UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon was right when, after saying that “All the evidence points to Israeli artillery as the cause” (of the attack on the UN school in the Jabaliya refugee camp where more than 3,000 Palestinians were taking shelter from Israeli bombs and shells), he added the following. “Nothing is more shameful than attacking sleeping children.” But there is, I say, something as shameful – the complicity of America’s corrupt political system in Israel’s war crimes.
Initially the mainstream media attached great significance to the fact that the U.S. had “condemned” the attack, the implication of the first reports being that it had condemned Israel. It did not. U.S. State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said only that America “condemned the shelling of the school.” She did not name Israel. Body language is all important and when I watched and listened to her speaking I thought she delivered the condemnation as a dismissive, throwaway line. What I mean is that her body language said to me something like, “What I’m saying is not really important but I have to say it.”
From President Obama himself there were just more empty words – another call for an immediate ceasefire. I imagine the unspoken response of Israel’s leaders was something like: “We know you had to make that call, Mr. President, and you know that we are going to ignore it.”
Obama’s hypocrisy was on display (again) when he announced new sanctions on Russia. He said, “We stand up for rights and freedoms around the world.” What he didn’t add was “with the exception of the rights and freedom of occupied and oppressed Palestinians.”
I thought Chris Gunness, the spokesman for the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), hit most of the right notes when he said: “It is beyond belief that in the 21st Century children, women and civilian men should be subjected to this kind of outrage. It (Israel’s war on the Gaza Strip) is an abomination, a barbarity that needs to end… The world should hang its head in shame.”
My own thought is that it’s President Obama and other so-called leaders, not the world, who should be hanging their heads in shame.
That said I still believe (perhaps naively) that Obama himself would like to use the leverage America has to try to cause Israel to be serious about peace on terms the Palestinians could accept, but he can’t because policy for the conflict in and over Palestine that became Israel is controlled by a Congress that is answerable not to the American people but the Zionist lobby and its mad Christian fundamentalist allies.
In my analysis no president will ever be free to put America’s own best interests first by confronting the Zionist monster (a terrorist state) unless and until lobby funding is taken out of American politics. What America needs most of all is some real democracy.
On BBC Radio 4′s Today program Britain’s new foreign secretary, Philip Hammond, said this. “I have explained to Israeli ministers, not only Netanyahu, that the world is rapidly turning against Israel.”
That made me wonder what would happen if all of Israel’s Jews and all members of Congress could be compelled to watch a lengthy compilation of film and video footage of the death and destruction Israel has delivered to the Gaza Strip. Would it make them understand why the world is turning against Israel and cause a change of hearts and minds in Israel and Congress?
Probably, almost certainly, not.
Since I wrote the above and sent it to other sites there have been two probably connected developments.
One was a statement from White House spokesman Josh Ernest. He said:
“The shelling of a UN facility that is housing innocent civilians who are fleeing violence is totally unacceptable and totally indefensible. It is clear that we need our allies in Israel to do more to live up to the high standards they have set for themselves“.
That was criticism and even condemnation of Israel for one of its actions. But again it was only words.
The other was an announcement that Hamas and Israel have accepted an unconditional humanitarian ceasefire for 72 hours. The question at the time of writing is this. Will it hold and, if it does, will Israel allow negotiations in Cairo to address both its security concerns and Hamas’s need and demand for an end to the siege (Israeli occupation by remote control) of the Gaza Strip…?
If agreement is not reached on both issues the war will be resumed.
Footnote
Dan Gillerman, a former Israeli ambassador to the UN, has let a cat slip out of the bag. In an Al Jazeera program he said that Israel was enjoying “unprecedented” support from around the world. Why unprecedented? Because, he stated, Egypt and Saudi Arabia were fully supporting Israel’s efforts to destroy Hamas. He also said that during his period at the UN (from 2003 to 2008) he couldn’t count the number of times Arab ambassadors and other Arab dignitaries had said to him: “Go, go. Don’t stop.”
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I think the Israseli endgame is to have UN Peacekeepers guard what's left of the Gaza jail while they go on top attack Lebanon by air (with Takfiri help on the ground, unofficially. This also frees the U.S. to confront Russia more forcefully on behalf of Zionism. Ukraine was once part of a powerful Jewish empire--with Chernobyl (wormwood) a major trading center. With U.S. and NATO help, it may be so again.
