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Et tu Obama: Who will your Appointees Serve - Israel or America?

freepaliadmin — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 19:18:00 GMT

By: Mohamed Khodr

Rahm Israel Emanuel: Will Handle U.S. Domestic Policy for Israel

Dennis Ross: Will Handle U.S. Foreign Policy for Israel

“Right and wrong are the same in Palestine as anywhere else. What is peculiar about the Palestine conflict is that the world has listened to the party that committed the offence and has turned a deaf ear to the victims.”

– Prof. Arnold Toynbee, British Historian

“The nation which indulges towards another—a habitual fondness is in some degree a slave. It is a slave to its animosity or to its affection, either of which is sufficient to lead it astray from its duty and its interest. ..a passionate attachment of one nation for another produces a variety of evils. Sympathy for the favorite nation, facilitating the illusion of an imaginary common interest in cases where no real common interest exists, and infusing into one the enmities of the other, betrays the former into a participation in the quarrels and wars of the latter without adequate inducement or justification …Real patriots who may resist the intrigues of the favorite are liable to become suspected and odious, while its tools and dupes usurp the applause and confidence of the people, to surrender their interests.”

–President George Washington, Farewell Address, 1796

“Our attachment to no nation on earth should supplant our attachment to liberty.”

–Thomas Jefferson: Declaration on Taking Up Arms, 1775. Papers 1:201

“I understand a number of citizens, whether amounting to a majority or a minority, who are united and actuated by some common impulse of passion, or of interest, adverse to the rights of other citizens, or to the permanent interests of the community.”

–James Madison, Federalist No: 10: Warning of “Factions/Special Interests” acting against the National Interest

Despite such warnings from our founding fathers against the corruptive influence of a minority “faction/special interest group”, our government has nevertheless surrendered, pandered, implemented, paid and died for the vital interests of a small foreign nation, Israel. America has in effect “outsourced” its foreign policy and national interests to this foreign nation to the detriment of its own interests—political, economic, military, credibility, moral leadership, and friendly alliances around the world.

In effect, our Israeli shackled government would rather expend our treasury, our military youth, sacrifice our economic interests around the world, than dare challenge, change, or have the moral and just courage to even allow a political debate on this destructive “special relationship”. a nation condemned and despised around the world as a rogue brutal military occupier of an entire people living under its American paid for boots, uniforms, rifles, tanks, bullets, missiles, rockets, cluster bombs fighter jets, access to our latest technology and spy satellites, bulldozers, fences, barbed wires, walls, and concentration camps. The Nazism of Germany and the Apartheid of South Africa live in Israel’s policies with our government’s full knowledge, support, political protection, and funding. Many courageous people, including compassionate humanitarian Jews in and out of Israel have made this comparison. Israeli men and women like Uri Avnery, Professor Israel Shahak (deceased), Prof. Illan Pappe, Prof. Avi Shlaim, Israel Shamir, Journalists Amira Hass, Gideon Levy, and many others who work for peace and justice in the Holy Land.

“On the morrow of a persecution in Europe in which they had been the victims of the worst atrocities ever known… the Jews’ immediate reaction to their own experience was to become persecutors in their turn… In 1948, the Jews knew, from personal experience, what they were doing; and it was their supreme tragedy that the lessons learnt by them from their encounter with the Nazi German Gentiles should have been not to eschew but to initiate some of the evil deeds that the *** had committed against the Jews”

–Famed British Historian Arnold Toynbee, “A Study of History”

“What do we have to do with apartheid? Does a separation fence constitute separation? Do separate roads for Jewish settlers and Palestinians really separate? Are Palestinian enclaves between Jewish settlements Bantustans? Roadblocks and inspections at every turn; licenses and permits for every little matter; the arbitrary seizure of land; special privileges in water use; cheap, hard labor; forming and uniting families by bureaucratic”

–Yossi Sarid, Haaretz April 4, 2005, “Yes, it is Apartheid” (former Knesset Member)

“What is not so understandable, not justified, is what it (Israel) did to another people to guarantee its existence…Have our Jewish sisters and brothers forgotten their humiliation? Have they forgotten the collective punishment, the home demolitions, in their own history so soon? Have they turned their backs on their profound and noble religious traditions? Have they forgotten that God cares deeply about the downtrodden?….Somehow, the Israeli government is placed on a pedestal [in the US], and to criticize it is to be immediately dubbed anti-Semitic, as if the Palestinians were not Semitic.. People are scared in this country [the US], to say wrong is wrong because the Jewish lobby is powerful - very powerful”.

–Former South African Archbishop Desmund Tutu, “Apartheid in the Holy Land”, Guardian April 29, 2002

“Israeli Fascism is alive and kicking. It is growing in the flowerbed that produced the various religious-nationalist underground groups of the past: the group that tried to bomb the Muslim shrines on the Temple Mount, the underground that tried to assassinate the Palestinian mayors, the “Kach” gang, the perpetrator of the Hebron massacre Baruch Goldstein, the murderer of peace activist Emil Gruenzweig, the murderer of Yitzhak Rabin and all the underground groups that were uncovered at an early stage before their deeds could bring them to public notice”.

–Uri Avnery, Counterpunch, “Prof. Ze’ev Sternhell’s Warning on the Growth of Israeli Fascism—It Can Happen Here (Israel)”, September 29, 2008

In launching his presidential campaign, Obama, like all his predecessors, knew that as a democratic candidate the path to the White House must first gain the support and approval of Jewish Americans. Thus in January 2008 he showed his allegiance to the Star of David by writing a letter to U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Zalmay Khalilzad (a staunchly Pro Israel Neocon and pusher of the Iraq, Afghan Wars) asking him to vote against a U.N. Resolution condemning Israel’s catastrophic siege of Gaza, with 1.3 million Palestinians, an illegal collective punishment that’s depriving the population from food, water, medicines, fuel, education, and health care, in direct violation of the U.N. Charter and the Fourth Geneva Convention despite Israel’s signatory to both. Obama wrote:

“All of us are concerned about the impact of closed border crossings on Palestinian families. However, we have to understand why Israel is forced to do this. The Security Council should clearly and unequivocally condemn the rocket attacks… If it cannot bring itself to make these common sense points, I urge you to ensure that it does not speak at all”

Pander on Mr. President Elect to the right wing Jewish lobby that controls the very body you serve in, the Senate, as well as the White House. AIPAC usually writes Congressional legislation and resolutions, did they write this for you?

The political, economic, academic, and media power of the Israel Lobby is unsurpassed in the history of America. Jewish monies, amounting to fifty to sixty percent of contributions to the Democratic Party, in conjunction with AIPAC, a most powerful Israeli lobby, ensure that no debate or criticism of Israel ever surfaces. Any who dare challenge Israel’s illegal and brutal occupation and theft of Palestinian land pays a heavy price in smears, loss of credibility, employment, even receive death threats.

President Jimmy Carter, who gifted Israel with a peace agreement with Egypt, endured the vilest attacks by many Jews around the world, especially in Israel and its second homeland, America, for his book, “Palestine—Peace or Apartheid”, to the extent that the he was not invited to attend the Democratic Convention held in Denver.

In a Los Angeles Times interview Carter said this:

“A debate in America is an absolutely hopeless dream. “There is not a single candidate in America, for governor, for House of Representatives, for Senate or for president that would dare say anything that was not acceptable to Israel.”

Dual loyalty of Jewish Americans has always been a persistent question in political discourse (see Counterpunch article below).

Your choice, Mr. Obama, of Senator Joe Biden was another pandering signal of your allegiance to Israel as he’s proudly proclaimed, “I’m a Zionist” in an interview with ShalomTV. During his V.P. debate he proudly asserted that no one in the Senate is a better friend of Israel than him. Speaking to the National Jewish Democratic Council on September 23, 2008, Biden sold his soul, Obama’s, and our national interest for Jewish votes and contributions. He said:

“I’ve spent 35 years in my career dealing with issues related to Israel. My support for Israel begins in my stomach, goes to my heart and ends up in my head. And I promise you, I guarantee you, I guarantee you. I would not have joined Barack Obama’s ticket as vice president were I in any doubt, even the slightest doubt, that he shares the same commitment to Israel that I share. I guarantee it. It’s that simple. That is a fact.”

–Senator Joe Biden; Vice Presidential Candidate

“The Israelis control the policy in the Congress and the senate … somewhere around 80 percent of the senate of the United States is completely in support of Israel — of anything Israel wants….”

– Senator William Fulbright, Chairman Senate Foreign Relations Committee, October 7, 1973 on CBS’ “Face the Nation”.

