As Palestinians in Hebron navigate life without the Temporary International Presence in Hebron (TIPH) observers, it is worth looking back on how oppressive and violent life was even with outsiders watching. Eric Garner would find the city eerily familiar.
Elor Azaria, the Israeli soldier charged with manslaughter after shooting a wounded Palestinian in the head, now has a paid position on the political campaign of an Israeli Prime Minister candidate.
Azaria served 14 months for the killing. He returned to Hebron a folk hero and celebrity.
As Congress tackles urgent issues of reopening government and setting the budget for the country, it takes the time to prioritize a foreign country: H.R.648 contains assurances that Israel will receive $3.8 billion for arms, and funding for refugee resettlement; the bill also includes threats to de-fund the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and any future state of Palestine–if US demands (dictated by the Israel lobby) are not met.
NPR’s ‘All Things Considered’ segment underreports AIPAC’s finances, uses only Israel partisans as commentators, minimizes power of AIPAC, ignores Palestinians, and fails to inform listeners of the full scope of the Israel lobby…
Israeli private intelligence companies Psy-Group, Black Cube, etc specialize in fake online identities known as “avatars,” some work with the neocon group Foundation for Defense of Democracies – the aim is to “destabilize and disrupt anti-Israel movements from within…”
Alison Weir’s in depth investigation of the new “Democratic Majority for Israel (DMFI),” created to counter growing support among Democrats for Palestinian rights (only 19 % of progressive Democrats now support Israel over Palestinians). DMFI plans to use its substantial financial resources & powerful connections to bring Democrats back into the pro-Israel fold and to target Democrats such as Betty McCollum who support Palestinian human rights…
In 2015, billionaire Sheldon Adelson hosted a summit to battle the nonviolent boycott movement for Palestinian rights (BDS). All participants in the event pledged at least $1 million to cover the costs of “demonizing the demonizers…” Participants, true to the maxim that what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, declined to discuss any financial pledges….
This 16-year-old child did not grow up or die in a vacuum. We need to examine the reportage, the context of her life, and own our own complicity in her death.
Israeli politicians all seem to share a platform plank of vitriol and threats toward Palestinians. Their campaign ads are full of mocking, insults, and accusations against Palestinians. It’s been like this for years, and it’s worse now than ever. And it’s not good for Israel.
Intellectual honesty is about confronting those things that make us uncomfortable, not ignoring them. Israel arrests Palestinian children; see 7 of the many videos of these actions. The US gives Israel over $10 million per day and Congress is currently considering legislation to give Israel even more. That makes it obligatory for Americans to learn the facts, and act on them.