Israel Matzav

Garlasco suspended

Human Rights Watch's Nazi memorabilia collector chief 'military analyst' Marc Garlasco has been suspended with pay for the uproar arising out of the discovery of his fetish by bloggers last week (Hat Tip: Solomonia).

The group, Human Rights Watch, had initially thrown its full support behind the analyst, Marc Garlasco, when the news of his hobby came out last week. On Monday night, the group shifted course and suspended him with pay, “pending an investigation,” said Carroll Bogert, the group’s associate director.

“We have questions about whether we have learned everything we need to know,” she said.

And Omri gets a link from the Times.

His hobby, inspired he said by a German grandfather conscripted into Hitler’s army, was revealed on a pro-Israel blog, Mere Rhetoric Mere Rhetoric, which quoted his enthusiastic postings on collector sites under the pseudonym “Flak88” — including, “That is so cool! The leather SS jacket makes my blood go cold it is so COOL!”

It was a Rorschach moment in the conflict between Israel and its critics. The revelations were, depending on who is talking, either incontrovertible proof of bias or an irrelevant smear.

The Mere Rhetoric posting said Mr. Garlasco’s interests explained “anti-Israel biases.”

And Human Rights Watch apparently still doesn't get it.

Ms. Bogert [Human Rights Watch's associate director. CiJ] called the attacks on Mr. Garlasco and her group “a distraction from the real issue, which is the Israeli government’s behavior.”

No, the issue is that the Israeli government's behavior - and the IDF's - are likely nowhere near as bad as Human Rights Watch and its friends have been making that behavior out to be.

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 9:21 AM