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If after everything, the Israeli phoenix succeeded in rising from the ashes and getting reelected, something is truly broken, possibly beyond repair.
Zionist Union supporters wait for the appearance of Isaac Herzog at party headquarters in Tel Aviv after exit poll results March 17, 2015. (Photo: Reuters/Baz Ratner)
The first conclusion that arose just minutes after the announcement of the exit polls was particularly discouraging: The nation must be replaced. Not another election for the country’s leadership, but general elections to choose a new Israeli people – immediately. The country urgently needs that. It won’t be able to stand another term for Benjamin Netanyahu, who emerged last night as the man who will form the next government.
If after six years of nothing, if after six years of sowing fear and anxiety, hatred and despair, this is the nation’s choice, then it is very ill indeed. If after everything that has been revealed in recent months, if after everything that has been written and said, if after all this, the Israeli phoenix succeeded in rising from the ashes and getting reelected, if after all this the Israeli people chose him to lead for another four years, something is truly broken, possibly beyond repair.
Netanyahu deserves the Israeli people and they deserve him. The results are indicative of the direction the country is headed: A significant proportion of Israelis has finally grown detached from reality. This is the result of years’ worth of brainwashing and incitement. These Israelis voted for the man who will lead the United States to adopt harsh measures against Israel, for the man whom the world long ago grew sick of. They voted for the man who admitted to having duped half the world during his Bar-Ilan speech; now he has torn off his mask and disavowed those words once and for all. Israel said “yes” to the man who said “no” to a Palestinian state. Dear Likud voters, what the hell do you say “yes” to? Another 50 years of occupation and ostracism? Do you really believe in that?
On Tuesday the foundations were laid for the apartheid state that is to come. If Netanyahu succeeds in forming the next government in his spirit and image, then the two-state solution will finally be buried and the struggle over the character of a binational state will begin. If Netanyahu is the next prime minister, then Israel has not only divorced the peace process, but also the world. Piss off, dear world, we’re on our own. Please don’t interfere, we’re asleep, the people are with Netanyahu. The Palestinians can warm the benches at the International Criminal Court at The Hague, the Israel boycotters can swing into high gear and Gaza can wait for the next cruel attack by the Israeli army.
The battle for all these has yet to be officially decided. The next prime minister will be crowned by Moshe Kahlon and the heads of other small parties. At the time of this writing, Kahlon has yet to declare his intention. The ball is in these parties’ court; they will decide if Netanyahu continues. Most of them despise him, but it’s doubtful whether they will have the courage to turn their backs on the public. That will be their test. That will be the test of their courage and integrity. Moshe Kahlon and Aryeh Dery, do you truly believe Netanyahu is better than Isaac Herzog for the society and social welfare you purport to care for? Does the country’s decent and courageous president, Reuven Rivlin, believe Netanyahu will be a better prime minister than Herzog? There is a lot resting on his shoulders now – but the fact that a figure like Netanyahu and a party like Likud succeeded in maintaining power as the country’s leading faction already says a great deal.
Netanyahu is threatening to surpass David Ben-Gurion as Israel’s longest running leader. He is already in second place, and yet it’s hard to think of one significant achievement on his part. The list of damage he has done is long. But he is the nation’s, or much of the nation’s, chosen one. That choice must be respected, even if it makes it difficult to hope for a good outcome. The only consolation is that another Netanyahu term will prompt the world to act. That possibility is our only refuge.
source © 2015 Haaretz
Fidel Castro’s words stand in stark contrast to the UN’s ineffective and ambiguous resolutions…Of all the comments penned about Israel’s atrocities inflicted on the people of Gaza, Fidel Castro’s reflection published in Granma, the newsletter of the Cuban Communist Party, is of utmost significance. Weaving an account of imperial violence as a force necessitating resistance, the legendary Castro’s discussion of Palestine and the genocide inflicted upon Palestinians should be read with particular attention within the internationalist context that has, historically, formed part of the Cuban revolution since his memorable speech, History will absolve me. Not only read, but heeded.
Reflecting upon the widespread horror that engulfed the world in relation to the Nazi persecution of Jews, among other minority groups, Fidel wrote: “Why does this government believe that the world will be insensitive to the macabre genocide which today is being perpetrated against the Palestinian people? Perhaps it is expected that the complicity of the US Empire in this shameful massacre will be ignored?”
Cuban collaboration with the Palestinian resistance dates back to June 18, 1959, when revolutionary Ernesto Che Guevara visited Gaza only a few months after the triumph of the Cuban revolution. In later years, Cuba supported Palestinian armed resistance, forming particular alliances with Fatah under Yasser Arafat, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine. Following this, the Caribbean country severed all diplomatic ties with Israel.
As can be seen from Castro’s many speeches and declarations, internationalism against colonial and imperial domination remains a central feature. In the Second Declaration of Havana, he said, “The movement of the dependent and colonial peoples is a phenomenon of universal character which agitates the world and marks the final crisis of imperialism.” In further analysis with regard to revolutionary consciousness and internationalism, the Cuban revolutionary leader stated, “A country that exploits the people of Latin America, or any other parts of the world, is an ally of the exploiters of the rest of the world.”
