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PrintEight years of insanity: Bush, Israel, and the slow destruction of Palestine
Yes, 'n' how many years can some people exist
Before they're allowed to be free?
Yes, 'n' how many times can a man turn his head,
Pretending he just doesn't see?
—Bob Dylan, "Blowin' In The Wind"
What's going on in Gaza right now is so incredibly tragic and unjust, not to mention unbelievably brutal and barbaric.
But I'm not here to discuss how it is we came to this horrific situation. No, that has been written about much more eloquently by others, people such as Avi Shlaim, an Oxford professor of international relations and an Israeli himself. I'd strongly recommend that everyone read his recent piece "How Israel brought Gaza to the brink of humanitarian catastrophe". It's a definite must-read for anyone wanting to really understand this conflict and the whole long, sordid tale of Israel's brutal treatment of the Palestinian people.
A sample:
"The Israeli occupation of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip in the aftermath of the June 1967 war had very little to do with security and everything to do with territorial expansionism. The aim was to establish Greater Israel through permanent political, economic and military control over the Palestinian territories. And the result has been one of the most prolonged and brutal military occupations of modern times."
To further understand the terrible reality of this occupation I'd highly recommend that everyone also read Jennifer Loewenstein's recent piece, "If Hamas Did Not Exist: Israel Has No Intention of Granting a Palestinian State".
So, no, I'm not here to write about the historical causes that led to the rise of Hamas, or Israel's shameful treatment of the Palestinian people over the past 60 years, or the especially cruel treatment the people of Gaza have been forced to endure over the past three years.
Nor am I here to discuss the American media's apparent indifference to the suffering of the Palestinian people and its blind unthinking support for Israel, no matter how horrific that country's actions may be.
What I am here to talk about, however, is how over the past eight years America's Middle East policy, under the wretched leadership of George W. Bush, has become so completely indefensible and morally bankrupt. Furthermore, I'd also like to express my—and most of the world's—deep hope for a significant change in American policy once Barack Obama comes to power later this month.
It Certainly Can't Get Any Worse
American policy has always been unequivocally pro-Israel, with a callous and shocking disregard for the fate of the Palestinian people, but the fact is no American administration before this one has ever taken such an extremely one-sided position.
Not Nixon, not Reagan, not Bush The Elder, and definitely not Clinton—no one has ever taken such an immoral, unprincipled, black and white approach to the whole Middle East Conflict before.
I mean, seriously, the Bush Administration's position is about as fair and balanced as Dick Cheney is lovable... or as George W. Bush is eloquent... or as Donald Rumsfeld is humble.
In other words, it's about as fair and balanced as FOX News.
From the moment Bush took power in 2001 and right on up until the present, Israel has been free to do pretty much whatever it pleases, including a) breaking whatever international laws it so chooses; b) using as much disproportionate and brutal force as it so desires; and c) dishing out whatever forms of collective punishment it so sees fit—all in an attempt to break the Palestinians' will by putting them through as much suffering and humiliation as possible.
And, through it all, America has sat back and watched, only speaking out in order to declare the Israelis “victims of terror” who have done only that which was needed in order to protect themselves—the reality (of who’s actually terrorizing who) be damned. No matter how crushing the Palestinians' oppression, Israel has constantly had America's one hundred percent backing... and $3 billion in aid each year.
Like Victims of Terror Everywhere
It's always funny to see the oppressors claiming to be the victims, especially when they're the ones with ALL the power and military might. You know, like those poor Russians in Chechnya, those horribly downtrodden Chinese in Tibet, and those tragically oppressed whites in South Africa during the apartheid years. And let’s not forget those poor Germans who suffered so many dreadful attacks from so many terrifying terrorist groups (resistance fighters, partisans, rebels, what have you) all across Europe during WWII.
Seriously, is anyone so simple-minded and gullible as to see Israel as the victim of anything? Even the mindless pro-Israel propagandists must stop themselves every once and a while and laugh at how ridiculous their message has become.
Complete Loss of Credibility
Much has been made of how the invasion of Iraq, the continuing cancer that is known as the Guantanamo Bay gulag, and the Bush Regime's open use of torture—among other things—have all led to a massive growth in anti-American sentiment throughout the Middle East and elsewhere. But the truth is that Bush’s black and white approach to the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict has had as much to do with America’s lack of standing in the Arab and Muslim world as anything else.
