these relations were damaged primarily because of Israel's difficulty in building normal relations with the Indian National Congress Party, which has held power almost continuously since the country's first elections in 1952. Until 1989.

Fear and hate

In the review prepared by the Foreign Office in December 1985, it was made clear that since the 1950s, when India recognized Israel, the Indian government had refused to establish full diplomatic relations, and Israel had been represented in India only at the level of a consulate based in Bombay (its name was changed to Mumbai in 1995), and since 1969 the consulate’s jurisdiction has been limited to the state of Maharashtra (which included Bombay), while India has continued to express in the United Nations and other international organizations its support for the proposals of the Arab resolution, and has spoken in a strong voice against Israel, and sometimes In a more harsh way than the Arab countries.

Beginning in June 1982, a serious deterioration occurred when the Israeli consul in Bombay, Yousef Hussein, was declared persona non grata, in response to his interview with a local newspaper in which he attacked the Indian government because of its activity in support of the Arabs. At that time, he was forced to leave the country and India refused to agree. On the arrival of a new consul.

In addition, the Indian government has created many difficulties for Israeli tourists and has even refused to grant entry visas to Israelis to participate in international conferences held in the country.

In the economic and commercial field, many restrictions have been imposed on Indian companies trading with Israel.

Backgrounds of the position of the National Congress

According to dozens of cables prepared by Israeli diplomats, the negative policy pursued by the ruling National Congress Party towards Israel is believed to be mainly due to “its perception of Zionism in terms of imperialism and occupation and not necessarily national renewal.”

Other factors included dependence on oil and money from Arab countries, fear that Pakistan would exploit strengthening ties with Israel in its propaganda against India, as well as the NCP's need to win elections in key states in India where Muslim votes are a deciding factor.

Nearly 20 years ago, in a telegram dated June 21, 1965, the then Israeli consul in Bombay, Peretz Gordon, explained to the director of the State Department’s Asia Department, Daniel Levin, that “to this day and in the future, the Hindu fears and hates the Muslim in the same way.”

In the Bharatiya Jana Sangh (the previous incarnation of the Bharatiya Janata Party, often known as the Jan Sangh) which sat in opposition, and even in the right-wing circles of the National Conference, "this finds expression in various forms and even openly," Gordon explained.

In another telegram to Levin dated June 23, 1966, Gordon wrote that the right in India was growing stronger, and every Indian in the world could easily note the fact that the very existence of the State of Israel constituted a wedge between the extremists.

In a telegram dated April 26, 1966, sent by Michael Elitzur, Deputy Director of the Asia Department, to the Director of the Office of the Secretary of State, detailing his department's recommendations for strengthening relations with India.

It included "secret contacts with opposition elements for the purpose of organizing anti-government demonstrations."

In a summary of the discussions held at the Foreign Ministry on August 15, 1966, it was noted that the head of the Political and Economic Planning Department, Ilan Aryeh, suggested “cautious contacts with the Jan Sangh (possibly through the Mossad).”

Director of the Asia Levin Department claimed that the then Consul in Bombay, Ruvin Daphne, was already in contact with the party, "and it is doubtful whether there is any scope for closer relations with an extreme nationalist party that has no chance of coming to power."

On March 14, 1967, Daphne sent a telegram to the Asia Department that Jan Sang had included in his election platform a clause demanding the establishment of full diplomatic relations with Israel.

In a telegram dated May 22, 1967, the Israeli ambassador to Nepal, Moshe Ariel, informed the Ministry of Asia that he had met in Kathmandu with the Jan Sangh member of Parliament, Manohar Lal Sondhi, who in 1964 had visited the residence of former Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion.

Sondhi suggested that Israel replace its mediator in India, because he was also a mediator for Taiwan. In addition, Sondhi explained that the local government in the Delhi area had passed into the hands of Jan Sang, who was “ready to cooperate with us.” It is now possible to put the Indian government to various tests. In the Israeli context.

Israeli money and Hindu extremists

In light of the relationship that was established with the Hindu Mahasabha Party, a month later, on December 31, 1973, a surprise guest arrived at the door of the Israeli consulate: Gopal Godse (brother of Gandhi’s killer), who was himself convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for his involvement in the assassination plot.

He was released in 1965.

In the telegram sent by Representative Gideon Ben-Ami from the consulate to the Asia Department that day, he stated that he had not known about Godse’s visit in advance, but “since it was already too late to cancel it, I listened to his words politely... He spoke passionately about his hatred of Muslims.” He was interested to know whether the consulate would be willing to provide assistance in printing his wife’s defense letter.”

Ben-Ami wrote that he strongly rejected the proposal and avoided engaging in an ideological debate with Godsey.

