You Don't know Apartheid

Jennifer Rubin, who is otherwise going through a public spiritual meltdown over Donald Trunp, brings this to our attention:

Ironically, in the real world, the post-apartheid government of South Africa wants closer relations with Israel on trade, water and technology. Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs Director General Dr. Dore Gold is in South Africa to do just that. A readout of the meeting between Gold and his counterpart states: “The discussions focused on the relations between the two countries and the sides agreed on improving cooperation between the two countries. The Directors General agreed that officials from South Africa and Israel will work together on national priority issues such as water, agriculture, trade and science and technology. The sides also discussed the situation in the Middle East. The sides emphasized the importance of trade delegations in both directions.”

The Israelis used to have close ties with the Apartheid government. They shared technology,  including nuclear, and probably tested a nuclear bomb together in the Indian Ocean. Like everywhere else in the old empire, South Africa had enclaves of Jews in Pretoria, Johannesburg and Capetown. The Boers looked at Jews as 'people of the book' and welcomed them.

They've been chased out. That's a familiar story to American Jews. Drive through the South Bronx and you'll see lots of AME churches with Hebrew writing across the facade.

Maybe the Jews had just a bit of sympathy for an international pariah, no? Gee, wonder why.

Anyway I've published some on the South African Army and their Angolan Bush War and  right now am writing about them in Castro's Folly. I have to admit I've come to admire the South African Army. They had the most active special forces in the world, probably equal to the Israelis in school, certainly in experience. They developed some very interesting armored vehicles specific to the Savannah, the Eland and Ratel. They won a lot of battles, all them really.

But, but...what about...Yeah, yeah, Apartheid I know.

Given the record of other African nations, Zaire the Congo, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Liberia...I could go on, if the Boers were genocidal maniacs, they weren't that good at it.