The illegal land grab that is the wall running through Palestine, cutting the West Bank in half; the open-air prison camp that is the Gaza Strip; the ten thousand Palestinians being held in other Israeli prisons; the continuing enlargement and expansion of the illegal settlements on Palestinian land in the West Bank; the collective punishment that’s dished out in all its varied forms (such as the demolition of hundreds of homes each year and the daily harassment that takes place at the numerous checkpoints throughout the West Bank); and now the massive destruction and mass slaughter going on in the Gaza Strip. None of this has been condemned in any way over the past eight years by Washington. In fact, to hear the Bush Regime explain it, the Palestinians should be thankful to live under such kind, benevolent rulers.
From Warsaw To Gaza: Troublemaking Terrorists Terrorizing
And, really, like those involved in the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising before them, how dare these terrorists from Gaza rise up against their oppressors? Can’t they just accept their fate and stop causing so much trouble? Can’t they just forget all this crap about human dignity, self respect, self defense, etc.? Can’t they just give up the whole resistance thing and be a bit more like the Welsh?
A Monster of Their Own Making... Exactly As Intended
But, to be serious, I’m not here to defend Hamas and their fundamentalist streak of Islam; however, the truth is that severe and long-term oppression almost always leads to the radicalization of those being oppressed—and few people on earth have suffered such prolonged and horrific oppression and loss of dignity as the people of Gaza.
When you come right down to it, for all intents and purposes Hamas was created by Israel. As I’ve said for years now, the classic strategy that Israel has so clearly followed over the past decade or more has been one of divide and rule. Nothing suits the hardliners in Israel more than the growth of Hamas. Pragmatic leaders such as those in Fatah simply can not be demonized in the same way as the radicalized Islamists of Hamas.
And, again, let me stress that I'm no fan of Hamas, but Hamas won the 2006 Palestinian elections fair and square and no true believer in democracy can simply turn around and call them “terrorists” as some sort of excuse to ignore those results. No matter how much anyone—myself included—might despise fundamentalists of any stripe, the fact is they won the elections and they are the elected representatives of the Palestinian people.
Israel itself has elected terrorists such as Menachem Begin to power, not to mention war criminals such as Ariel Sharon. And fanatical racist parties that call for the expulsion of all Palestinians from Palestine have joined governing coalitions in the country over the years. But never do you hear anything from America about shunning Israel over any of this. The hypocrisy is beyond belief.
Current Slaughter
As for the lead up to the current killing spree going on in Gaza—you know, the one where hundreds of civilians have been killed so far, including close to 250 children—I'll let Avi Shlaim, the Oxford professor, take it from here:
"The figures speak for themselves. In the three years after the withdrawal from Gaza, 11 Israelis were killed by rocket fire. On the other hand, in 2005-2007 alone, the IDF [Israeli Defense Force] killed 1,290 Palestinians in Gaza, including 222 children."
"Whatever the numbers, killing civilians is wrong. This rule applies to Israel as much as it does to Hamas, but Israel's entire record is one of unbridled and unremitting brutality towards the inhabitants of Gaza. Israel also maintained the blockade of Gaza after the ceasefire came into force which, in the view of the Hamas leaders, amounted to a violation of the agreement. During the ceasefire, Israel prevented any exports from leaving the strip in clear violation of a 2005 accord, leading to a sharp drop in employment opportunities. Officially, 49.1% of the population is unemployed. At the same time, Israel restricted drastically the number of trucks carrying food, fuel, cooking-gas canisters, spare parts for water and sanitation plants, and medical supplies to Gaza. It is difficult to see how starving and freezing the civilians of Gaza could protect the people on the Israeli side of the border. But even if it did, it would still be immoral, a form of collective punishment that is strictly forbidden by international humanitarian law."
As for the tactics, Shlaim continues:
"Far from taking care to spare civilians, Israel is guilty of indiscriminate bombing and of a three-year-old blockade that has brought the inhabitants of Gaza, now 1.5 million, to the brink of a humanitarian catastrophe."
So, blockaded and embargoed, shunned, humiliated and starved, with their children killed in the hundreds, the Palestinians of Gaza fight back by firing a few primitive rockets into Israel—and, according to Bush, it's all their own fault. If only they could be more civilized like the Israelis then there wouldn't be any problem at all.