“I am aware how almost impossible it is in this country to carry out a foreign policy [in the Middle East] not approved by the Jews. [Former Secretary of State George] Marshall and [former Defense Secretary James Forestall] learned that….. Terrific control the Jews have over the news media and the barrage the Jews have built up on congressmen…. I am very much concerned over the fact that the Jewish influence here is completely dominating the scene and making it almost impossible to get congress to do anything they don’t approve of. The Israeli embassy is practically dictating to the congress through influential Jewish people in the country”

–Secretary of State John Foster Dulles in February 1957 quoted in Fallen Pillars , page 99, by Donald Neff

“I’ve never seen a president –I don’t care who he is– stand up to them [the Israelis]. It just boggles your mind. They always get what they want. The Israelis know what’s going on all the time. I got to the point where I wasn’t writing anything down. If the American people understood what grip those people have on our government, they would rise up in arms. Our citizens don’t have any idea what goes on.” –

–Admiral Thomas Moorer of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Washington Report 12/1999, p.124 quoting from Andrew Hurley’s book, “One Nation Under Israel”

– AFTER 9/11: “Why do they hate us? Pentagon’s Answer

“Muslims do not hate our freedom, but rather they hate our policies. The overwhelming majority voice their objections to what they see as one-sided support in favor of Israel and against Palestinian rights”

– US Defense Department’s Defense Science Board: (Christian Science Monitor: 11/29/2004). .

A Historic Election:

“In his speech, Obama intends to remove any doubts that the Democratic Party’s donors and constituents, many of whom are Jewish, may have about his support for Israel”. (Haaretz, see link below)

To say that your election is a historical sentinel event is an under statement. You rose in this nation to the highest office in the land upon the ashes of the millions of African slaves ripped from their land, transported like cattle, bought and sold as property, killed, abused, raped, and hung from gallows; yet in your victory speech you ignored the advocacy and struggle of African American organizations, primarily the NAACP, and civil rights leaders who paved your path to glory and who in tears thanked God that they lived to see the election of an African American, men like the Reverend Jesse Jackson, Representatives John Lewis and Charles Rangel, Ambassador Andrew Young, Ida B. Wells, Medgar Evers, Rosa Parks, W. E. B. Du Bois, Roy Wilkins, Julian Bond, and so many others who gave so much so that you can fulfill the dream and the promise of Dr. King’s America Odd how in all your speeches you never mentioned Dr. King by name.

But you did mention and thank the two people (both Jewish) most responsible for your successful campaign:

“To my campaign manager David Plouffe, my chief strategist David Axelrod…you made this happen, and I am forever grateful for what you’ve sacrificed to get it done.”

–President Elect Barack Obama’s Victory Speech November 4, 2008

Obama’s First Appointment: Rahm Emmanuel as Chief of Staff: “Son of a terrorist”.

Will ensure a domestic policy supportive of Israel.

The appointment of Rahm Emmanuel as your Chief of Staff will have immediate negative repercussions in Congress and around the world. Emanuel is a known hawk and Zionist. His appointment will ensure that U.S. domestic policy will benefit Israel. damn U.S. interests. He will be the gateway to all information that reaches you, thus America and the world will understand that only Pro Israel agendas need apply to the White House.

In an interview with the Israeli Hebrew paper, Ma’ariv 11/6/08, Rahm Emanuel’s father, Dr. Benjamin Emanuel, said this of his son’s influence on you.

“Obviously he will influence the president to be pro-Israel, Why wouldn’t he be? What is he, an Arab? He’s not going to clean the floors of the White House.”

Rahm’s father insults all Arabs in this statement but this hardly raises a hair in the media nor was it denounced by his son, nor more importantly by Mr. Obama. Obama condemned and distanced himself from friends who came under deliberate smears and media attacks for “insulting” Jews, but Arabs are unworthy of his support, being the American untouchables. What if this was an Arab insulting Jews, do you think you’ll ever be President?

You probably are aware that Dr. Benjamin Emanuel was a member of the Jewish terrorist group, Irgun (led by Menachem Begin) that was responsible for wide ranging terrorist attacks against both the British and Palestinians. Irgun famously massacred an entire village, Deir Yassin. Menachem Begin even boasted of this terrorist massacre of the village in his book “The Revolt”.

Rahm Emanuel served as a volunteer in the Israeli Army during the first Gulf War, protecting his beloved Israel, rather than serve in the U.S. military.

In the Israeli paper, Haaretz (11/7/08 “U.S. Jews laud Obama pick of Rahm Emanuel for Chief of Staff”)

William Daroff, the director of the Washington office of the United Jewish Communities (UJC), an umbrella organization representing 155 Jewish Federations and 400 independent Jewish communities across North America was quoted as saying: “Rep. Emanuel is also a good friend of Israel, coming from good Irgun Stock”.

In the same article another Jewish American leader, Ira N. Forman, Executive Director of the National Jewish Democratic Council (NJDC) said:

“Obama made an outstanding selection (Rahm Emanuel) His voting record and leadership in support of the U.S.-Israel relationship are outstanding.”

“Rahm Emanuel has a long history of militarist ideology behind him. His father was a member of the ultra-right-wing terrorist organization Etzel that killed British civilians as part of their anti-British struggle in Palestine in the 1940s. Emanuel, himself a citizen of Israel as well as the United States, has been one of several Congressional leaders enforcing the “Israel Lobby” consensus on the Democrats, in the process shutting out the peace voices that believe Israel’s security would be better served by the U.S. putting pressure on Israel to end the Occupation, move the Wall to inside the pre-67 boundaries, and remove the settlers from the West Bank or tell them to live there as Palestinian citizens.”

–Rabbi Michael Lerner, (barackobama.com) November 7, 2008, “Rahm Emanuel is no Reason for Hope or Celebration”, November 7, 2008***

DENNIS ROSS: Will Ensure a Foreign Policy supportive of Israel as he’s done under Clinton and Bush.

Your campaign announced that Dennis Ross will be your top adviser on Israel and Iran. Ross is now at the pro-Israel Washington Institute for Near East Policy (founded in 1985 by AIPAC’s Martin Indyk). He is also the First Chairman of the newly established Jerusalem based think tank, The Jewish People Policy Planning Institute, founded by the Jewish Agency. He was a staunch supporter of the Iraq war. His appointment will be a recurrent nightmare and devastating blow to peace in the Middle East, especially to the Palestinians, doomed to occupation and refugee status as long as our Presidents and Congress have Israel as an albatross around their cowardly necks.

In addition to Ross, Obama’s Middle East policy advisors reads like a Who’s Who of Jewish Americans, all staunch supporters of Israel at any cost to this nation.

Obama’s other key Middle East Advisers include:

Anthony Lake: Served at Director of the National Security Council under Clinton
Mara Rudman: Former National Security Council Assistant to President Clinton. Works on MidEast issues.
Dan Shapiro and Eric Lynn: Advisors and Liaisons to the Jewish community. Lynn was an intern at AIPAC.
Daniel Kurtzer: An orthodox Jew appointed by Bush as Ambassador to Israel.
Martin Indyk: Former research director at AIPAC, founding executive director of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, AIPAC’s influential think tank. Served under Clinton at the National Security Council on Arab-Israeli issues, Iraq, Iran and South Asia. Served two terms as U.S. Ambassador to Israel.
Former Representative Mel Levine: Served on House Foreign Affairs Committee, Former Board Member of AIPAC Board, and John Kerry’s former Top Mideast Advisor. His Quote: “By every rating and criterion, [Senator] Kerry’s votes have shown 100 percent solid support for Israel. That’s well understood in his home state of Massachusetts, but not yet throughout the rest of the country.”
Lee Rosenberg: AIPAC treasurer and strong Obama supporter: In an interview with Ynet.com (2/3/08) he was quoted as saying: “Rosenberg says that the Security of Israel “is the global and policy issue that I care most about” and rejects claims that questioned Obama’s commitment to the Jewish Stat. . “He’s always been a strong supporter of the security of Israel,” he says.”

From Obama’s early political campaigns in Chicago, Jewish monies and support have been at the heart of his campaigns for which he expresses eternal gratitude for the “support of so many friends in the Jewish  community,  dating back to my first days in public life in Chicago”.

Mr. Obama, you’ve received the most sought after seal of approval in your run for the Presidency, an approval only given to the lucky few who’ve shown their true patriotic allegiance, no, not to America, but to Israel. You’ve received the approval of AIPAC, a self identifying lobby group that has thumbed its nose on U.S. law requiring it to register as such. How clever that the acronym, AIPAC, stands for the American Israeli PUBLIC AFFAIRS Committee, and not the American Israeli Political Action Committee.

“AIPAC has stressed  that it is satisfied with Obama’s  positions on the Middle East; a spokeswoman recently told the New Republic: “Like all the leading presidential candidates, the senator has a strong record on issues of importance to the pro-Israel community.”

During your presidential campaign you’ve adopted every Pro Israel/AIPAC policy toward the Palestinians, Iran, and the Middle East. Among them.

1. Among the first to support Israel’s devastating invasion of Lebanon in 2006 claiming that Israel was simply defending itself against terrorism.

2. Lead sponsor in the Senate of Legislation promoting Divestment from Iran.

3. Among sponsors of the Iran Sanctions Enabling Act of 2007.

4. No negotiations with Hamas and Hezbollah.

5. No condemnation of Israel’s brutal two year siege of Gaza with 1.3 million people.

6. No Palestinian “right of return”.

7. Strong supporter of more aid to Israel.

8. Jerusalem as an undivided eternal capital of Israel (slightly backtracked on this).

9. While condemning Iran’s nuclear program (Iran signatory to Non Proliferation Treaty) supports Israel despite Israel’s 200 -300 nuclear weapons and a non signatory to the NPT).