Within the context of Gaza and Israel’s colonial massacre, the above quotes prompt profound reflection. Imperialism has sought, relentlessly, to dismiss Palestinian resistance as uncalculated and unwarranted violence, aka “terrorism”, despite the obvious discrepancies arising from the magnitude of the damage inflicted by Israel upon Gaza. Following decades of colonial violence in various manifestations which contributed to the erosion of resistance through concessions, Palestinian revolutionary struggle has been embraced at a national level, through recognition of, and resistance against, the threat of colonisation. “Protective Edge” has served to heighten the legitimacy of Palestinian resistance; not through the ramifications of international law, but as a coherent struggle against the epitome of imperialist-supported violence.
Fidel Castro’s words stand in stark contrast to the UN’s ineffective and ambiguous resolutions, another struggle which the Cuban leader elaborated upon continuously as he utilised the international platform to further the revolution’s internationalist stance. Armed struggle has proven to be the primary means through which imperialism may be combated, a fact proven by the continuation of the Cuban Revolution. Salvador Allende’s refusal to advocate for armed struggle (a fact expounded upon by Castro in his analysis of Chilean society and the military) against US-backed neoliberal violence resulted in a brutal military dictatorship, the relics of which continue to hold sway over Chilean society.
Palestinians find themselves in a far more perilous predicament. Any retreat, or concessions, that divert from the recently-embraced revolutionary consciousness manifesting itself in armed struggle will contribute towards the complete Zionist colonisation and continued extermination of the indigenous population.
International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor Fatou Bensouda initiated on Friday a preliminary probe into whether the Israeli army committed war crimes during last summer’s offensive on Gaza. In addition, Bensouda indicated that Palestine should be recognized as a state following the UN General Assembly’s November 29, 2012 vote recognizing a “State of Palestine.”
From February 2009 until April 2012, Palestinians made attempts to bring war crimes allegations against Israel in relation to the 2008-9 Israeli offensive on Gaza. However, the ICC Prosecutor’s Office dismissed such attempts, declaring that “Palestine” was not yet a state and that only states could seek ICC intervention.
Bensouda’s decision does not mean actual war crimes trials are imminent. However, Israeli analysts perceive it as a most serious escalation toward possible war crimes trials of Israeli military personnel and political leaders.
The Palestinian Foreign Ministry hailed the decision as a “positive and significant step toward achieving justice and respecting international law.”
The ministry added that the Palestinian decided to join the ICC was intended “to put an end to Israeli war crimes and crimes against humanity.”
Fawzi Barhoum, a spokesman for Hamas, said on Saturday his organization appreciates the move.
“What is needed now is to provide the court with thousands of reports and documents that confirm the Zionist enemy has committed horrible crimes against Gaza and against our people,” he added in a statement.
Not unexpectedly, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected the ICC move, claiming it is absurd.
“I won’t be surprised if ISIS, Al Qaeda and Hizbollah follow suit,” he added on Saturday.
In response to Bensouda’s decision, Israel is lobbying member-states of the ICC to cut funding for the tribunal.
Israel, which is not a member of the ICC, hopes to dent funding for the court which is drawn from the 122 member states in accordance with the size of their economies, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said on Sunday.
“We will demand of our friends in Canada, in Australia and in Germany simply to stop funding it,” he told Israel Radio.
“This body represents no one. It is a political body,” he said. “There are a quite a few countries – I’ve already taken telephone calls about this – that also think there is no justification for this body’s existence.”
He said he would raise the matter with visiting Canadian counterpart John Baird on Sunday.
Another Israeli official told Reuters that a similar request was sent to Germany, traditionally one of the court’s strongest supporters, and would also be made to Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who is separately visiting Jerusalem and whose nation is the largest contributor to the ICC.
10:29AM GMT 12 Jan 2015
Benjamin Netanyahu is facing a storm of criticism because of his “embarrassing” behaviour at Sunday’s mass solidarity march in Paris and his calls for French Jews to emigrate to Israel following last week’s deadly attack on a Jewish supermarket.
The Israeli prime minister was seen elbowing his way to the front of the parade of world leaders and also unsuccessfully tried to jump to the head of queue waiting for a bus that was to take guests to the starting point.
After he failed to get on the first bus, a nervous-looking Mr Netanyahu – accompanied by what appeared to be an Israeli security team – wasshown on French video footage waiting for the next one.
During the march, Mr Netanyahu waved to the crowd in response to a pro-Israel shout from a woman spectator, a gesture some Israeli commentators deemed to be at odds with the sombre mood.
The alleged gaffes were further compounded by reports that the Israeli leader attended the event in defiance of a request to stay away from Francois Hollande, the French president, who reportedly did not want it overshadowed by the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Mr Netanyahu initially agreed but changed his mind after learning that two political rivals – Avigdor Lieberman, the Israeli foreign minister, and Naftali Bennett, the industry minister and leader of the Jewish Home party – were going.
His insistence on attending prompted the French authorities to invite Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian Authority leader, as a counterweight, reported the liberal Israeli newspaper Haaretz.
