Palestine UN Vote Postmortems:
International Support - Nothing Less Tolerable
01 December 2012
By Stephen Lendman
Pillar of Cloud echoes are still audible. Cast Lead
crimes aren't forgotten. Nor is Gaza's siege,
occupation harshness, expanding settlements, and
horrific daily persecution.
Palestine remains locked down and isolated. UN voting
changed nothing. Partial or full membership grants no
immunity. Israel takes full advantage. That's how
rogue states operate. Palestinian suffering continues.
Another article cited Haaretz saying Israel suffered a
humiliating UN defeat. Perhaps so, but does it matter?
The fullness of time will tell.
"Israel's leaders competed with each other Thursday
over who will utter the most disparaging remark about
the Palestinian move in the United Nations," said
Haaretz.
"Never have so many press releases been issued over an
event that they themselves characterized as
meaningless."
Netanyahu heads Israel's worst ever government. It
replicates despotic ones. It's more hypocrisy than
democracy. It's an embarrassment to legitimate
governance.
Netanyahu was quoted in a companion article. He said
more. Whenever he opens his mouth he puts both feet
in. Perhaps one day he'll swallow them and choke.
He called Thursday's vote "a meaningless resolution
that won't change anything on the ground. No
Palestinian state will arise without an arrangement
ensuring the security of Israeli citizens."
He added that Abbas's UN speech was "defamatory and
venomous."
Days earlier, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said,
"If the proposal is adopted at the United Nations
General Assembly, as far as we are concerned this
would be a complete breaking of the rules and it will
elicit an extreme response from us."
Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon said, "This day
is the day of the historic rout of the Palestinians."
During Pillar of Cloud terror bombing, he said
Palestinians killed and injured "deserved it." Other
Israeli hardliners express similar views.
They represent racist police state harshness. Israel
isn't fit to live in. Many Jews are voting with their
feet and leaving. They have just cause.
Former Kadima leader, Tzipi Livni, now heads a new
party called Hatnua (the Movement). She said
Palestine's UN vote was a "strategic terrorist
attack."
Vice Premier Silvan Shalom called the vote recognition
that only Israel honors agreements reached with the
PA.
Israeli UN envoy Ron Prosor addressed the General
Assembly. He said the body's resolution "ignore(d)
Israel's vital security and national interests." He
called it "so one-sided, it….push(ed peace)
backwards."
"Time and again," he claimed, Israel "sought peace
with the Palestinians. Time and again, we have been
met by rejection of our offers, denial of our rights,
and terrorism targeting our citizens."
His entire speech wreaked of duplicity and shameless
lies. Whatever their views, Member State
representatives weren't fooled.
At the same time, a chasm separates their rhetorical
support and what they gave Thursday from their failure
to hold Israel accountable for decades of horrendous
crimes. They continue daily in plain sight.
Palestinians bear a heavy cross. UN status affords no
protection.
Haaretz said Netanyahu and senior ministers have
themselves to blame for Thursday's vote. They're
rigidly hardline. They spurn diplomacy and peace.
"Anyone with eyes in his head can see the diplomatic
failure from afar. Having sowed wind during the past
four years, on Thursday (Netanyahu and those around
him) reaped a storm," said Haaretz.
"Sadly, the next government will probably be even more
extreme right-wing and cannot be expected to change
direction."
It's as bad or worse in Washington. Rogues run
America. Policies reflect high crimes too extreme to
ignore. Fundamental democratic values and rule of law
principles don't have a chance. War on humanity and
police state harshness don't let them.
Ahead of Thursday's vote, Congress suspended over $200
million in PA aid over concerns about what happened
and possible Hamas/Fatah reconciliation.
On Wednesday and Thursday, lawmakers proposed 2013
National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) amendments.
They want funding to Palestinians and supportive
countries cut off.
Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R. FL) chairs the House Foreign
Affairs Committee. She represents the lunatic fringe
of Republican hardliners.
"There must be consequence for (Palestinian)
rejectionism and continued irresponsibility," she
said.
Democrat and Republican senators said they'll halt aid
if Palestine uses its upgraded status against Israel.
Senator from AIPAC Chuck Schumer (D. NY) said:
"We are committed, Democrats and Republicans, to using
every means at our disposal to ensure that this UN
General Assembly vote does not serve as a precedent
for elevating the status of the PLO."
Neocon Senator Lindsey Graham (R. SC) added:
"The biggest fear I have is that the Palestinians
achieve this status it won't be very long before the
Palestinians use the United Nations as a club against
Israel."