Missing from your pandering speeches to AIPAC and Jewish organizations was any mention of the Arab Peace Plan, land for peace formula, occupation, illegal settlements, settler violence, Israeli human rights abuses, violations of the Fourth Geneva Convention, total siege of Gaza, thousands of Palestinian prisoners, including children, and just as importantly—Israel’s direct violation of Section 4 of the U.S. Arms Export Control Act that stipulates that American weapons can legally only be used for internal security or self defense. Israel’s decades’ long bombing and killing of civilians by American weapons clearly violates this law, but no government has had the courage to challenge Israel. History and experience say that like all your predecessors (with exception of Eisenhower) you won’t dare either.

In fact, Mr. Obama, I can guarantee that five days after your inauguration, January 27, 2009, you will join most of Congress and your administration officials in celebration of the International Holocaust Remembrance Day established by the United Nations in 2005 at the behest of the Bush Administration. Perhaps you’ll be at the U.S. taxpayer built and funded Washington D.C. Holocaust Museum. No other historical holocaust is so recognized and funded by us, the taxpayers.

Your immediate abandonment of “CHANGE” soon after you were elected is already disturbing and bodes ill for your presidency. You’re potential appointees are mostly recycled Clinton officials who are primarily Pro Business, and Pro Israel Jews who offer you protection from the fabricated “Jewish Problem” raised against you by right wing Jewish organizations and individuals.

According to the New York Times, “The New Team” (November 12, 2008) the Jewish Americans listed below, among others, are being considered for senior administration positions. Each can have an important policy impact on MidEast policies, including the educational programs in American schools regarding the possible obligatory teaching of the Holocaust and the marginalization of programs on Arabic, Muslim culture, Islam.

Richard J. Danzig: For a senior Pentagon position
Joel Klein: For Secretary of Education. Klein was Superintendent of the New York City School System who succumbed to a ruthless Jewish lobbying group and Pro Israel media pressure to fire Debbie Almontasar, a Muslim educator and principle of a school slated to teach Arabic and MidEast culture. The school was attacked as a “Madrassah” for Jihad, Holy War and militant Islam. Klein replaced her with a Jewish principle. Danielle Salzburg. What else will Klein as Secretary of Education succumb to under the powerful Jewish lobby and media?
James Steinberg: For Director of the National Security Council

Due to your obvious intimidation by the Israel Lobby regarding the “Anti Israel” position of two Non-Jewish but prominent foreign policy experts, Dr. Zbigniew Brzezinski and Mr. Robert Malley, both serving at your request on your foreign policy advisory team, you shamelessly dismissed Dr. Brzezinski’s role as your advisor, an honorable man who’s served this nation with high distinction while accepting Mr. Robert Malley’s resignation, a highly respected diplomat.

If this is how you respond to pressure from the Israeli Lobby during a campaign, how much of our national interest will you sacrifice to their demands?

You’re being warned not to mess with Israel and its powerful Lobby given their domination of Congress, Israel’s second Knesset.

“Even if, in an impossible-to-imagine worst-case scenario, Obama wanted to fundamentally change the US-Israeli relationship, it is unlikely he would be able to do so” Why? In the article Eran Lerman, Director of the Israel and Middle East Office of the American addressed the issue by saying: “To do that, he is going to need to go to Capitol Hill and build coalitions. And coalition-building in Washington is good for Israel because Israel has many friends on the Hill”.

–Jerusalem Post, November 7, 2008, Analysis: So, nu, can we?

“Will Obama be able to take the One-Jerusalem/Israel-first crowd for granted as he wheels around Jerusalem and Tehran? No. As my commenters point out, these elements are deep in American Jewish life; and we’re not talking about just voters, but the Jewish establishment, or to be precise the Zionist constituents of the American power structure, from the media to the think tanks to the big-money zip codes of 10022 and 90210….he apartheid conditions in the West Bank are destroying the Jewish state, and that the Israel lobby is standing in the way of progress…..Neo-conservatism really means “transfer.” Ethnic cleansing.

–Phillip Weiss (Phillip Weiss website), October 17, 2008

“He (Obama) will have to tell Israel a few home truths: that America can no longer remain uncritical in the face of Israeli army brutality and the colonisation for Jews and Jews only on Arab land. Obama will have to stand up at last to the Israeli lobby (it is, in fact, an Israeli Likud party lobby) and withdraw Bush’s 2004 acceptance of Israel’s claim to a significant portion of the West Bank. US officials will have to talk to Iranian officials – and Hamas officials, for that matter. Obama will have to end US strikes into Pakistan – and Syria”.

-Robert Fisk, U.K. Independent, Obama Has to Pay for Eight Years of Bush’s Delusions. He will have to get out of Iraq, and he will have to tell Israel a few home truths, November 8, 2008

“The negative (Jewish) campaign glossed over Obama’s deep ties in the Chicago Jewish Community and how he has picked a preeminently pro-Israel foreign policy team.”

–Jewish Telegraphic Agency, November 5, 2008

Mr. Obama, after your victory you called the leaders of nine nations among them Israel, naturally. Yet despite our economic, energy, and credit crisis you did not see fit to call one Arab leader in the Middle East, the very region we and Europe called upon begging for increased oil production, their money and investments to shore up our banks and financial system. Despite American, British, and Israeli bombs killing innocent Muslims, these cowardly pandering dictators called you. While their banks are failing their priority is saving American banks.

America and the world have laid their anguished and frustrated hope in your hands for peace and prosperity after the hell Bush/Cheney/Neocons and Israel created around the world. Yet you start with a hand sullied and biased toward special interests, both domestic and foreign, the very groups you promised to end their influence.

Will you have the courage to be America’s president, a president of all Americans, Jews and Gentiles, a president for America’s interests, not Israel’s, a president who will heed the warnings of Washington, Jefferson, and Madison not to have a “passionate attachment” to any foreign nation, to avoid “foreign entanglements” that sabotage our interests, to end the influence of “factions”, i.e. special interests that dominate our national policies?

I for one will go against the tide of Obamaphoria and predict that as far as foreign policy is concerned, especially in the Middle East, you will fail, for America is always ten steps behind the brilliant and inflammatory military and political machinations of Israel and its lobby.

As Ariel Sharon said: “The Arabs may have the Oil, but we have the matches”.

To pay for your domestic programs you will depend entirely on borrowed money. Given the severe financial crisis, astronomical deficits, and debt of our government thanks to the influence of special interest groups, both domestic and foreign, you’ll have a very small window with which to maneuver to pay for a semblance of your domestic programs.

But rest assured, given the apathy and disinterest of our population, you can succumb to these special interest groups without a beep from our citizen spectators who put more thought into sales and football games than the future of their children.

Let’s meet four years from now and you can prove me wrong. In the meantime hundreds of thousands of innocent Muslims will continue to die at the hands of an Imperial Western-Israeli alliance—the true Axis of Evil. Welcome to another Israel Apartheid Wall—The Washington D.C. Beltway.

Recall the words of the man most responsible for your election as an African American:

“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy”.

–Dr. Martin Luther King, Strength to Love, 1963

Sources for Article:

http://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/washing.asp

(George Washington’s Farewell Address 1796: Warning of a “Passionate Attachment” to a Foreign Nation)

http://www.dailynewscaster.com/2008/08/24/joe-biden-i-am-a-zionist/ (

Joe Biden Video: “I am a Zionist”, September 23, 2008

http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article6640.shtml

“Obama Pivots Away From Dovish Past
Larry Cohler-Esses, The Jewish Week, 8 March 2007

http://www.forward.com/articles/14018/

“Obama Campaign Appoints Adviser To Coordinate Jewish Outreach”

http://www.harpers.org/archive/2008/10/0082187

(“Obama’s Jews”: Harpers; October 2008)

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/826665.html

“In his speech, Obama intends to remove any doubts that the Democratic Party’s donors and constituents, many of whom are Jewish, may have about his support for Israel”.

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3513083,00.html

(Lee Rosenberg’s interview on Barack Obama’s commitment to Israel)

http://jeffreygoldberg.theatlantic.com/archives/2008/05/obama_on_zionism_and_hamas.php

“Obama on Zionism and Hamas”, May 12, 2008 (Interview with Jeffrey Goldberg)

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1211288137944&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

“Obama the Zionist”, May 21, 2008

http://origin.barackobama.com/issues/foreign_policy/#onisrael (Obama/Biden on Israel)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rahm_Emmanuel (Rahm Emanuel Brief Biography)

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/babylonbeyond/2008/04/israel-sittin-1.html (interview with President Carter)

http://www.counterpunch.org/christison09062004.html

“Dual Loyalties: The Bush Neocons and Israel”

By KATHLEEN and BILL CHRISTISON

Former CIA political analysts

http://www.lrb.co.uk/v28/n06/mear01_.html

The Israel Lobby by Professors Mearsheimer and Walt: “For the past several decades, and especially since the Six-Day War in 1967, the centrepiece of US Middle Eastern policy has been its relationship with Israel. The combination of unwavering support for Israel and the related effort to spread ‘democracy’ throughout the region has inflamed Arab and Islamic opinion and jeopardized not only US security but that of much of the rest of the world. This situation has no equal in American political history. Why has the US been willing to set aside its own security and that of many of its allies in order to advance the interests of another state? One might assume that the bond between the two countries was based on shared strategic interests or compelling moral imperatives, but neither explanation can account for the remarkable level of material and diplomatic support that the US provides.