Ah, the subtle nuance.
Waiting For The Hope-And-Change Guy To Give Us Some Real Hope And Change
Much has been made of the timing of this attack on Gaza, with Israel striking now to crush the Prison Camp Revolt before their cheerleaders in the White House leave office on January 20.
I just hope that, once he finally comes to power, Obama, despite all of his black and white pro-Israel rhetoric during the election campaign, will take a very different approach—if not an outright fair and balanced approach to the conflict, at the very least a more traditional, less blatant pro-Israeli position, one which at least encompasses a few shades of grey.
And, so, there you have it, as the destruction of Gaza and the radicalization of a once secular and progressive people continues, Bush cheers it all on and the world waits hopefully for a more fair approach by America under Obama.
My personal hope would be for the rest of the world to stand up for the Palestinians, but the reality is that Israel simply laughs off criticism from all others. Only America, with its billions of dollars in handouts to Israel each year and its continued support at the U.N., has any real leverage in trying and bring about some true justice to the situation.
Let's just hope Obama's fear of the pro-Israel lobby won't stop him from doing the right thing. After all, there's really no other place on earth where America still so openly backs such flagrant oppression and horrific crimes against humanity. The days of America backing the likes of Saddam Hussein in Iraq, Augusto Pinochet in Chile, and all those other fascist regimes throughout Latin America, Africa, and Asia (“our fascists”) are long gone. So why continue supporting the appalling oppression of the Palestinian people in their own land?
Come on Obama, you can do the right thing!
Yes you can!
What Can You Do?
As for all of us, I say that until this brutal occupation ends we all heed Naomi Klein's call for an economic boycott of Israel like the one that helped bring down the similarly evil apartheid regime in South Africa.
And don't let anyone try to label such a boycott as “anti-Semitic”. Like Naomi Klein, Avi Shlaim, Jennifer Loewenstein, Noam Chomsky, and many of my own personal friends, tens of thousands of other justice-seeking Jews out there are as sickened by this oppression as everyone else. It simply has to end.
Mike Cowie is a writer currently embarked on a book about his three-year trip across Asia with his wife, Sonoko. Read more of Mike’s views on his Web site.
Comments
I have just cancelled my Victoria Times Colonist subscription and will bookmark the Straight. May the traditional press continue its inexorable dwindling toward complete irrelevance.
Yes, Israel has a very powerful army, but that is the reason it still is a Jewish state today! Otherwise the Jews would have being eliminated completely like Hamas & Hezbollah wants!
What other country besides Israel is a democracy in the Middle East??? What other country gives the world discoveries in medicine, technology, etc in the middle East??? But hey, lets blame the Jews for everything
But we can see the apartheid in action.
We can see the Wall, we can see its encroachment on arable Palestinian land, we can see the unmanned drones that have fired countless missiles over the years killing hundreds of palestinians. We can see that since 1991, in Israel has been responsible for 79% of the breakdowns in ceasefires. We can see that hundreds of ordinary people, including hundreds of children have been massacred in this current dispute.
Indeed we should react with outrage at any massacre. Why do we keep standing by, be it the Holocaust, Pol Pot, Rwanda, Sudan, and now Gaza?
We can see if we really open our eyes and look. But maybe we don't do it because it starts to feel like we are looking in a mirror.
I stand with all those in the world who hang their head in shame at this time.
Not good enough! Like Hezbollah, this is a brutal fascist Fundamentalist Islamic organization stuck in the 6 century. They will not stop until all of us are praying to Allah
An articulate and well informed piece. Well done Mr. Cowie. However, ToroLattino writes "The Palestinians only remember that they wanted a homeland when the Jews took over". The Palestinian people do not 'want a homeland'. They want back what was stolen from then in 1948. The majority of the refugees who live in Gaza are from al-Majdal which was renamed Ashkelon after its people were ethnically cleansed from their homes. As for "this is a brutal fascist Fundamentalist Islamic organization stuck in the 6 century. They will not stop until all of us are praying to Allah", this reads like a modern day view of the fictitious and anti-Jewish "Protocols of the Elders of Zion". If somebody in Europe were to speak this way today about Jewish people they would probably be called a Nazi. This merely reflects the value system that we currently live with in that it is acceptable for some people to speak in this manner about Muslims.