The most serious criticism has been levelled at his call for members of France’s Jewish community – the largest in Europe – to move to Israel for safety reasons following last Friday’s attack on a kosher supermarket in Paris, in which four Jews were killed.
Even before his plane departed for Paris, Mr Netanyahu issued a statement saying that he planned to tell French Jews who wanted to emigrate to Israel that they would be “welcomed with open arms”.
That is said to have offended Mr Hollande, who attended a rally at Paris’ grand synagogue on Sunday night with Mr Netanyahu but pointedly left before the Israeli leader addressed the audience.
Mr Netanyahu’s appeal for emigration, echoed by some other Israeli politicians, was criticised by European Jewish leaders and – implicitly – by Reuven Rivlin, the Israeli president, who said aliyah (emigration) should be born out of choice and Zionist feelings rather than fear of anti-Semitism.
Rabbi Menachem Margolin, director of the European Jewish Association, said that instead of calling for Jews to emigrate after anti-Semitic attacks, Israel should “employ every diplomatic and informational means at its disposal to strengthen the safety of Jewish life in Europe”, an Israeli website reported.
Ben Caspit, an experienced Israeli commentator, mocked Mr Netanyahu’s attempt to portray Israel as a safe haven. “Are the Jews of Paris more threatened than us?,” he asked in Maariv newspaper. “All of Israel’s territory is targeted by thousands of accurate and heavy rockets and missiles that could be fired on our heads in the next flare-up with Hizbullah. Just this past summer, Tel Aviv (Tel Aviv!) was a city that was bombed for 50 days. So the French should flee here?”
Settlement leaders are demanding that Israel deport American consulate staff who clashed with settlers Friday, according to the settler-affiliated news site Arutz 7.
According to Yossi Dagan, acting head of the Samaria Regional Council, the council of northern West Bank settlements, US consulate security guards threatened settlers with a handgun and an M16 rifle.
A confrontation broke out between security personnel from the US consulate in Jerusalem and settlers from the Ramallah-area Adei Ad outpost in the West Bank on Friday, after settlers hurled stones at two vehicles from the consulate.
The consulate staff arrived to the area at the inviation of the village of Turmus Ayya to examine thousands of olive tree seedlings which were uprooted Thursday night. Some of the seedlings belong to Palestinians who are also US citizens.
The Consulate security guards arrived at the agricultural lands to examine the scene and rule out any security risks, while the delegation members waited behind in the village. Settlers claimed they arrived to the area without coordination and brought Palestinians into their territory, saying the American visit was coordinated with the Israeli Civil Administration for next week.
According to police, the settlers pelted the convoy with rocks.
Dagan, wrote to the acting Israeli interior minister that the US consulate security guards crossed all red lines “and participated in a provocative tour with the Palestinians without any coordination as required with the IDF and police, and pulled out a firearm and threatened Israeli civilians.”
“I request that in view of the serious and criminal conduct, that these [US] security guards and officials be deported,” he added.
A State Department spokesman in Washington said US authorities were “deeply concerned” about the stone-throwing incident.
“We can confirm a vehicle from the Consulate General was pelted with stones and confronted by a group of armed settlers today in the West Bank, near the Palestinian village of Turmus Ayya,” said the US State Department spokesman according to AFP.
The spokesman added that “I do want to correct one thing proactively from some of the reporting I’ve read on this incident. No American personnel drew their weapons in the course of these events. What has been reported suggesting otherwise is inaccurate.”
Adei Ad is an unregulated Israeli outpost that was established in 1998 by a group of yeshiva students from the settlement o f Shvut Rachel. The settlement was established on land owned by Palestinians and is also considered illegal under Israeli law. In 1999 Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak ordered the outpost dismantled, although it never happened.
On 10 December 2014, Palestinian Minister Ziad Abu Ein died in a confrontation with Israeli soldiers during a a protest march to plant olive trees on this site.
Author and activist Norman Finkelstein discusses whether the two-state solution can solve the Israel-Palestine conflict. SEE VIDEO HERE
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“Prospects have never been better for settling the Israel-Palestine conflict,” argues Norman Finkelstein, the controversial scholar and author of The Holocaust Industry and Method and Madness.But after more violence, yet another round of failed talks and 20 years of Israeli land annexation, is the two-state solution really still an option?
In this episode of Head to Head, Mehdi Hasan challenges Norman Finkelstein on his proposal for resolving the Israel-Palestine conflict, and explores whether he has changed his tone on some of his more incendiary criticism of Israel. Once described as an ‘American Radical’, Finkelstein has also been branded by some a liberal Zionist, for his opposition to the one-state solution and the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel, which he vehemently describes as “a cult.” But does the BDS movement violate international law, and does it really aim to dismantle the Israeli state? Joining the discussion are Salma Karmi-Ayyoub, a leading Palestinian activist and human rights lawyer in London; Jeff Halper, the director of the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions in Jerusalem; and Oliver Kamm, a writer and journalist at The Times and The Jewish Chroniclenewspapers, and outspoken supporter of Israel.
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