Instead, the thrust of US policy in the region derives almost entirely from domestic politics, and especially the activities of the ‘Israel Lobby’. Other special-interest groups have managed to skew foreign policy, but no lobby has managed to divert it as far from what the national interest would suggest, while simultaneously convincing Americans that US interests and those of the other country – in this case, Israel – are essentially identical.”

http://www.richardsilverstein.com/tikun_olam/2008/01/24/obama-gaza-siege-forced-on-israel/

“Obama’s Letter to U.S. Ambassador to U.N. “Gaza Siege “Forced on Israel”

http://jews4obama2008.wordpress.com/barack-obamas-breakfast-on-feb-24-2008-with-ohio-jews/

(SEE: Barack Obama’s Breakfast Speech on February 24 with Ohio Jews)

“He then said that he will carry with him to the White House “an unshakable commitment to the security of Israel and the friendship between the United States and Israel. The US-Israel relationship is rooted in shared interests, shared values, shared history and in deep friendship among our people … I will work tirelessly as president to uphold and enhance the friendship  between the two countries.”: Barack Obama  

http://jta.org/news/article/2008/10/28/110913/mccainobamaadvisers

“A look at Obama and McCain advisers”, By Ron Kampeas, October 28, 2008

http://www.prospect.org/cs/articles?article=what_does_it_mean_to_be_the_proisrael_candidate

Article: “”What Does It Mean To Be the Pro-Israel Candidate?”

“The major candidates in both parties seek the “pro-Israel” label. Now is the time to debate what it means to support Israel, so that a year from now, elected leaders will be able to refer to publicly recognized ideas to justify acting more sensibly”.

–Gershom Gorenberg | January 18, 2008

http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/us/series/the_new_team/index.html

“Obama: The New Team”

http://jews4barack.com/mythfacts/?cat=20

Joe Biden’s Speech to Jewish Americans. Obama like me totally supports Israel

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/28/nyregion/28school.html

“Critics Cost Muslim Educator Her Dream School: Role of Joel Klein, Superintendent of NYC Schools: now considered for Secretary of Education)

*** [Rabbi Michael Lerner is editor of Tikkun Magazine http://www.tikkun.org, chair of the Network of Spiritual Progressives http://www.spiritualprogressives.org, author of 11 books (most recently the 2006 national best-seller The Left Hand of God) and as a member of Rabbis for Obama recently debated Bill Kristol about how Jews should vote in the election.]

http://www.aipac.org/about_AIPAC/default.asp (From AIPAC’s own website: A Lobbying Group)

“As America’s leading pro-Israel lobby, AIPAC works with both Democratic and Republican political leaders to enact public policy that strengthens the vital U.S.-Israel relationship”.

http://www.newstatesman.com/200105140019

(Source for Ariel Sharon quote: “Arabs may have the oil….)

–John Pilger: “The big threat in the Middle East is Israel, not Iraq: it could play the nuclear card to blackmail the Americans”, May 14, 2001

In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.

Mohamed Khodr is a political and human rights activist who writes frequently on Israel’s decades long illegal occupation and oppression of the Palestinians, on U.S. foreign policy, Islam, and Arab politics.

Caught in Bed with Evil

freepaliadmin — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 19:04:00 GMT

By: Gilad Atzmon

Crossing points into Gaza have been shut down for almost two weeks, forcing the only power plant there to stop functioning, due to the lack of fuel. Last week, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency ran out of food and stopped rations’ deliveries to 750,000 residents of Gaza.

Though the humanitarian crisis in Gaza is now immanent, Western media refrains from reporting about the emerging disaster. Apparently, there are far more interesting things to write about, much more interesting than millions of Palestinians who are being starved by the Jewish state.

However the press was kind enough to report that British foreign minister David Miliband spent some time in Israel this week. He had been very concerned with issues concerning the Avocado and other ethical grocery matters. He wanted to propose a clearer method of labeling food products that are sourced in the occupied west bank and sold to consumers in Britain. This could as well be an opportunity for Britain and the EU to restrain Israel’s lethal enthusiasm, but Miliband failed short, far too short. At the end of the day, Miliband is what you may call a grocery humanist. His ethical thinking is orientated around nutrition and ethical digestion. This is apparently the most deteriorated and probably the lowest form of left thinking. At least I really want to believe that left cannot go any lower than that.

Yet, Miliband is a dynamic person. Due to the escalation of violence in the region, he visited Sderot, accompanied by Israeli defense minister Barak. Bluntly he supported the Israeli criminal policies by saying “Israel should, above all, seek to protect its own citizens,” as if this is not enough, he continued, “I’m here today because Sderot has become the front line of Israel’s security. It’s very important that countries like mine and others show solidarity with the people of Sderot and that’s what I’m doing today.” Ostensibly, Miliband didn’t visit Gaza. He also didn’t mention that countries like his should show ‘solidarity’ with millions of dispossessed Palestinian refugees that are now shelled and starved to submission. Though Miliband sincerely cares about Avocados and ethical nutrition, millions of Palestinians who are left to eat sand do not seem to concern him at all.

However, Miliband couldn’t stay in the region for too long, as he has to rush back home. In London he is supposed to meet no less than the Israeli President Mr. Shimon Peres, the elder politician who was the pioneer of the Israeli Nuclear project. The man who introduced WMD to the middle east, the man who has more blood on his hands than any other living Israeli politician (except vegetable Sharon). Miliband should be in London in time so he can join President Peres and unveil a special plaque at the Foreign Office, honoring British diplomats who helped save Jews during the Holocaust.

I wonder how many British Diplomats will be honored for saving a single Palestinian kid within the current Israeli inflicted Holocaust? If there are any British politicians and diplomats, Clearly, Miliband would not be one of them. Reading what he had to say to the people of Sderot, he is no less than an enthusiastic supporter of the Israeli institutional crimes against humanity.

Meanwhile, President Peres is having a good time in London this week. In the framework of his visit, he will hold a round of meetings with the Queen, Crown Prince Charles, Prime Minister Gordon Brown, David Miliband; and the leader of the opposition, David Cameron.

He will be awarded a Knight Grand Cross, the sixth-most senior award in the British system, used to honor individuals who have rendered important services in relation to foreign nations. Seemingly, in Britain, killing innocent Lebanese civilians and starving millions in Gaza must be considered as an “important service”. In Belgium, on the other hand, a very similar activity is considered a crime against humanity.

President Peres will also receive an honorary degree from Kings College for his efforts “furthering peace in the Middle East”. I think that considering Peres’ usage of ballistic technology against innocent civilians, a PhD in physics may be more appropriate.

On the face of it, at the time the Jewish state is exercising the most devastating forms of crimes against humanity, the British Government, the British Parliament, the royal family and a major British academic institute are all caught together in bed with no less than a nuclear enthusiast butcher.

I am rather impressed. More than ever I am proud to be British. Such an embracing openness towards wickedness is probably the ultimate form of British kindness and forgiveness. This is something I have never seen in my homeland. Looking at Parliament, Miliband and the Royal family I must admit, I have much to learn about compassion before I become a genuine British subject.

James Zogby and the Politics of Perception

freepaliadmin — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 18:59:00 GMT

By: Remi Kanazi

James Zogby isn’t just an Arab American with an opinion. He is the president of the Arab American Institute (AAI), a well known writer, and an esteemed leader within the Arab American community. Many non-Arab Americans highly regard his analysis and look to his articles as a resource to understand the Middle East.

This is precisely why his latest article, “Rahm Emanuel and Arab Perceptions” is so disturbing. In the piece, Zogby tries to calm the fears of Arab Americans about Barack Obama’s first appointment, Rahm Emanuel, to White House Chief of Staff. Zogby expressed shock and dismay that his constituency, once euphoric over the election of Obama, was now sending him angry and cynical letters. Zogby described the emails and calls to his office as “troubled and troubling—because much of the reaction was based on misinformation and because of what the entire episode reveals about the larger political dynamic.”

Zogby immediately followed up with what he calls “the facts” (i.e. a long list of Rahm Emanuel’s accomplishments), while conveniently leaving out any of his troubling positions related to the Middle East, namely that he was a staunch supporter of the war in Iraq and he has expressed hawkish pro-Israel views. The forcefulness of Zogby’s tone is elucidated in phrases such as “he knows how to get the job done” and “it’s as simple as that.” Right off the bat, Zogby informs his readers that if they don’t understand what a gem Emanuel is, they either cannot properly discern the facts, or their judgments are based on wild misinformation.

Zogby assumes that his constituency and the greater Arab American community are generally ignorant and know nothing of Emanuel (aside from the “myths”), and could not possibly come to a rational judgment on an individual who has been vocally pro-Israel, fought for Israel diplomatically, has supported Israeli militancy, and was an unabashed supporter of the war in Iraq. Zogby criticizes the Arab American community for ingesting defamatory myths, such as the claim that “he served in the IDF.” In fact, Emanuel did donate time during the Gulf War to repair IDF tanks; one could argue that, as an American, volunteering to help out a foreign occupying force is much worse than serving as an Israeli who is mandated to do so by law.