I am not calling all of the Muslims in the world radicals. Hamas and Hezbollah represent a minority of the Muslims. They do not respect moderate Muslims views and want to impose their believes by force. That is why most moderate Muslims consider them a fascist Islamic organization stuck in the 6 century!
Response to ToroLatino. It is correct that Palestinians in Israel are only citizens. This occurs as the state of Israel does not officially recognize Israeli nationality, but only Jewish nationality. Therefore, it is impossible for a non-Jew to be an equal citizen in a Jewish state in the same way that it would be impossible for a Jew to be an equal citizen in an official Christian state. These figures also do not include the thousands of Palestinian Christians who live under the same apartheid laws as their Muslim neighbours, laws which have been exposed by courageous Jewish Israelis like Uri Davis and Ilan Pappe. Resolution 181 was a recommendation and was not legally binding as it was passed by the General Assembly and not the Security Council. Some people like Salam Abu-Sitta estinamte that only 5 per cent of the land, most of it around the Tel Aviv area, was legally owned by Jews. Even Zionist Jews rarely claim to have owned more than 7 per cent. Hence, the Palestinians did what any self-respecting people would do, they disagreed to their land being stolen. Its amazing that they are still being blamed for having the audacity to stand up to power and colonialism. Both Hamas and Hezbollah are legitimate resistance groups, one of then with a democratically elected government, who also commit acts of terrorism while fighting against state terrorism and an illegal occupation. Regarding the statement that "most moderate Muslims consider them a fascist Islamic organization stuck in the 6 century!", it would be interesting to know where the evidence for such a claim came from. What is the source of such knowledge.
As for the comments made earlier by USA.1 he/she should back up their comments by facts...its sad to see people who cannot see out of the box set up by their governements..We as Canadians challenge our leaders veiws and if we find them questionable we speak out...to bad our neighbors to the south hesitate to do so..
thank u again for your article.
anc
Jews have being living in Israel for centuries! Jerusalem had a Jewish majority in 1948 and has a Jewish majority today.
Despite the growth in their population, the Arabs continued to assert they were being displaced. The truth is that from the beginning of World War I, part of Palestine's land was owned by absentee landlords who lived in Cairo, Damascus and Beirut. About 80 percent of the Palestinian Arabs were debt-ridden peasants, semi-nomads and Bedouins.
It was only after the Jews had bought all of the available uncultivated land that they began to purchase cultivated land. Many Arabs were willing to sell because of the migration to coastal towns and because they needed money to invest in the citrus industry
In reference to the creation of the State of Israel: The ad hoc committee of the UN General Assembly rejected the Arab demand for a unitary Arab state. On 29 November 1947, the United Nations General Assembly voted 33 to 13, with 10 abstentions, in favor of the Partition Plan. Of the 13 counties 10 were Muslims. Even the PLO has recognized the right of Israel to exist.
Hezbolah has bombed a Jewish community center in Argentina were 85 people died. What does Argentina have to do with the Middle East??? If that is not terrorism then we can call any army who targets civilians to obtain a benefit a “legitimate resistance group”
Hamas has fired 10.000 rockets into Israel in the last 8 years and Israel has left Gaza in 2005!!! Any religious fanatic who wants to impose his believes to the rest of the world belongs in the 6 century.
Rsponse to ToroLatino. If Ibrahim Hussein Berro bombed the Jewish centre in 1994 then this would make it an act of terrorism, acts which I said Hezbollah commit. As Israel still illegally ocuppies the Lebanese Sheba Farms, this makes them a legitimate resistance group. It is not Syrian land, as Ban Ki-moon admitted until he balked under the pressure. Deliberately killing civilians in order to advance political objectives is terrorism. Hence, Israel is also guilty. I asked how it was known that 'moderate' Muslims think the way stated, but no reply. Interesting how we never hear about 'moderate' Jews or Christians. This smacks of Orientalism. No response either to the evidence of ethnic cleansing or apartheid, so this responcse used the common Zionist tactic of not answering the question by raising another issue. For example: "Jerusalem had a Jewish majority in 1948 and has a Jewish majority today" In 1948, Jews were in the minority in Palestine, but this is not mentioned. Equally: "Even the PLO has recognized the right of Israel to exist." No Mention added about the right of Palestine to exist, no acknowledgement of the terrorism on both sides, and the standing of resolution 181 being non-binding remains. It is pointless trying to debate in an incoherent style. I often wonder why people with strongly held views hide their name.
