The late Robert Fisk of The Independent said that Antisemitic is a word we are frightened of. And today as the International Criminal Court, ICC, feels Netanyahu’s collar out comes that word again as he tries to shut people up.

Please let us not be scared of the word.

In the 1780s academics in the University of Goettingen were looking for a word to stand for a family of languages spoken largely in the Middle East. And, course, if the languages are related then we can assume that so, closely or distantly, are the speakers of those languages.

The academics chose the word Semitic, with the first three letters derived from Shem, the eldest son of Noah. Yes, the Old Testament is full of fairy tales.

So if you are identified as Semitic then you come from a family that belongs to the region and speaks one of many related languages.

If you want to think in terms of race that is about as far as it goes.

DNA tests show European Jews have no connection to the region but descend from religious converts. In prewar Germany they spoke Yiddish and German as their everyday languages. In the synagogue, however, they used a smattering of Ancient Hebrew, a Semitic language, as Catholics to this day use a smattering of Latin.

In Germany Wilhelm Marr promoted the idea that this meant that European Jews, followers of a religion, were members of a Semitic race. That idea appealed to Hitler who saw life and politics in terms of race. He even invented one called the Aryan race.

We are all familiar with the consequences.

But please let us not allow ourselves to be silenced from criticising Netanyahu by use of that word ‘Holocaust’.

In 1948 two Zionist gangs massacred the Palestinian people of Deir Yassin village. Netanyahu’s father was a member of one gang that quickly changed its name to Likud, the name of the political party currently led by him.

And on the ground of that village they built Yad Veshem, the Holocaust Museum. Respect for those Jews who suffered? None at all, to this day they are cynically used to silence critics.

If language determines race the Palestinians are Semitic.

Ah yes, Modern Hebrew. It is an artificial language invented by Ben Yahuda who died in 1922. Invented languages have no slang. But Israelis use a lot of slang. They take it from the natural language of the people whose land they live on, from Semitic Arabic.

Politicians and Mainstream Media? Do not expect them to think about any of this.