Another rumor that Zogby chastises Arab Americans for is the notion that Emanuel is an Israeli spy, which should make them “wary of the slanderous attacks smacking of anti-Semitism.” It is legitimate to debunk falsehoods, and it is right to hold any community to a proper standard, but to infer that Arab Americans should tread lightly or risk being consumed by anti-Semitism is an irresponsible way for an Arab American leader to silence dissent. There are a great many educated Arab Americans who are concerned about Emanuel’s record, and the notion that if you believe Emanuel served in the IDF, you are anti-Semite, is ridiculous. The falsehoods about Emanuel should be rejected, but they have absolutely nothing to do with anti-Semitism and to suggest otherwise is shameful.

Zogby then swerves in a bizarre direction by praising Emanuel’s involvement in the Oslo Accords. Emauel is the person who coordinated the shaking of hands between Yasser Arafat and Yitzhak Rabin on the White House lawn. The Oslo Accords (which Zogby endorsed) were a complete failure. During the Oslo years, illegal Israeli settlements doubled and the policy that emanated from the accords helped destroy the Palestinian economy. It is the equivalent of proclaiming that Emanuel was the ribbon cutter, unveiling the “bridge to nowhere.”

Compounding his carelessness, Zogby incorrectly equates right wing allegations that “Barack Obama is a Muslim” with rumors that Emanuel served in the IDF. It is notable that in 2006, when MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell referred to Rahm Emanuel as someone who served in the Israeli army in an interview, Emanuel did not dispute the claim (if it was such a slanderous attack, one would think Emanuel, the “practitioner of hard-ball politics,” would have spoken up).

Making his frustration crystal clear, Zogby asserts, “that stories such as these have been circulating, and have taken hold, is as reprehensible as the ‘Barack Obama is a secret Muslim/Manchurian candidate’ tale, or the anti-Arab anti-Muslim canards to which I and many of my colleagues have been subjected over the years.” What Zogby fails to mention is the fact that there is nothing wrong with being a Muslim, yet there is something fundamentally wrong with the IDF illegally occupying 3.8 million Palestinian people, subjugating them to incessant collective punishment, and cordoning the people of Gaza into an open-air prison.

Ending his lesson on “the facts,” Zogby seems to contradict his own assertions. He contends that Arab Americans should understand the “political realities,” and that just about all members of Congress are pro-Israel. Is Zogby suggesting that Arab Americans just suck it up, sit on their hands, and get used to the status quo? What happened to the change Barack Obama was going to usher in?

It is strange that the man behind the Yalla Vote! campaign is using these tactics to push his constituency into giving Emanuel a free pass. Whether these appointments are to be expected or not, wouldn’t Arab Americans expressing their concerns be a good thing? Isn’t that part of the democratic process and the reason why they engaged in this election cycle to begin with: to bring change to Washington.

While Zogby wants us to be aware of the “political realities,” the actual reality for many Arab Americans is simple: this appointment represents more of the same—whether it is the hawkish policies of the Bush administration or the destructive Mideast policy that was wrapped in nicer packaging during the Clinton years. Americans worked tirelessly for two years to elect Barack Obama. Now is the time to work tirelessly to ensure that the change that he promised comes to fruition.

The mission statement of the AAI reads in part, “The Arab American Institute (AAI) represents the policy and community interests of Arab Americans throughout the United States and strives to promote Arab American participation in the U.S. electoral system.” Perhaps Zogby should reread his own organization’s mission statement.

Remi Kanazi is a Palestinian-American writer, poet, editor, and actor living in New York City. He is editor of the recently released collection of poetry, spoken word, hip hop and art, Poets For Palestine. For more information, visit www.PoetsForPalestine.com or Amazon.com.

OBAMA'S AMBIGUITY - What it reveals about Mideast 'peace'

freepaliadmin — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 05:35:00 GMT

By: Ali Abunimah

Sons are not responsible for the racism of their fathers. But they do have a responsibility to let others know that they disagree vehemently with such sentiments. This is certainly the case for individuals in public service, particularly the man President-elect Barack Obama has chosen as White House chief of staff. Yet, Rep. Rahm Emanuel has not said a word regarding the troubling statement his father made to the Israeli newspaper Ma'ariv.

In a recent interview, Dr. Benjamin Emanuel asserted that his son's appointment would be beneficial to Israel. "Obviously he will influence the president to be pro-Israel," the elder Emanuel said, according to the Jerusalem Post. "Why wouldn't he be? What is he, an Arab? He's not going to clean the floors of the White House."

The public has a right to expect Mr. Emanuel to reject such raw racism especially given the historic resonance of Mr. Obama's victory. It's especially important for Arab and Muslim Americans who came through the election campaign feeling they are the last group of Americans who can still be publicly denigrated.

Mr. Emanuel - whose father fought with the Irgun, the pre-state Jewish militia that carried out terrorist attacks on Palestinians and the British in the 1940s - has a hawkishly pro-Israel record. He has never publicly distanced himself from his father's contribution to the dispossession of more than 750,000 Palestinians, nor criticized Israel's frequent attacks on Palestinian communities that have killed and maimed thousands of civilians.

In June 2003, Mr. Emanuel signed a letter criticizing President Bush for being insufficiently supportive of Israel. "We were deeply dismayed to hear your criticism of Israel for fighting acts of terror," Mr. Emanuel, along with 33 other Democrats, wrote to Mr. Bush. The letter asserted that Israel's policy of assassinating Palestinian political leaders "was clearly justified as an application of Israel's right to self-defense." Such killings violate the Geneva Conventions, and the State Department's human-rights report specified that there were more civilian bystanders killed in Israeli assassination attempts than actual targets in 2003.

For Palestinians, long experience suggests that no matter who occupies the White House, their rights and aspirations will always be a distant second to Israel's preferences. The U.S. role as an "honest broker" is in tatters, not just because of Mr. Bush's legacy, but also because the Clinton administration acted, during years of peace negotiations, as "Israel's lawyer," as Aaron David Miller, a former top State Department official, memorably admitted.

Previously, Mr. Obama was more open to hearing different viewpoints and expressed understanding for the plight of Palestinians under Israeli military occupation. Many still remember his statement in Iowa: "Nobody is suffering more than the Palestinian people." He later hedged, however, asserting it was the Palestinians' own leadership, rather than Israel's, at fault. Such ambiguity has fueled wild speculation about Mr. Obama's pro-Israel bona fides.

Picking Mr. Emanuel may be intended to shore up those credentials, but is hardly Mr. Obama's first indication that he will embrace hawkish supporters of Israel. His speech to AIPAC, the pro-Israel lobby, just after he won his party's presidential nomination in June, angered people across the Arab world for embracing Israel's exclusive claims to Jerusalem and for its one-sided criticism of Palestinians.

On a highly symbolic visit in July, Mr. Obama spent almost all his time meeting Israelis and less than an hour with Palestinians. Palestinians were further dismayed by Mr. Obama's support for Israel's blockade of the Gaza Strip.

Mr. Obama's recent outlook would be less worrying if it included efforts to hear the widest range of views. But responding to criticism he was insufficiently pro-Israel, Mr. Obama distanced himself from establishment figures holding independent views like former National Security Adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski and Robert Malley, a more even-handed figure in President Clinton's Middle East team. And when Sen. John McCain attacked Mr. Obama for associating with a mainstream Palestinian-American Columbia University professor, Mr. Obama failed to defend his right to consult with whomever he pleases on a critical, if divisive, issue.

Palestinians watching these developments are concerned that Mr. Obama will surround himself with pro-Israel veterans - such as Dennis Ross, who long headed the peace process for President Clinton - who will push for the familiar one-sided policies that allowed Israel to expand its settlements and wall Palestinians off in impoverished, isolated ghettos.

The fundamental change that Mr. Obama promised would mean viewing Israelis and Palestinians as equally deserving of rights and security, something the U.S. has never done in practice.

Brent Scowcroft, former national security advisor, stressed recently on CNN the importance of getting started early on Israeli-Palestinian peace. Mr. Scowcroft noted that "we have removed ... with this election a lot of that sense of injustice in this country. We ought to try to do it in the Middle East." He's right.

But with Mr. Obama tapping Mr. Emanuel to be his gatekeeper, injustice in the Middle East seems more apt to go unaddressed than it did election night.

The Occupation re-routes the Wall: 200 trees being uprooted in Jayyous

freepaliadmin — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 04:31:00 GMT

Latest News, Palestinian Grassroots Anti-Apartheid Wall Campaign, November 10th, 2008

Less than a week after an Occupation High Court decision to change the route of the Apartheid Wall in Jayyous, Occupation forces began uprooting trees and destroying farmland to make room for the construction of the Wall. This is part of the 277 dunums of land that will be razed for the path of the Wall, in addition to the 5,585 dunums that will be permanently confiscated when it is completed. Some 200 olive trees have already been marked for uprooting.

Above: Gates like Jayyous "south gate" in the picture are not contemplated in the new plans for the Wall in the area.

