Dan Cohen reports in EI on the role & beliefs of Jewish extremists in the Jerusalem crisis: ‘if Muslims and Christians surrender and say from now on, there is no more Christianity and no more Islam, and the mosques and Christian spires come down, then they would be allowed to live. “If not,” he warned, “you kill all of their males by sword. You leave only the women.”
Israel is well-known for its potent U.S. lobby that not only influences Congress and the mainstream media but intimidates Americans who dare criticize its policies toward the Palestinians, as Dennis J Bernstein describes.
Philip Weiss says the key people behind bills that would punish boycotters with a minimum fine of $250,000 and a maximum penalty of $1 million and 20 years in prison are Jewish Zionists in the Democratic party… but others are opposing AIPAC and he predicts that side will ultimately win.
Israel and mainstream media spotlight Palestinian violence, downplays Israeli Jewish or settler fanatic violence. Christians and Muslims are severely punished, while Israeli Jews and settlers often get a pass.
The recent conviction of an Israeli settler for an arson attack on the Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes is a reminder that Jewish extremism toward Christians and their holy sites is a problem as old as the state of Israel itself.
The Taylor Force Act, a bill to limit aid to the Palestinian Authority, is being peddled on both sides of the aisle by a nationwide grassroots network of pro-Israel activists—including Sheldon Adelson, Shawn Evenhaim, Haim Saban and Adam Milstein—as well as several powerful pro-Israel lobbying groups.
The National Coalition of Christian Organizations in Palestine pleads for Western churches to take a stand: “As we meet this month in Bethlehem in occupied Palestine, we are still suffering from 100 years of injustice and oppression…we need you and we need you now more than ever. We need your costly solidarity…This is no time for shallow diplomacy Christians. We urge you to hear our call.”
Ha’aretz’s Gideon Levy writes: Isn’t it time to do away with the artificial distinction between the Israelis who view themselves as nice and just and the brutal occupation they are responsible for? Hasn’t the time come to punish them in a nonviolent manner for the crimes that each and every one of them is party to?
Israel’s foreign supporters have every reason to ask that it govern all people in its charge with the justice and humanity that constitute the core values of both Judaism and Western civilization.
Ha’aretz editorial says: “The stats bureau’s annual population report is a ludicrous piece of propaganda that includes settlers but not all Palestinians under Israeli control”… maps show the entire area as “Israel”…