The reason for his embarrassment was that the brother of Gandhi's killer visited the consulate, not because of the consulate's association with the extreme right.

In a telegram sent by Ben-Ami to the Director of the Information Department on December 19, he wrote that the main support for Israel in India comes from traditional circles such as “Hindu extremists.”

He also noted that the Jan Sangh held about 15 to 20 meetings in New Delhi and in the states of Punjab and Uttar Pradesh, in which the party chief and other party leaders "strongly criticized the government's pro-Arab stance and its condemnations of us."

For the purposes of organizing its meetings and coordinating with far-right parties, the consulate used a local mediator who “was receiving large sums of money from us,” as stated in a cable from the consulate to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in October 1985.

"Less aggressive line"

In the 1970s, Israeli diplomats held a series of meetings with members of parliament and the leadership of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh (the previous incarnation of the Bharatiya Janata Party).

For example, in a telegram sent by Tregor to Shimoni dated October 10, 1974, he wrote that party leaders had assured him and other Israeli representatives that “their party does not fully agree with the government’s line, and that their sympathy is complete with us. I heard this personally from party leader L. K. Advani at our meeting in Delhi in 1973.”

Trigor wrote that he also met the party's head in Maharashtra, Vasant Kumar Pandit, who told him that "cooperation with Israel is a national Indian interest, and the ground must be prepared for the future when a national party emerges."

In addition, through the same intermediary, the Consulate coordinated inquiries with Jan Sangh legislators with the aim of criticizing and embarrassing the New Delhi government on the issue of its abnormal relations with Israel.

During the period between 1975 and 1977 - the years in which Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi declared a state of emergency - Israel had difficulty maintaining contacts with the far-right parties in the opposition since they were persecuted and many of their leaders were arrested, but in the March 1977 elections, The Jan Sangh Party is part of a coalition called Janata Party that succeeded in overthrowing the National Conference after ruling the country for decades.

Common enemies

In May 1980, a political storm erupted in India after journalist Uri Dan revealed - in the Israeli daily Maariv - that then Foreign Minister Moshe Dayan had made a secret visit to New Delhi and met then Prime Minister Desai in the summer of 1977.

The revelation sparked a political tussle between various parties in India, with the new Bharatiya Janata Party issuing a statement that, “Israel is a fact of life. It is a small country, but developed and has always been friendly to India. It is no secret that Israel offered arms to India in 1965.” During the Pakistani crisis, I voted with India in the United Nations, and India was one of the first countries to recognize Israel, and it is in India’s interest for there to be full diplomatic relations between the two countries. I congratulate him on his meeting with Dayan.”

On July 9, 1981, Consul Hussain told Asia Director Navone that Ram Jethmalani, vice-president of the Bharatiya Janata Party, was “one of our few and loyal friends in Delhi, and from time to time he raises his voice for Israel in Delhi, in Parliament and outside it.”

On October 29, 1981, Hussain wrote in another telegram to Navon that the Bharatiya Janata Party is “a Hindu nationalist party whose political stance is characterized by an extreme anti-Muslim stance. Most of the supporters and friends of Israel in India come from among its followers.”

He added that the party sent him a letter of condolence on the death of Moshe Dayan in October 1981, in addition to the text of some of the decisions of the party's last congress on Israel, including: “India needs to improve its military power and learn to distinguish between potential friends and enemies. In the current situation, "Israel and India are common goals for the Muslim world. The Islamic bomb is intended for these two countries only. Therefore, it is crucial for India to strengthen its relations with Israel."

The turbulent history of Israel's relations with India since the 1950s was also described in a June 1982 report supervised by Asia Director Navon.

He included that "one of the factors working in our favor is the presence of the Hindu-Muslim conflict, which was a deep and severe rift, and the formation of the right-wing, anti-Muslim Bharatiya Janata Party."

In the same month, Hussain was declared persona non grata and had to leave India.

On October 31, 1984, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was assassinated by her Sikh bodyguards, and in the elections that took place two months later, the Bharatiya Janata Party won only two seats while the National Congress won 404 of the 514 seats.

Eight years later, in 1992, Israel and India established full diplomatic relations.

In the turmoil of the 2014 elections, the right-wing and far-right coalition led by Modi won 336 seats, while the National Conference collapsed to just 44 seats.

In September that year, Modi and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met for the first time at the United Nations in New York.

“I believe that if we work together, we can do so for the benefit of our two peoples,” Netanyahu said during the meeting.

During Modi's visit to Israel in July 2017, Netanyahu told him that "India and Israel are two brother democracies," and some claim that Modi and Netanyahu succeeded in deteriorating the democratic experience in their countries and turning them into two brother, although not identical, regimes controlled by the extreme right.

Source: Haaretz