'That's him' — Anwar's defence of BlackRock-linked deal does not surprise Mahathir

Dr Mahathir Mohamad said he was not surprised by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's vehement defence of the government's deal with a company owned by US fund manager BlackRock, which has been accused of complicity in Israeli war crimes.

The former prime minister said he knew Anwar's character, adding that he did not expect the PKR president to take concrete action for the Palestinian cause.

He said Anwar was known for his friendly relations with organisations linked to Israeli interests and frequenting groups linked to the Jewish lobby.

"So we are not surprised. But we feel that he should have considered the national interests and not his relations with the Jews," the veteran leader, who once picked Anwar as his designated successor before dismissing him from the government in 1998, said in an interview with MalaysiaNow.

The BlackRock issue has emerged as one of Anwar's greatest challenges since his appointment to the top post, and comes against a backdrop of claims that he is more friendly with the US and Israel, with critics citing past statements including his interview with the Wall Street Journal in 2012 which quoted him as saying that he would "support all efforts to protect the security of the state of Israel".

"So we are not surprised. But we feel that he should have considered the national interests"

Anwar has refused to back down from the controversial deal involving the sale of shares in state-owned Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad (MAHB) to a company owned by BlackRock.

The deal will see BlackRock's Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) taking a 30% stake in a consortium to manage MAHB, alongside the government's investment arm Khazanah Nasional and the Employees Provident Fund (EPF), both entities under the jurisdiction of the finance ministry led by Anwar.

In June, Anwar said that despite its pro-Palestinian stance, the government would not cut ties with companies close to Israel.

“What about companies that operate in the US, Germany or China but have ties to Israel? In the current situation, we cannot cut ties as it would affect the country's economy," he said.

Anwar also accused critics of the deal of overreacting.

"It sounds good, it's nice for people to hear that we are great fighters. But it's not realistic."

Mahathir, who has emerged as one of the Muslim world's harshest critics of US support for Israel, said every boycott movement has its price.

"If we want to act, we cannot be sure that everything will be good. There will be bad repercussions.

"If we only pay attention to the negative effects, we will not act. To act, we should be aware of the negative impact, but because the positive outcome is greater, we are willing to make sacrifices," he said.

Government leaders have defended the deal with BlackRock, saying the company has been investing in Malaysia for years.

However, Mahathir said such an argument ignored the fact that the world was witnessing Israel's blatant atrocities.

"What is happening now is that Israel is committing genocide, and this genocide is a crime against an entire nation.

"Unlike in the past, even thought we did not have relations with Israel, Israel did not behave the way it is now. That is why we are reacting stronger now, stronger than before."

More than 40,000 people, mostly women and children, have been killed so far since Israel launched a massive bombing campaign in Gaza, its largest military operation in the occupied territories since the creation of the Zionist state from Palestinian lands in 1948.

'Anwar has not changed'

Mahathir said Anwar had not changed, despite recent claims that he was under threat from Western powers for supporting Hamas and criticising military aid to Israel.

He said that Anwar had built up an international network of friends who would stand by him if he got into trouble at home.

He said Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was also led to believe that Anwar had been treated unfairly when he was convicted of sodomy and jailed.

"So when we took action against Anwar, Erdogan thought we were cruel and unjust. So that's how Anwar moves."

Mahathir also dismissed Anwar's recent speeches criticising Israel and the West, saying they were part of his penchant for posturing.

He said he did not see Anwar taking any meaningful action to convey Malaysia's strong opposition to Israel, including abandoning its policy of supporting the "two-state solution" in which the Palestinian state is recognised in return for recognition of Israel's existence.

"He will not take a stand that is rejected by the masses".