On November 4th, the Occupation High Court closed the legal charade it had started in 2004 as one of the attempts to undermine the International Court of Justice decision on the illegality of the Wall. In 2005 the Occupation decided to re-route the Wall. However, three years lapsed, in which time the settlements on Jayyous lands were given time consolidate their expansion plans. These plans were then taken into account in the creation of the new path of the Wall. Finally, a week ago the Occupation court approved the new plans of the military that were aimed not only at cementing the Occupation’s land grab, but also to try and extort Palestinian approval. The mayor of the village, representing Jayyous, was put under clear pressure to accept the path, but he still refused to give his approval. Jayyous does not surrender its lands.

With the old and the new path of the Wall, the settlement of Zufim is slated to swallow much of the annexed land, along with an industrial zone that the Occupation will build on the agricultural lands of Jayyous. The construction of infrastructure for the new part of the settlement called "North Zufim" has already begun. Construction of an electricity network has started and the creation of housing units is imminent.

This is the first time that the Occupation has begun to build the Wall in accordance with a court decision to re-route it. The decision of the Occupation courts includes the re-routing of the Wall north of Jayyous by replacing a 2.4 km stretch with a 4.9 km stretch that is 2 km closer to the Green Line. The Wall in Jayyous still encroaches 4 km inside the West Bank. By re-routing the Wall, the Occupation is causing more devastation to the land through the uprooting of additional olive trees – in addition to the 6,000 that have already been uprooted – and the destruction of more farmland. Farmers will now permanently be cut off from their farmland, as the gates through the Wall will be completely closed. As a result of this land grab, the 85% of the people of Jayyous who made their living as farmers have largely been made unemployed, and most of those who were still able to maintain their livelihoods will now join the jobless ranks.

The court decision, therefore, does nothing to reverse the damage that has been done to the Jayyous, and in no way does it alleviate the hardships caused the villagers and farmers. Indeed, the only effective form of change would be to tear down the wall completely, not to change its path. This court decision merely serves to give a façade of legality to the construction of the illegal Wall and its destruction and dispossession of village land.

Jayyous was the first village that mounted regular, large-scale protests against the construction of the Wall when it was first being built, and eventually, these protests spread to villages such as Ni’lin, Bil’in, and al Masra. By targeting Jayyous, with these actions, therefore, the Occupation is effectively setting an example for the rest of the West Bank: those who attempt to resist their colonialist aims and apartheid infrastructure will pay with increased destruction and dispossession.

UN: ISRAEL'S "ENORMOUS WEB OF UNLAWFUL PRACTICES" DEVASTATING PALESTINIAN SOCIETY

freepaliadmin — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 03:49:00 GMT

Sixty-third General Assembly

Fourth Committee

21st Meeting (PM)

ISRAELS ENORMOUS WEB OF UNLAWFUL PRACTICES DEVASTATING PALESTINIAN SOCIETY, PALESTINES OBSERVER SAYS, AS FOURTH COMMITTEE DEBATES SITUATION IN TERRITORY

Chairman of Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices Underlines Interlocking, Reinforcing Relationship between Human Rights, Potential for Peace

Copy and paste the address below to learn more:

http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2008/gaspd415.doc.htm

Jewish Terrorist attacks Church of the Holy Sepulcher

freepaliadmin — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 09:25:00 GMT

By Kawther Salam

In the night of Wednesday, October 29, an extremist orthodox Jew - chosen by God, invaded the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in the old city of Jerusalem. The Jewish terrorist tried to harm three monks who were worshiping God in the church. The monks saw the terrorist Jew and escaped from his attack, but then the terrorist left the Church and went on to vandalize several Palestinian shops nearby the Church. He broke many wooden crosses before the Palestinians shop owners called the Israeli Police.

The Palestinian eyewitnesses said that personnel from the Israeli border Police present near the Church saw the terrorist when he entered the Church and also when he vandalized the Palestinian shops nearby, but they did nothing to stop his criminal actions.

The Israeli police, who arrived to protect the extremist Jew, forced the Palestinian shop owners who gathered after the terrorist attack of the Jew to leave the area. The police used force against the Palestinians, because, according to them, their presence would create confrontation with the orthodox
Jews.

The extremist Jewish attack against the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem was not the first one and it will not be the last one. On October 23, 2007, Jewish orthodox terrorists burnt the Baptist Church on Narkis Street in a wealthy Jerusalem neighborhood. The Jewish terrorists set the fire in the building; the floor was severely burnt and many chairs were destroyed, but luckily no one was in the building at the time. This neighborhood belonged to Palestinians before 1967 and was stolen wholesale by the Jewish terrorist and criminal invaders from USA, Europe and elsewhere.

Several years ago, a fire bomb was thrown by Jewish terrorists into the bookstore of the Baptist Church. In 1982, the same Church was burned down by a group of Jewish terrorists who called themselves “Nationalist group of Jews”. The Church was rehabilitated after this terror action.

On 5 March 2006, an orthodox Jewish man and two extremist Jewish women attacked the Church of Nazareth in the north of Israel. They threw firecrackers inside the Church.

The pitiable and deluded Jewish terrorists believe that Christians and Muslims should not have a presence in Jerusalem, because supposedly God gave it only to them. Jerusalem should be open to the adherents of the three Abrahamic religions with the only proviso that Jerusalem should be off-limits to the extremists of these three religions. And the occupying Jews have shown their inability to assume responsibility for Jerusalem, a heritage which belongs to all humanity.

Since it is the Jews who are the only ones who resort to terrorism and all sort of criminality to assert their supposed “chooseness” and “right” to Jerusalem, it is entirely possible that God never gave or even promised them anything at all, and that it is only a matter of time before they are forced by this same God who abandoned them, to leave not only Jerusalem, but all my country, for good.

Home team finally plays at home

freepaliadmin — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 02:07:00 GMT

Ahmad Gharabli / AFP/Getty Images

In an act of defiance and national pride, history was made as the Palestinian soccer team played their first "home" game since the team was formed 10 years ago. Due to the Zionist occupation, not only has the team been restricted from playing any home games, but they have also been unable to practice as a team due to the restrictions of movement by the Zionist occupation considering some players are from Gaza and others from the West Bank.

With an average age of 20, the Palestinian soccer team I'm sure helped their audience of 8,000 plus escape the realities of occupation, if only for a short while. The crowds erupted in excitement early as the Palestinians scored fifteen minutes into the game against their Jordanian opponents.

The game ended in a tie, but the score was apparently not of much relevance considering the historic moment they were a part of.

Yousef Abudayyeh - It Was Never About Borders

freepaliadmin — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 04:05:00 GMT

By Mary Rizzo

The Palestinian-Zionist conflict is not about disputed borders, it’s about the very existence of the indigenous inhabitants of Palestine. The Zionist invaders came to Palestine because according to the Zionists, Palestine was a land with no people and needed to be filled with “people who have no land.”

Unless the whole world and especially the Arab Palestinians understand this, things will get worse. What we saw in Akka (Akko) this week is a continuation of the emptying of Palestine of its original people. This has always been a fruitless undertaking, fueled by the invader’s realization of the ultimate failure of the Zionist adventure - make no mistake about it.

And just to let you know, what’s going on in Akka has been happening on a different scale in all the cities and village of Palestine 48. A few days ago, a friend of mine with some of his family members were driving in Haifa when his car was stoned by these fascist Zionist invaders with the “police” watching on and not doing a thing, a very familiar scene.

These stepped up attacks on ‘48 Palestinians should make clear the following:

- Our people of the ‘48 land have been living for more than 60 years, under the worst of racist conditions. All the attempts that the Arab leaders made in order to co-exist with the Zionists were attempts that needed to be made in order to prove to the world, and more importantly, to the Palestinian people, that the Zionist invaders were really not interested in co-existence. All these invaders are interested in are finding ways to push the Arabs out of their homes so they can salvage their colonization “dream” of (at least half of) Palestine.

- The so-called Palestinian leadership in Ramallah, (in no way smarter or tested than the leadership of the Arabs of ‘48), should go back to the original writings of the PLO and study them and understand them. The original understanding of the conflict was the right one. These Zionists invaders are not interested in anything less than an empty Palestine. Any misunderstanding of this fact will lead to more blood and misery. The least they can do is talk with our leaders in ‘48 and learn from them.

- The Arab countries should at once stop all dealings with the Zionists.

- The Zionist idea and doctrine is dead or at least cracked and cannot be fulfilled. The building of racist walls and even getting involved with “peace talks” are signs of the Zionists getting used to the fact that they cannot have all of Palestine, definitely not without its original inhabitants, and for sure not on their terms. Having said that, this will bring the fascist elements of the invaders (and they are many) to commit desperate acts. This will no doubt lead to more killing of Arabs in the near future. The world community should be put on notice that these fascists and their leaders should be tried for war crimes. The whole Zionist state should be held responsible for any more suffering the occupied Palestinian people will face.
- The only viable solution remains the one democratic state where Palestine will go back to its Arab womb and where anyone who wants to live in Palestine will be free of hatred and will have the same duties, obligations and rights as anyone else that lives there.

When Will America Wake From Her Slumber?

freepaliadmin — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 15:21:00 GMT

Posted on the web by Khaled Amayreh

When future Historians look into the factors that ultimately brought down the American empire, one of the main factors they will feature prominently is the “Israeli factor.”

