Saturday, August 24, 2013

Israel 8-24-13

24, August 2013         Israel

The Israel-Palestinian talks are doomed for failure. Israel continues to mock and abuse the US hand that feeds it billions of aid money by declaring the building of more and more settlements on occupied Palestinian land. Another 1,200 new settlements were recently announced. Predictably, our super meek Secretary of State John Kerry, like all of his predecessors, failed to admonish Israel for their transgressions but instead urged Palestinians "not to react adversely." Terrified of offending pro-Israel politicians and the powerful Jewish lobby, Kerry continues to use the soft noodle approach instead of the big stick or preferably using Netanyahu’s red line rhetoric. Granting Israel a free pass on settlements, its illegal occupation and violation of international law will only encourage Israel to ignore Kerry’s ‘cap in the hand’ soft overtures.  In 1991 200,000 Israelis settled on occupied territory. Today, four presidents later, 400,000 settlers have occupied Palestinian land. Today generations of Palestinians are forbidden to visit Jerusalem resulting in the ghettoization of Palestinians. The “peace process” consists of indulging Israeli intransigence and is yet another example of deflecting much needed US taxpayers money away from the have-nots of our own society. 

Finally, Israel should heed the actions of thousands of artists around the world who have a declared a cultural boycott of Israel which they perceive to be an apartheid state. 

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