It was all so predictable, actually it was predicted.

from The Nation:

In February, 2006, former President Jimmy Carter, who expertise with regard to the Middle East is respected almost everywhere but the United States, warned that, “My concern is that in order to try, on behalf of the United States and Israel, to punish Hamas, we’ll actually going to be punishing the Palestinian people who are already living in deprivation. And it’s going to turn the Palestinian people even more against the West and against Israel, against us and make Hamas seem to be, you know, their only friend. So this will strengthen Hamas and weaken the Palestinian people. I think it’s a counterproductive ploy to try to punish Hamas.”

Don’t Punish the Palestinians
By Jimmy Carter
Monday, February 20, 2006; Page A21
The Washington Post

CNN’s Cristianne Amanpour

Gaza: Another Mess Made in U.S.
Tony Karon a journalist from Capetown, South Africa

Everyone following the conflict in Gaza knows full well that the reason for the violence is not that Palestinians have not “sorted out their politics” — they’ve made their political preferences abundantly clear in democratic elections, and later in a power-sharing agreement brokered by the Saudis. The problem is that the U.S. and the corrupt and self-serving warlords of Fatah did not accept either the election result or the unity government, and have conspired actively ever since to reverse both by all available means, including starving the Palestinian economy of funds, refusing to hand over power over the Palestinian Authority to the elected government, and arming and training Fatah loyalists to militarily restore their party’s power. Unfortunately, after three days of some of the most savage fighting ever seen in Gaza, that strategy now lies in tatters. Fatah is, quite simply, no longer a credible fighting force in Gaza, where it has long been in decline as a credible political force.

Another case of blowback

In it’s comparison CNN leaves out the some basic similarities and some very important differences. For example, te fact that both live under a brutal Israeli occupation is never mentioned. Neither is the fact that Israel supported the creation and funding of Hamas. It’s another case of blowback.

CNN’s comparison

By Richard Sale
UPI Terrorism Correspondent
06/18/02 “UPI”

Active in Gaza and the West Bank, Hamas wants to liberate all of Palestine and establish a radical Islamic state in place of Israel. It is has gained notoriety with its assassinations, car bombs and other acts of terrorism.

But Sharon left something out.
Israel and Hamas may currently be locked in deadly combat, but, according to several current and former U.S. intelligence officials, beginning in the late 1970s, Tel Aviv gave direct and indirect financial aid to Hamas over a period of years.

Israel “aided Hamas directly — the Israelis wanted to use it as a counterbalance to the PLO (Palestinian Liberation Organization),” said Tony Cordesman, Middle East analyst for the Center for Strategic Studies.

Israel’s support for Hamas “was a direct attempt to divide and dilute support for a strong, secular PLO by using a competing religious alternative,” said a former senior CIA official.

According to documents United Press International obtained from the Israel-based Institute for Counter Terrorism, Hamas evolved from cells of the Muslim Brotherhood, founded in Egypt in 1928. Islamic movements in Israel and Palestine were “weak and dormant” until after the 1967 Six Day War in which Israel scored a stunning victory over its Arab enemies.

After 1967, a great part of the success of the Hamas/Muslim Brotherhood was due to their activities among the refugees of the Gaza Strip. The cornerstone of the Islamic movements success was an impressive social, religious, educational and cultural infrastructure, called Da’wah, that worked to ease the hardship of large numbers of Palestinian refugees, confined to camps, and many who were living on the edge.

“Social influence grew into political influence,” first in the Gaza Strip, then on the West Bank, said an administration official who spoke on condition of anonymity.

According to ICT papers, Hamas was legally registered in Israel in 1978 by Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, the movement’s spiritual leader, as an Islamic Association by the name Al-Mujamma al Islami, which widened its base of supporters and sympathizers by religious propaganda and social work.

According to U.S. administration officials, funds for the movement came from the oil-producing states and directly and indirectly from Israel. The PLO was secular and leftist and promoted Palestinian nationalism. Hamas wanted to set up a transnational state under the rule of Islam, much like Khomeini’s Iran.