First thing should be to make AIPAC a lobby of a foreign country. Then cap campaign contributions. Ah, I'm just dreaming.
Obama may personally like to put Israel on notice, but this disposition -- the absence of any gesture in that direction -- is telling as well. He doesn't give a shit about Palestinians. He is the worst deceiver of them all.
Alan, Isn`t it kind of strange...that This Bunch of REPugs and a niggling few of the Dems ( who are Supposed to be Members of OUR Congress .. which Is really Zionist Controlled.. ) Would Want to sue ? Obama...what?? Not Impeach ?" But then, take off on a Five week Vacation.. At OUR Taxpayers expense...leaving That 'heavily financed Piece of business up in the air ? Even telling him to DISREGARD what They Say !!..They truly are The Worst Bunch of Troublemakers This Country has Ever Known..and The Most 'Do-Nothing Congress, EVER. Then HE Holds his little Press Conference today.. Saying HE Will Just have to make "Moves On his OWN !! How is That for Having a Govmt. That is Working For The Citizens ? So Unified ! Why hasn`t he been acting like a Prez And Act on his Own Before ? Instead of Allowing this Country to get in such a Screwed up Mess. Personally, I do believe They Are In Cahoots ! This way .. too busy pointing fingers to get anything done that Should be done. [ Like Cutting off The Four Billion Dollars He Takes away from This Country every year and Hands OVER to That Zionist Territory They insist on calling isreal..just so that Murderous Crew can go on Massacring imprisoned Palestinians.] This has to Stop. Like Protecting OUR Borders...using our National Guards Who are already paid To Protect OUR Country... And Returning All the hundreds of thousands of Illegals Who Have Walked in, uninvited. e should Use That three billion Plus ]"HE' has also taken the Liberty to allot Towards providing for that Influx to Provide for the Jobless, Homeless and Hurting Citizens Right here. NO WONDER this Country is Going down the drain. TIME FOR CHANGE !!
Anthony Lawson came to the astute conclusion in his latest presentation "The Blood of Palestine is on the Hands of the Bribe-Takers". It hit the nail right on the head.
The struggle of the Palestinians is also unique in that they not only have an armed-to-the-tooth enemy, they also have to contend with rotten-to-the-core Arab regimes. Their continued "sumud", meaning steadfastness, is probably unprecedented. Despite all this, their fighters have shown real exemplary moral rectitude when one considers that they only killed invading forces and not defenceless innocent civilians, the specialty of the their Zionist enemy.
Agree with every word by Alan! As an Israeli my sense is that Israel is carrying out a genocide at this very moment. Perhaps somewhat restrained however that's only due to the fear from criticism by some international leaders and from large scale worldwide demonstrations. However, not because the majority of the Jewish Israeli collective wouldn't support it.
Since about two months Those residing here in Israel are exposed to venomous, debasing rhetoric campaign channeled via the local mass media and incited at the extreme right wing mob events (some include hunting and lynching of Palestinians). The Hamas combatants are portrayed as disposable trash and sometimes as mice, and the Palestinians at large as dispensable and cursed humans. It is a replay of the mid 1930's in Germany for the Jews.
This is not new; Israelis, even prior of the emergence of their state in 1948, in fact since the 1920's, have been seeded by their leadership with debasing notions regarding the Palestinians. Those evolved to fuel the ethnic cleansing of 1948, and are today instrumental for the atrocities perpetrated in Gaza.
The roots of the Israeli genocidal mindset are in fact much older: See the excellent exposition "Jewish History, Jewish Religion" by Prof. Israel Shahak , 1994, Pluto Press.
When you read American political system from objective sources, you discover that the Jewish lobby groups have major influence in shaping America’s foreign policy. Last year, Hollywood filmmaker, Oliver Stone, in an interview with British daily Sunday Times – in response to why there was “such a focus on the Holocaust”, had replied: “The Jewish domination of the media. They stay on top of every comment, the most powerful lobby in Washington. Israel has f***** up United States foreign policy for years.”
http://rehmat1.com/2011/02/20/washington-cannot-say-no-to-jewish-lobby/
The Israel President and head of there 90% terrorist military State, stated over and over: "Its Our Land", "its our territory". That the rockets are falling on. Then used this false "land Right's" statement, to win the collective, distressed world charge. To be tried for WAR CRIMES. With his Officers, for killing: babes, children, women and men. In the Sio killing cage, Gaza games of 2014. And now for following the booked. German SS trials after world War II. for there winning of justly deserved punishment.