It is well known that Israel, through the numerous Zionist lobbies and pressure groups, more or less controls America’s politics, media and financial institutions.

I am not going to provide statistical data showing the extent to which nearly every aspect of American life is infiltrated and penetrated by Zionism. Such data are readily available for those seeking the truth about Zionist dominance in America.

Instead, I suggest that skeptics speak to some of those senators or congressmen and women who dare to “tell it like it is,” or privately ask some people in the media and show-business about their respective experiences with regard to the “Lobby.”

Undoubtedly they will hear hair-raising stories they have never thought they will ever hear.

In the late 1970s, the American Jewish intellectual Alfred Lilienthal wrote an extremely important book on the Jewish lobby that controls contemporary America. The book is titled “The Zionist Connection: What Price Peace,” and is in my opinion one of the greatest books written in the twentieth century.

The reason I mentioned Lilienthal’s book is because the Zionist control of American political life and institutions is today deeper, tighter and more encompassing than ever before. And there is no doubt under the sun that America’s steady downfall is imputed first and foremost to this impenetrable Israel-worshiping lobby which utilizes America’s power and resources for the sake of serving and promoting Zionist goals both in the Middle East and at the global level.

Didn’t Israeli emissaries in the 1990s, following the collapse of the former Soviet Union, tell the rulers of Central Asia and Eastern Europe that “we control the US government, and the way to America’s mind and heart goes through Jerusalem?”!!!

Sounds anti-Semitic? Well, don’t be too sure, just listen to what Zionist leaders and rabbis in Israel are saying! Maybe you will change your views.

Some of the most strident and audacious acts Israel and her agents in America have taken to destroy America from within has been the American invasion and occupation of Iraq. That unnecessary and manifestly disastrous war was conceived in and planned by Israel through the mostly Jewish neocons in Washington, D.C.

Interestingly, not only has this criminal war killed more than a million Iraqis and several thousand American soldiers, but it has also ruined the United States financially and dealt the American currency, the US dollar, what seems to be an irreversible crushing blow.

Needless to say, the current mega crisis in America, on the one hand, and the ongoing Israeli-conceived wars America is fighting in many parts of the world, on the other, are inextricably entwined. American leaders and politicians won’t say that openly. But America doesn’t lack the brain power to know the facts and find out the truth about the umbilical connection between the Israeli factor and the ravaging financial crisis now facing the US.

Again, if you are in doubt, ask those who dare to speak in Washington and they will tell you what you can’t count on the Zionist-controlled media to tell. After all, Fox News, CNN, ABC, CBS, NBC, New York Times, Washington Post, LA Times, Wall Street Journal, Time and Newsweek, to mention a few of the so-called “agenda setters,” are not really answerable to the American people. They are answerable to the lobby, because if and when officials at these outlets don’t go with the flow, they get fired immediately. Have you ever thought why it is easier to criticize Israel in Tel Aviv than in New York? Have you every figured out why it is easier for an Israeli politician to lambaste his own government for its misdeeds than it is for an American official to do so? There are Israeli academics and intellectuals who have called Israel “a Nazi state.” Can an American professor or intellectual call Israel a Nazi state and retain his job?

Now Israel has got America deeply sinking in the futile war on terror, which is actually another meaningless war on Israel’s enemies, namely the Muslims, for supporting the just Palestinian cause and demanding Israeli withdrawal from occupied Arab land.

Like the Iraq war and the Afghan war, the apparently nihilistic war on terror is being waged on Israel’s behalf because, in the final analysis, there is really no conflict between Muslims and America.

Yes, “9/11″, we are told, was carried out by a few terrorists who held Muslim names and who wrongly thought that they were serving the Palestinian cause and the cause of Islam by killing innocent people.

But these misguided individuals, if indeed they were the real villains (because there is a growing mass of evidence prompting honest people to doubt and question the authenticity of the official American narrative in this regard) only represent a tiny part of the Muslim world. Muslims generally don’t hate America and the American people. Most people don’t hate other people, regardless of religion and culture. It is only due to deep and grievances that oppressed people harbor ill feelings toward their oppressors.

Otherwise, I am sure a hundred per cent that Palestinians and Muslims in general have no inherent ill-feelings toward the American people.

Of course, Zionist Jews, some of who are now distributing anti-Islamic DVDs in America to instill hatred and fear of Islam and Muslims in the hearts of Americans in order to serve Israeli interests, dread the day Americans will know the truth about Israel, e.g. that Israel is nothing less than a crime against humanity and that it represents the ultimate antithesis of everything the American people hold dear and stand for.

Recently, America had to allocate 700 billion dollars to bail out another ramshackle American financial institution.

I am afraid there will be more bad news in this regard if America doesn’t reclaim its liberty from the Zionist Rober Barons who have come to tightly control the American financial establishment.

Moreover, should the US decide to act on Israel’s instructions (or orders) and go to war against another Muslim country, this time Iran, one could imagine the magnitude of the financial and therefore economic disaster that would befall America and the world.

A few years ago, it was rumored that former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, that certified war criminal, told Shimon Peres, then Israel’s foreign minister, during an acrimonious cabinet meeting “that we control America from California to New York and the stupid Americans know it.”

And while I am not completely sure about the authenticity of the statement, it is amply clear that the disgraceful pandering to Zionism by American politicians, including Presidential hopefuls Barack Obama and John McCain and their running mates, vindicates the veracity of that statement, uttered or unuttered.

Today, Israel is trying to consummate its hateful enterprise of ethnic cleansing in the Middle East, using American money and American power. Israel will fight the Muslim world to the last American dollar and the last American soldier.

Hence, it is time ordinary Americans wake up from their slumber to reclaim their country from rapacious Zionism. Because their very future is at stake.

Israeli Bestseller Breaks National Taboo

freepaliadmin — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 14:59:00 GMT

by Jonathan Cook

No one is more surprised than Shlomo Sand that his latest academic work has spent 19 weeks on Israel’s bestseller list – and that success has come to the history professor despite his book challenging Israel’s biggest taboo.

Dr. Sand argues that the idea of a Jewish nation – whose need for a safe haven was originally used to justify the founding of the state of Israel – is a myth invented little more than a century ago.

An expert on European history at Tel Aviv University, Dr. Sand drew on extensive historical and archaeological research to support not only this claim but several more – all equally controversial.

In addition, he argues that the Jews were never exiled from the Holy Land, that most of today’s Jews have no historical connection to the land called Israel and that the only political solution to the country’s conflict with the Palestinians is to abolish the Jewish state.

The success of When and How Was the Jewish People Invented? looks likely to be repeated around the world. A French edition, launched last month, is selling so fast that it has already had three print runs.

Translations are under way into a dozen languages, including Arabic and English. But he predicted a rough ride from the pro-Israel lobby when the book is launched by his English publisher, Verso, in the United States next year.

In contrast, he said Israelis had been, if not exactly supportive, at least curious about his argument. Tom Segev, one of the country’s leading journalists, has called the book “fascinating and challenging.”

Surprisingly, Dr. Sand said, most of his academic colleagues in Israel have shied away from tackling his arguments. One exception is Israel Bartal, a professor of Jewish history at Hebrew University in Jerusalem. Writing in Haaretz, the Israeli daily newspaper, Dr. Bartal made little effort to rebut Dr. Sand’s claims. He dedicated much of his article instead to defending his profession, suggesting that Israeli historians were not as ignorant about the invented nature of Jewish history as Dr. Sand contends.

The idea for the book came to him many years ago, Dr. Sand said, but he waited until recently to start working on it. “I cannot claim to be particularly courageous in publishing the book now,” he said. “I waited until I was a full professor. There is a price to be paid in Israeli academia for expressing views of this sort.”

Dr. Sand’s main argument is that until little more than a century ago, Jews thought of themselves as Jews only because they shared a common religion. At the turn of the 20th century, he said, Zionist Jews challenged this idea and started creating a national history by inventing the idea that Jews existed as a people separate from their religion.

Equally, the modern Zionist idea of Jews being obligated to return from exile to the Promised Land was entirely alien to Judaism, he added.

“Zionism changed the idea of Jerusalem. Before, the holy places were seen as places to long for, not to be lived in. For 2,000 years Jews stayed away from Jerusalem not because they could not return but because their religion forbade them from returning until the messiah came.”

The biggest surprise during his research came when he started looking at the archaeological evidence from the biblical era.

“I was not raised as a Zionist, but like all other Israelis I took it for granted that the Jews were a people living in Judea and that they were exiled by the Romans in 70AD.

“But once I started looking at the evidence, I discovered that the kingdoms of David and Solomon were legends.

“Similarly with the exile. In fact, you can’t explain Jewishness without exile. But when I started to look for history books describing the events of this exile, I couldn’t find any. Not one.

“That was because the Romans did not exile people. In fact, Jews in Palestine were overwhelming peasants and all the evidence suggests they stayed on their lands.”

Instead, he believes an alternative theory is more plausible: the exile was a myth promoted by early Christians to recruit Jews to the new faith. “Christians wanted later generations of Jews to believe that their ancestors had been exiled as a punishment from God.”