CNN’s Zain Verjee examines the role of the US in the battle between Fatah and Hamas. Clearly the US has supported Fatah with arms and military training. At the same time the US has supported an Israeli blockade of the Palestinian Authority which has resulted in wide scale poverty among Palestinian people. The US then blackmailed EU and Arab countries to honor the blockade. All but Norway have obeyed.

CNN International

Aaron David Miller points out the very low credibility of the US in the region. He has never seen the situation more grim than it is today. “Everything in every corner of this region is heading south which will damage US interests”.

When the state department was asked about whether the 60 million dollars in military aid to Fatah contributed to the current violence they responded “we are not going to pay the rent for terrorism or for the rejection of Israel”

John Stewart should have a field day with that.

CNNI notes Palestinians fleeing Gaza will harm a future “Palestinian state.” Have they been drinking formaldahyde?:

CNNI fails to mention in its analysis that it’s Israel that closes the Rafah crossing.

Amira Hass notes in Ha’aretz:

Now [Hamas] will have full `military` control of the Gaza Strip. Will this bring relief to Gaza`s 1.4 million residents? Will it improve the health system and ensure employment for university graduates? Will it remove Israel`s land and sea blockade?

It may be assumed that the military takeover of Abbas` symbols of `sovereignty` will serve as an excuse for Israel to sever once and for all the remaining civilian and economic ties between the Gaza Strip and West Bank - a political process Israel started in 1991. Because Hamas, like its mirror image Fatah, has no coherent liberation or independence plan for Palestinians in this lifetime.

Israeli military historian Martin Van Creveld writes in the Forward, “Let Palestine Split into Two:”

Neither Fatah nor Hamas would be able to speak - or even claim to speak - for the Palestinian people as a whole. Unable to speak for the Palestinian people as a whole, each of the two will find it easier, if not to stop insisting on the right of return, at least to put it aside for the time being.

The fighting in Gaza is not pretty; divorces rarely are. In the long run, however, it is at least conceivable that the war of Palestinian against Palestinian will lead to the removal of the single most important obstacle to Israeli-Palestinian peace. If so, then perhaps the blood currently flowing is not being shed altogether in vain.

by Asa Winstanley

As a new contributer this site, I thought that a good way to start would be to go through interesting videos in the backlog of old clips. This one is from CNN back in December 2, 2006 of Jimmy Carter defending his book, Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid. It’s still worth watching — a good one for sharing with friends who don’t know the basics of the situation maybe.

I’m not a fan of Jimmy Carter (or politicians in general for that matter), but these days he has, in some respects, began to tell it like it is regarding Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories. The furious reaction of the political elite the US to his book — in which it seems he simply tells some basic truths — was instructive.

In the clip he says that “there is zero debate in this country about this issue and that’s what I hope to change.” An admirable and much-needed goal, to be sure. And the good thing about Carter speaking about this issue is that he gets mainstream attention in the US.

I have not read his book, but aparently it is not without its flaws — and not the fake “errors” its Zionists critics allege. Likewise, Carter makes at least one questionable statement in the clip:

“Inside Israel it is a wonderful democracy with everyone treated the same, Arabs and Jews…”

I don’t think Palestinian citizens of Israel would tend to agree with that…

Visit Democracy Now for the entire interview with Noam Chomsky and Howard Zinn on on a variety of issues.

Amy Goodman interviews Noam Chomsky, who accuses Alan Dershowitz of launching a “Jihad”, based on lies, to prevent Norman Finkelstein From obtaining tenure at Depaul University.

In an incredible contrast, the print media including the Internationsl Herald Tribune present the conflict between Dershowitz and Finkelstein as a “scholarly conflict, … to destroy each other’s professional reputation and career.”

It would be more accurate to say that Finkelstein exposes Dershowitz for the lying, plagiarizing, enemy of civil and human rights that he is. He does it carefully, methodically, with facts and with proof. Dershowitz responds by simply trying to malign Mr. Finkelstein and destroy his career with unsubstantiated, in fact easily dismissed, attacks.

part 1

Evidently Mr. Dershowitz has done the same thing to Noam Chomsky which is described here in part 2. Chomsky describes Dershowitz as a liar, even lying about an Israeli court decision. He also describes him as a supporter of atrocities and a passionate opponent of civil rights.