Israel thought that by completely withdrawing from Lebanon, Hezbollah would have no justification for continuing its attacks (the old land for peace formula) and that UNIFIL would now do its job and prevent any further crossborder provocations. Instead, Hezbollah interpreted Israel’s unilateral withdrawal as a victory for its terrorist methods. Rather than cease-fire, Hezbollah was emboldened and believed it could continue to pursue its broader agenda of destroying Israel.
As a pretext for its attacks, Hezbollah claims Israel “occupies” Shebaa Farms. This 100-square-mile, largely uninhabited patch was captured from Syria! In January 2005, the UN Security Council adopted a resolution condemning violence along the Israel-Lebanon border and reasserted that the Lebanese claim to the Shebaa farms area is “not compatible with Security Council resolutions.” You pro Hezbollah/ Hamas fanatics like to use the UN only when it is convinient. When it does not serve your porpose, then it “balked under the pressure” Like I stated before, Hezbollah & Hamas are both fascist Islamic organizations that want to impose Islam and implement Sharia law in the world.
The big difference between thus two terrorist groups and Israel is that Israel does not deliberately target civilians. On the contrary, it tries to avoid civilian casualties. Hezbollah & Hamas want to kill as many civilians as possible. As demonstrated with the example of the Argentinean target of the Jewish community center. It is a well known fact that they use their own population as human shields so when Israel fires back many civilians are killed and they can cynically cry to the world: look what the Jews are doing.
The “evidence of ethnic cleansing or apartheid” is only part of a anti Israel propaganda slogan! How can a country that has a fast growing Muslim population be doing Ethnic cleansing??? And how can it be an racist apartheid state if 1,200.000 Muslims have Israeli citizenship with equal rights as the non Muslims. In any case I would call countries like Saudi Arabia a racist country where Jews are not allowed to visit or if a Muslim wants to convert to another religion he/she is sentence to death! And lets not get into the subject that woman, in most Muslim countries are second class citizens with no rights whatsoever. Or that homosexuality is also punishable.
I already responded about the fact that it is not true that Jews were a minority: Not only in Jerusalem but in other parts of the area: “ part of Palestine's land was owned by absentee landlords who lived in Cairo, Damascus and Beirut”
The UN voted to the creation of the State of Israel in all the areas where Jews were a majority and a Palestinian state were the Muslims were a majority.
Many countries in the region were created after the fall of the Ottoman Empire: Lebanon where Christians and Muslims ended having a devastating civil war with Palestinians getting involved and from were the PLO would attack civilians in Northern Israel.
Transjordan as the new country was called (Part was promised to the Jews), an artificial state with an alien ruling dynasty, was created in 1946. The Jordanians, of course, are the real Palestinian Arabs. Over 70% of the 2.8 million population of the kingdom are Palestinian Arabs. The Arabs of Jordan are exactly the same people as the Arabs living in the "West Bank there is no difference between them in language, ethnicity or social customs. Before the Six Day war, the concept of a “second” Palestinian state located in the "West Bank" had never occurred to anybody. Because the Palestinians, whose national identity is acknowledged by the Israelis, do have a country. It's Jordan!.
Now if resolution 181 was non-binding, then by the same token, the Palestinians do not have a right to a State. I believe that both people have the right to have a State but that the Palestinians have to show that they want to live in peace by stopping any terrorist attack and sitting down to negotiate!
About the moderate Muslims, I can only use my own experience: When I traveled to Egypt, Lebanon, Turkey and Indonesia most people would agree that Hezbollah and Hamas are radical Muslims who want to impose their radical believes to everyone including Muslims. In Canada, a Palestinian friend who is not a Muslim but a Christian, had to flee from Gaza because life for non Muslims is unbearable. He has Palestinian Muslim friends who hate Hamas because of their extremist views.
My name is irrelevant to our discussion. What difference does it make??? I could even put a fake name & you would not know. Maybe yours is fake and you are actually the author of the article! But if you really want to know my name it is Eduardo Halem and its my real name.
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