The Israeli Lobby had its say. AIPAC said "Palestinian
UN Upgrade Undermines Peace Efforts."
Israel, of course, bears full responsibility. It
spurns peace, stability, and recognition of
fundamental Palestinian rights.
Anti-Defamation League (ADL) national director Abe
Foxman and national chair Barry Curtiss-Lusher jointly
said:
"With this resolution, the General Assembly has handed
the Palestinian leadership a pyrrhic public relations
victory, which in all likelihood will make it even
more difficult to move the process forward."
"The result of the vote is no surprise. The General
Assembly has always given a rubber stamp to
Palestinian declarations and grandstanding."
"In the long term, this resolution will have
potentially disastrous consequences for future
Palestinian aspirations."
"It brings the Palestinian people no closer to
statehood, nor does it bring Israel closer to peace
and security."
Congressional, Knesset and Israeli Lobby hardliners
prioritize war on humanity, violent confrontations,
racist hate, misinformation, bald-faced lies, and
support for Israel's worst crimes.
In Jerusalem, police prevented MKs Aryeh Eldad and
Michael Ben Ari from burning a Palestinian flag
outside UN headquarters.
Western scoundrel media support for Israel is
longstanding. On November 28, a Washington Post
editorial headlined "What will Palestinians do after
the UN vote?"
Will peace talks resume? Will Palestine sue Israeli
officials at the ICC? Will Fatah/Hamas reconciliation
happen? Will Palestinian violence and Abbas'
retirement follow?
Like other media scoundrels, the Post ignored
Palestinian statehood, blamed the PA for not pursuing
peace, accused Hamas of "lob(bing) rockets at Israel,"
and PA leaders of "submit(ting) pointless petitions to
the United Nations."
The editorial, previous ones, op-eds, and straight
reporting ignore decades of occupation harshness,
illegal settlements, and horrendous Israeli crimes.
Previous New York Times editorials opposed Palestinian
self-determination. Only Jewish rights matter in Times
Square.
On November 28, another New York Times editorial
headlined "The Palestinians UN Bid." It reaffirmed
which side it's on. Longstanding Times policy spurns
Palestinian rights.
General Assembly support won't "endure creation of a
viable Palestinian state and guarantee Israel's
security."
Palestinian statehood exists. A companion article
explained. Palestinians never threatened Israeli
security. They don't now. Israel menaces the region.
Times editors ignore facts on the ground they know or
should.
"Peace negotiations have been at an impasse since
2008."
Legitimate peace talks never happened because Israel
spurns them. Palestinians wanted conflict resolution
for decades. Without a legitimate partner, it's
impossible.
The Times urged "serious new effort(s) at a negotiated
two-state solution." When Israel's Separation Wall is
completed, its West Bank control will approach 60%.
Over half a million settlers occupy Palestinian land.
More join them daily. Closed military zones,
restricted tourist areas, commercial locations, and
other Jews-only development exclude non-Jews.
At one time, two states were viable. No longer.
Partition won't work. What will is one state for all
its people at peace with equal rights. It's the only
legitimate way if pursued and given a chance.
Israelis won't propose it. Nor have Palestinians.
Israel wants all valued parts of Judea and Samaria it
wishes. It wants Jerusalem as its exclusive capital.
Ideally, it wants Palestinians gone. At best, they'll
be tolerated with no rights within isolated cantons on
worthless scrubland.
Refugees wanting to return will be denied. Persecution
will continue. Palestinians and Israeli Arabs will be
targeted. Conflict resolution won't happen. Conditions
will get progressively worse.
Israel wants permanent occupation legalized.
Palestinians deserve long denied liberation.
Democratic legitimacy requires one nation for all its
people, irrespective of race, religion, ethnicity, or
other differentiating characteristics.
It requires equal rights, observance of international
law principles, and ending decades of occupation,
colonization and apartheid.
It requires prohibiting what's no longer tolerable and
never was. It requires treating Arabs and Jews
equally. It requires establishing binding statutes
mandating it. It requires enforcing them. It requires
commitment to do the right thing.
It won't happen without committed international
support. It's high time long-suffering Palestinians
got it. Nothing less is tolerable.
Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago and can be reached
at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net. His new book is
titled "How Wall Street Fleeces America: Privatized
Banking, Government Collusion and Class War"
http://www.claritypress.com/Lendman.html Visit his
blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com and listen to
cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on
the Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive
Radio Network Thursdays at 10AM US Central time and
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