Although this deserves so much more than a brief snippet and a link, my flight from Barcelona beckons and I must type against the clock.

In essence, therefore:

Four bills and amendments are pending that would seriously restrict the rights of Israelis to criticize the policies and actions of their government, Human Rights Watch said.

One would shut down groups that communicate information that could be used in charges filed in other countries against members of the Israeli government or army for violations of international law. A second would penalize organizations and individuals who express support for, or participate in, boycotts against Israel. A third would impose onerous and immediate reporting requirements on any group that accepts any amount of funding from a foreign government for any purpose, and the fourth would punish anyone who assists refugees after they illegally cross into Israel.

Of course, this raises the whole spectre of Israel’s relationship with democracy: it is more on and off than a celebrity dalliance.

Before pouring forth condemnation, it must first be approved – or disapproved – and we can only hope some degree of sense will prevail and make the choice the latter.

Find out more at Human Rights Watch, here.