ONE would have thought that the powerful world leaders would play a constructive role in solving problems world over and help establish peace, progress and prosperity around the globe. However, that hope seems to be far-fetched. The United States has instead sent its aircraft carrier to reinforce Israelis leaders’ arrogance and has also air-freighted lethal arms and ammunition to Israel to ensure continuation of the massive bombardment of the besieged, hapless people of Gaza., with essential supplies, even water and electricity cut off.
In fact, those who had created, nourished and nurtured Israel and through their pampering, have made it the monster that it has become now, are active again. Apart from the United States, Britain is also sending its forces to the region to assure Israel of its support. And Germany is sending its super drones to Israel. While for a start, France has banned any pro-Palestinian protests in the country, with threat to arrest the protesters.
I remember the same countries previous role. This was France which had supplied Israel the nuclear reactor, while Britain had provided it hard water in a round-about manner. And not to be left behind, United States had supplied Israel super computers to advance Israeli missile programme while Germany had sold Israeli nuclear-capable submarines at subsidized price.
However, undoubtedly, the United States has left all others miles behind in subservience to Israel. In view of the corruption charges against Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and his attempt to gag the judiciary to escape punishment – against which there were massive protests in Israel – Joe Biden had previously stated that he will not meet Netanyahu anytime soon. But Biden not only backtracked on that, but had the honour of meeting Netanyahu and has been ringing him frequently. And so much so, that just on hearing false news of Hamas slitting the throats of Israeli children, he castigated Hamas, which statement he had to take back admitting the accusation to be false.
Moreover, acting appropriately, the US State department had initially tweeted, asking all sides to exercise restraint. However, the officials had to delete the tweet and forced to send tweets expressing unconditional support to Israel. And that is not all. There are report that at least eight of the 34 organisations in the United States that originally signed a letter blaming Israel for the current situation in the Middle East have been forced to withdraw their endorsements. Also, according to newspaper reports, CNN and other media outlets published the statement of a billionaire hedge fund CEO and several other business leaders, asking Harvard University to release the names of students whose organizations signed on to the letter. The CEO wants the students blacklisted.
Another story is about a New York University Student Bar Association president losing a promised job with a law firm after putting a statement in the group’s student newsletter that blamed Israel for creating a situation which led to Hamas’ attacks on Israel. The University of Virginia’s Students for Justice in Palestine also drew sharp criticism for the statement that violent attack on Israel was “a step towards a free Palestine”.
The above was in private sector. Unfortunately, even in US government sector, things are much the same. On July 18, 2023, The House overwhelmingly voted to pass a resolution condemning antisemitism and expressing support for Israel, just days after Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal faced backlash from both parties for calling Israel a “racist state.” The vote was 412-9, with 195 Democrats joining all Republicans in voting yes. Nine progressive Democrats of color voted against the nonbinding resolution, several of whom have denounced Israel as an apartheid state that oppresses Palestinians.
Now, according to the records of Jewish Virtual Library – available on the internet – in 1918, Palestinians were 91.9% of Palestine population, with only 8.1% Jews. However, with massacres by Zionist gangs, and continuing arrival of Jews, in 1947 Jewish population went up to 32% with Palestinians still forming 68%. However, continuing massacres by Zionists, joined by illegal settlers and Israeli soldiers – after the creation of Israel – have brought Palestinian population further down to 26.5%. These figures clearly show that Premila Jayapal was being rather soft on Israel, calling it only a racist state, instead of charging it with ethnic-cleansing of Palestinians.
And it is not that Arabs and Palestinians don’t want peace.In fact, Saudi peace initiative endorsed by the Arab League in 2002, and re-endorsed in 2007 and 2017 at Arab League summits had offered normalization of relations with Israel in return for the establishment of a viable Palestinian state alongside Israel. Even Pakistani president General Pervez Musharraf had, during his address to the World Jewish Congress in New York in the year 2005, made a similar offer. But all these initiative failed. After all, how much land Israel needs for its about seven million Jewish citizens? However, there are courageous and just voices even among Jews like, for example, the editor of Haaretz newspaper who, in a recent editorial piece, unequivocally proclaimed: Netanyahu bears full responsibility for this Gaza-Israel war.
Unfortunately, depending on lifelong support from pro-Israel lobbies through lavish donations for their election campaigns, and/or anticipating other favours, how can the American parliamentarians or even state officials right up to president level, afford even to hear, much less heed other voices, except those of their paymasters.
Observing the near-complete capture of the American economic and political landscape by a small but moneyed and influential community of pro-Israel Jews, I have to say that it must thank its lucky stars over the fact that unlike Germans, the Americans are a tolerant lot, docile to the extent of becoming shameless, very much like some Muslim leaders. Now, this should not be taken to mean that I am trying to justify the holocaust, far from it. All I mean is that this gives me some idea of what sort of situation could there be in Germany which created such massive resentment among the indigenous people and raised their emotions to a level where a brute like Hitler used it as a pretext to commit the ultimate atrocity which no human could even conceive, much less commit.
Of course, in an unguarded moment, and in a state of rage, anyone of us could do irrational things. However, doing it in a cool and calculated manner and to a such a large number of mostly innocent people, and to continue doing it over an extended period of time as a matter of policy and a plan – to achieve a certain goal like an exclusively Jewish state, by throwing out remaining Palestinians – is what makes it so atrocious and inhumane. I hope good sense prevails. I also hope and pray that prominent leaders who can make things happen, in the right way of course, do make sincere efforts to locate their missing component called conscience, and once they find it, put it to some good use.
— The writer is senior political analyst based in Karachi.
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