Part 2

Petition To Support A Fair Tenure Process for Dr. Norman Finkelstein:

Text of Petition:

To:
Dennis H. Holtschneider, President, DePaul University
Helmut P. Epp, Provost, DePaul University
and the
Trustees, Deans, Faculty and Students of DePaul University

We are deeply concerned about reports of outside interference into the
tenure and promotion case of Dr. Norman Finkelstein, and that as a
result he may not be awarded tenure from DePaul University.

One such report is:
Harvard Law Professor Works to Disrupt Tenure Bid of Longtime Nemesis at DePaul U.
By Jennifer Howard, The Chronicle of Higher Education
April 5, 2007

We value Dr. Finkelstein’s scholarship, his public talks and debates, and his well-argued, fact-based critiques of issues relating to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

In our opinion, his association with DePaul University has enhanced DePaul University’s reputation.

We understand his department has recommended tenure. We will be troubled if Dr. Finkelstein is denied tenure and will be concerned about the integrity of the tenure process at DePaul University.

We support a fair tenure process for Dr. Finkelstein.

Shahid Raza Burney, Arab News

BOMBAY, 6 August 2006 — In a country widely referred to as the world’s largest democracy, the Indian government has succumbed to mounting Israeli pressure and ordered a nationwide ban on the broadcast of Arab television channels.

The Indian government’s ban on Arab television stations is in complete contrast to the friendship that Arab countries imagine exists with their neighbor across the Arabian Sea. It seems the ban is a move to ensure that Indians do not get to see the atrocities that are presently being committed by Israel in Lebanon and the occupied territories…

So many questions.

Why is CNN asking John Bolton his opinion on anything?

He demonstrates clearly by this interview why he has no business in public office. He ridicules the British government for negotiating the release of soldiers captured by Iran. In all liklihood, they will get out unharmed this way and so far, from what we can see, they’ve been treated well. They are certainly not being stripped, leashed and piled into pyramids. Read Terry Jones in Sunday’s Guardian:

Call that humiliation?
No hoods. No electric shocks. No beatings. These Iranians clearly are a very uncivilized bunch

Why is Nancy Pelosi traveling to Syria to bring a message from the Israeli Prime Minister?

Why didn’t Ms. Pelosi travel to Ramallah?

Accoring to YNet news, Ms. Pelosi has a perfect record on Israel.

In an internet discussion with the pro-Israel lobby to the Democratic party, Pelosi emphasized that “a strong relationship between the United States and Israel has long been supported by both Democrats and Republicans.

“America’s commitment to the safety and security of the State of Israel is unwavering, regardless of which party is in power. However, the war in Iraq has made both America and Israel less safe,” she declared.

BBC

A former top American diplomat says the US deliberately resisted calls for a immediate ceasefire during the conflict in Lebanon in the summer of 2006.
Former ambassador to the UN John Bolton told the BBC that before any ceasefire Washington wanted Israel to eliminate Hezbollah’s military capability.

Mr Bolton, a controversial and blunt-speaking figure, said he was “damned proud of what we did” to prevent an early ceasefire.

Bolton and the administration have much to be proud of; over 1000 Lebanese civilians and 43 Israeli civilians were killed in the war, billions of dollars worth of Lebanese infrastructure and homes were desroyed by US provided bombs dropped by US provided Israeli air power, Hezbollah gained a new reputation and power which it is still exerting today, Israel was humiliated, and the US lost more prestige in the region, not that we had much left anyway.

Mr. Bolton and the US administration can also then be proud of the daily deaths and injuries incurred by Lebanese civilians due to US provided cluster bombs dropped in civilian areas of Lebanon during the final 72 hours of the war.

The US just can’t help pandering to the right wing Israeli government. Still, Israel is not happy that the US does not go far enough.

CNN

International Herald Tribune

The first fractures have surfaced in the Israeli and American approaches to the new Palestinian unity government, with Israel’s cabinet voting overwhelmingly to boycott it, while the U.S. Consulate here refused to rule out contacts with some moderate Palestinians who are now serving as ministers.