So if there was no exile, how is it that so many Jews ended up scattered around the globe before the modern state of Israel began encouraging them to “return”?

Dr. Sand said that, in the centuries immediately preceding and following the Christian era, Judaism was a proselytizing religion, desperate for converts. “This is mentioned in the Roman literature of the time.”

Jews traveled to other regions seeking converts, particularly in Yemen and among the Berber tribes of North Africa. Centuries later, the people of the Khazar kingdom in what is today south Russia, would convert en masse to Judaism, becoming the genesis of the Ashkenazi Jews of central and eastern Europe.

Dr. Sand pointed to the strange state of denial in which most Israelis live, noting that papers offered extensive coverage recently to the discovery of the capital of the Khazar kingdom next to the Caspian Sea.

Ynet, the website of Israel’s most popular newspaper, Yedioth Ahronoth, headlined the story: “Russian archaeologists find long-lost Jewish capital.” And yet none of the papers, he added, had considered the significance of this find to standard accounts of Jewish history.

One further question is prompted by Dr. Sand’s account, as he himself notes: if most Jews never left the Holy Land, what became of them?

“It is not taught in Israeli schools but most of the early Zionist leaders, including David Ben Gurion [Israel's first prime minister], believed that the Palestinians were the descendants of the area’s original Jews. They believed the Jews had later converted to Islam.”

Dr. Sand attributed his colleagues’ reticence to engage with him to an implicit acknowledgement by many that the whole edifice of “Jewish history” taught at Israeli universities is built like a house of cards.

The problem with the teaching of history in Israel, Dr. Sand said, dates to a decision in the 1930s to separate history into two disciplines: general history and Jewish history. Jewish history was assumed to need its own field of study because Jewish experience was considered unique.

“There’s no Jewish department of politics or sociology at the universities. Only history is taught in this way, and it has allowed specialists in Jewish history to live in a very insular and conservative world where they are not touched by modern developments in historical research.

“I’ve been criticized in Israel for writing about Jewish history when European history is my specialty. But a book like this needed a historian who is familiar with the standard concepts of historical inquiry used by academia in the rest of the world.”

This article originally appeared in The National, published in Abu Dhabi.

2008 freepali.com SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENT ANNOUNCED

freepaliadmin — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 16:34:00 GMT

It's been exactly six months since freepali.com has launched. As one of the main focuses of the website was to raise awareness regarding the Palestinian cause, the idea of the scholarship was established to encourage students to actively work to this end. Well, the time has arrived and it is with such pleasure that freepali.com is able to present the first scholarship to Rana Abdelqader.

After reviewing the applications, verifying information and contacting references, I was most impressed by the reference one of Rana's professors provided. In speaking to the Professor, who also served as a faculty representative to a Middle Eastern Solidarity organization Rana established on campus, I was sold on her dedication to the cause. She described the work Rana has committed herself to and her perseverence as she has regularly been confronted by obstacles. Even in situations when the Professor was concerned about reactions (or shall I say retaliation) from the opposition and understanding that Rana was working solo, Rana's dedication did not waiver. Key word, 'solo'. Rana's drive and determination in working for such a great cause both on and off campus should make us all proud and she should serve as an example to us all.

Thank you to Rana for making us proud!

I would also like to thank all of the visitors to freepali.com for their support in visiting the site, adding themselves to the mailing list, making purchases and sharing the site with others.

Ihsan

THE JOKE OF PALESTINIAN "DEMOCRACY" UNDER FATAH

freepaliadmin — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 00:53:00 GMT

WRITTEN by Khalid Amayreh in occupied Palestine

Jockeying for an advantageous public posture vis-à-vis Hamas, the Fatah movement has been calling for the organization of presidential and parliamentary elections in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

The proposal is being touted as the only way to resolve the enduring crisis between Fatah and Hamas, following the latter’s counter-coup in Gaza in June of last year.

The proposal, however, seems to be more of a propagandist gambit than a sincere effort aimed at achieving inter-Palestinian reconciliation.

And it doesn’t suggest that Fatah, now solidly backed and financed by the United States, has undergone a true democratic transformation.

Indeed, Fatah today remains the same Fatah that only reluctantly and under American pressure agreed to allow general elections to take place in 2006- and only because Fatah leaders seemed then certain they would win.

However, when Hamas won the polls by a wide margin, Fatah couldn’t swallow the bitter bill and decided to embark on every conceivable act of sabotage in order to undercut Hamas and destabilize its rule. Some observers believe that Fatah took a secret decision to bring the would-be Hamas government down as soon as elections results were announced.

True, some Fatah leaders publicly accepted the results of the election. However, in reality, they sought to narrow Hamas horizons by effectively and actively joining the American-led open war against Hamas, a war that is yet to come to an end.

A few years ago, I remember I listened to a secret audio-taped briefing by Muhammed Dahlan to his supporters at al Hurriya radio station in Gaza. In that infamous briefing, Dahlan swore to make Hamas regret the day it decided to take part in the election.

“I will make them eat…expletive, and if any Fatah guy dares participate in the Hamas government, I will know how to deal with him.”

Dahlan added that “ I will send a few jeeps here and there and give the impression that Gaza is on fire.”

Dahlan made more horrifying remarks that one would refrain from mentioning to maintain the dignity of language.

Subsequently, Fatah, or more correctly the American-empowered camp within the movement, actively collaborated with the CIA and Israel to “make the Hamas experiment fail” lest it be repeated elsewhere in the Middle East and the rest of the Muslim world.

The idea was very simple: Impose draconian economic and financial strangulation as much as possible on ordinary Palestinians to make them not only regret their erstwhile decision to vote for Hamas but also actively turn against the Islamic movement in ways analogous to the many CIA-induced coups in Latin and Central America.

Earlier this year, the American magazine “Vanity Fair” published an extensive investigative report titled “How the Bush Administration Lied to Congress and Armed Fatah to Provoke Palestinian Civil War Aiming to Overthrow Hamas.”

The report pointed out that the White House tried to organize the armed overthrow of the Hamas-led government after Hamas swept Palestinian elections in 2006.

According to the report, the Bush administration lied to Congress and boosted military support for rival Palestinian faction Fatah in the aim of provoking a Palestinian civil war they thought Hamas would lose.

Vanity Fair dubbed the episode “Iran Contra 2.0″—a reference to the Reagan administration’s funding of Nicaraguan Contras by covertly selling arms to Iran.

A former top Bush administration official said he believed Hamas’s seizure of power in Gaza last year might have likely been a preemptive measure against the anticipated US-backed coup.

The official, David Wurmser, served as Vice President Cheney’s Middle East adviser until he resigned in July of 2007, a month after Hamas took over. Wurmser said, “There is a stunning disconnect between the President’s call for Middle East democracy and this policy. It directly contradicts it.”

Clearly embarrassed, Fatah, as expected, belittled the credibility of the report, dismissing it as “grossly inaccurate.”

So now Fatah is asking for early elections while being completely oblivious to a host of important questions pertaining to the elections. Such questions include the following:

First, Will Israel and the American administration, which consider Hamas a “terrorist organization” (not for the violence but for insisting on Palestinian rights, especially the right of return for Palestinian refugees), allow free and transparent elections to take place in light of the “disastrous experiment” of 2006?

Fatah leaders may argue, mostly for the sake of argument, that that the elections are an internal Palestinian matter. Well, this is true, but we all know that the PA is not a state, let alone a sovereign one. We also know that the PA is 150% subservient to the US which is in turn subservient to Israel. So why speak to the monkey when you can speak to organ grinder?!!

Second, let us argue, at least for the sake of argument, that Hamas won the elections, so would Fatah accept the results this time? Would the tens of thousands of American-trained and American-paid anti-Hamas soldiers in the West Bank accept the jurisdiction of the new Hamas-led government?

In fact, it would be more than naïve to think that they would. We are talking after all about security forces whose raison d’être is to fight and annihilate Hamas as is evident from the vindictive campaign against suspected Hamas supporters and Islamic institutions now underway all over the West Bank.

Third, let us imagine that Fatah would accept the results, even if these results proved to be not to its liking. But would Israel? Indeed, are there guarantees that the Israeli occupation army, which controls every corner and every street in the West Bank, wouldn’t round up the “wrong candidates” and the “wrong winners” and dump them in Israeli dungeons and concentration camps all over occupied Palestine as it has done the last time elections were held?

Israel, for those who have forgotten, continues to detain for the third consecutive year hundreds of elected Palestinian officials, including mayors, local council members, and, especially, as many as 40 elected lawmakers and former cabinet ministers.

The main “crime” committed by these elected Palestinian officials, people like Professor Aziz Duweik, the Speaker of the Palestinian parliament, is that they took part in an “illegal election”! Well, this is really a big lie since the 2006-Palestinian elections were okayed by both Israel, under the premiership of Ariel Sharon, and the Bush Administration.

This scandalous and gangsterly conduct by a state that calls itself the only democracy in the Middle East is a clarion proof that democracy under a foreign military occupation is a big farce.

To be sure, this is a message that all Palestinian factions, particularly Fatah and Hamas, ought to comprehend and internalize.

Failing to do so will make us the laughingstock of the world.