Also the pressing work of the democratic world body is needed to lobby and work through Law. For the Borders of Palestine and modern day Israel of 1948, be clearly mapped out as international recognized land boundaries. So the above past repeated mistake will not happen again, and again, and again. Shalom
I hope readers realise that the periodic massacres of Gazan Palestinians, however cowardly and awful, ARE A DIVERSION FROM THE ESSENTIAL ISRAELI AIM OF ABSORBING JUDAEA AND SAMARIA ( i.e, the West Bank) The attrition against Palestinians there goes on quite relentlessly , with killings virtually weekly and humiliations by the minute.Gaza may have to settle for an Egyptian take-over, but the absorption of the better lands of the West Bank, with a few bantustans for the Palestinians, is the great prize. It seems unlikely that Mr Hammond and his ilk will ever face the essential fact of Israel's eternal , G-d-given right to all of Eretz Israel and the implications of this for "peace" in the Middle East.As for the USA, a nodding acquaintance with its Manifest Destiny and what that has meant for the Native Americans would show the parallel with a crazed "Christian" viewpoint and the Zionists.
You said the world leaders should be hanging their heads in shame. After WW2 Nazi war criminals included those who were directly supporting genocide organizers. Perhaps these world leaders who are war crime accomplices simply need to be hanged.
On Tuesday September 9, 1947, American newspaper The Argus reported the arrest of 16 members of Jewish terrorist groups Stern Gang and a US Army Air Force (USAAF) pilot Reginald Gilbert by the French police at the Toussus le-Noble airport near Versailles.
The terrorist group was lead by a Ukrainian-born Rabbi Baruch Korff, chairman of the American Political Action Committee for Palestine and his private secretary Judith Rosenberger, a Hungarian-born US citizen. All of them were accused of trying to bomb the British Foreign Office building in London in order to force London to withdraw its forces from Palestine which the World Zionist movement had decided to turn into “for Jews only” Israel by armed terrorism.
In 2003, the released British secret service MI5 documents also confirmed that there was a “Project for a air raid over London City, in the course of which leaflets were to be dropped in the name of Stern Gang, together with high-explosive bombs“.
http://rehmat1.com/2014/08/04/september-1947-when-jew-terrorists-tried-to-bomb-london/
The world is rapidly seeing the Israeli as the liars and child murders they are .Destroying power plants and water supply to further impover Gaza is the work of bullies .I will never buy anything made by Israel nor set foot in that dump .
Nice to see you writing again Alan.
A couple of points.
1. The global population is not turning against israel. It has turned. We have passed a mark in the sand; and let me tell you, it is all or nothing from here on. All hands to the oars.
2. The time to push for war crimes trials is now. Right now. Drop everything you are doing and start pushing for this one objective. Get it in the consciousness of the global community. There are many instances of very clear cut war crimes and crimes against humanity.
3. Stop the treading water. Stop the reporting of he said, she said. One goal; one action. Call for war crime trials; and don't stop calling.
4. We have all heard of the zionists being referred to as Nazis. Whatever you might have thought of that in the past; today it is fact. You cannot; you absolutely cannot, criticize Hitler and NOT criticize israel.
5. With the structural damage to Gaza, we must apply international pressure for: war crime trials; financial compensation, removing the wall, removing the settlers. We must encourage: international development of Palestine; while strengthening awareness of the BDS movement, to boycott all things israeli and zionist.
6. We must document, and pass on to the next generation, what zionism is; so that it can never happen again.
Mr Hart,
I don't know if you truly believe what you write in your "Open letter to President Obama". I really couldn't finish reading it.
Because of this:
http://thepoisonappleoftheworld.com/israel-we-are-sick-of-your-lies/ (last video)
And this: http://furtherglory.wordpress.com/2012/09/12/can-the-holocaust-be-saved-even-the-jews-are-now-denying-it/
I believe that without the public recognising that the childish nonsense, that for the past seventy years we have been indoctinated into believing is ridiculous.Then you are just pissing in the wind.
There is a reason that it's a criminal offence to question "The Holocaust" in 14 countries.
Best wishes, Michael Mowbray