Later today I am attending a press
conference, which I hope to write about. And so here I want to briefly
touch a variety of bases -- as there is so much that is
transpiring.
~~~~~~~~~~
Could we possibly have expected
anything else? State Department spokesman Patrick
Ventrell offered this statement at a press
conference:
"Obviously, we've seen the reports
that an Israeli Government appointed panel [the Levy Committee] has recommended
legalizing dozens of Israeli settlements in the West Bank, but we do not accept
the legitimacy of continued Israeli settlement activity and we oppose any effort
to legalize settlement outposts...We’re concerned about it, obviously."
Well, "obviously." The US is
going to be pressuring the Israeli government not to accept the report.
State Department officials are scheduled to be here.
And so my friends, it's time for
making your voices heard, please! in great numbers.
Do it respectfully, keep it
short, but convey a sense of conviction and
strength:
Write to Prime Minister Netanyahu
now, before you forget.
Something like: "Mr. Prime
Minister, at long last the Levy Committee has submitted recommendations
regarding Jewish rights in Judea and Samaria that are just. Please, adopt
these recommendations. Do what is right for Israel and the Jewish people.
There is no pleasing the world in any event."
Do NOT copy this. It is a
sample of the kind of thing that needs to be said in your own
words.
Fax: 02-670-5369 (From the
US:
011-972-2-670-5369)
(More on the "settlements" and
the UN below.)
~~~~~~~~~~
Again, you can see my post on
this for context:
PM Netanyahu has praised the work of the committee but has stopped
short of making commitments to adhere to its recommendations. He says the
Ministerial Committee on Settlements will be discussing it, but we should not
slight the importance of his influence on the Committee's conclusions.
~~~~~~~~~~
In any event Israel must do
what is good for Israel and defend Jewish rights on the land. But all the
more so is this the case when there is a man in the White House who is
demonstrably not a friend of Israel (his protestations to the contrary not
withstanding).
This
from Haaretz yesterday (emphasis added):
"U.S. President Barack Obama has invited Egypt's newly elected
Islamist president, Mohammed Morsi, to visit the United States in September, an
Egyptian official said on Sunday, reflecting the new ties Washington is
cultivating with the region's Islamists.
"'President Obama extended an invitation to President Morsi to visit
the United States [the White House] when he attends the UN General Assembly in
September,' Egyptian aide, Yasser Ali, said after Morsi met U.S. Deputy
Secretary of State William Burns.
"Burns did not mention the invitation at a news conference
earlier.
"Washington, long wary of Islamists and an ally of ousted President
Hosni Mubarak, shifted policy last year to open formal contacts with the Muslim
Brotherhood, the group behind Morsi's win."
~~~~~~~~~~
There is still some confusion as to whether or not Morsi will be in
Tehran for a summit of the Non-Aligned Movement in late August. But
what is clear is that he will be traveling to Saudi Arabia --
tomorrow, actually. He is scheduled to meet with King Abdullah and visit
Mecca.
This will be his first foreign visit and the Saudis, who are greatly
at odds with Iran, are delighted by the prospect of this visit.
~~~~~~~~~~
Morsi, I must add here, has now challenged the generals by calling
back into session the parliament that had been dissolved by the ruling
military council. See here for details:
~~~~~~~~~~
While Morsi's attendance at the Non-Aligned summit is in doubt, it
seems that PA President Abbas has decided to attend after an invitation to
Tehran extended by Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Hussein Amir Abdullah when
both were in Amman. Abbas, in accepting, sent greetings to
Ahmadinejad.
Israeli officials are irked by this and point out that he cannot
play both sides at once (although of course he has been doing just that all
along).
The observation of one Israeli official was particularly on the
mark: The question is not why Abbas is attending this summit, but rather why
"unaligned" nations chose to hold their summit in Tehran in the first place.
~~~~~~~~~~
Not for the first time in recent months, the IDF is issuing a warning
to Hezbollah in Lebanon. This from Haaretz this past
week:
"Six years after the outbreak of the Second Lebanon War, the IDF is
saying openly that Israel is preparing for another Lebanon war.
"The commander of the IDF's 91st Division, Brigadier-General Hertzi
Halevy told journalists on Thursday, 'We understand that there is more than one
factor, whether this is Lebanese, or whether it will come from somewhere else,
that can ignite the border here.'
"...Northern Command intelligence says certain areas of the border
between Lebanon and Syria are 'lawless zones,' which enable the transfer of more
advanced weapons into the region. The IDF has stated that there are some 60
thousand missiles in Lebanon, ten times more than there were in the country
during the first Lebanon war. Hezbollah has the capability to launch a large
quantity of rockets in a short period time, and this could cause significant
damage on the Home Front.
"In IDF simulations of what a third Lebanon war would look like,
ground maneuvers in villages that are considered bastions of Shiite Hezbollah
become particularly important. 'The next war will be different, and therefore we
should stop it as quickly as possible, in order to make things easier for the
home front. This means carrying out a very strong attack against Lebanon, and
the damage will be enormous,' says a senior officer in the Northern Command.
"'The Goldstone report will pale in comparison to what will be here
next time. There is no choice but to fight against the enemy where he is, and
that is in the heart of a populated area.'"
~~~~~~~~~~
I've said it before and reiterate here that I am grateful for this
attitude and pray that it holds. This is not only because it may serve as
a deterrent to Hezbollah, but because it is imperative that the IDF and the
political echelon here act with force to protect Israelis in event of a war,
without holding back for fear of international criticism. Stating up front
that Hezbollah has responsibility for civilians in Lebanon because of where
rockets and missiles have been placed is appropriate.
I will add here that there is currently concern on Israel's part
regarding possible plans by Lebanon to divert water from the Hatzbani River, a
major source of the waters of the Jordan. Such a diversion might well be
considered a casus belli -- justification for war. Fight
over water sources is not unusual in this part of the world.
~~~~~~~~~~
The UN Human Rights Council has appointed the members of its "fact
finding" mission with regard to the settlements.
The statement by Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor (Emphasis
added):
"The fact-finding mission will find no cooperation in Israel
and its members will not be allowed to enter Israel and the
territories. Its existence embodies the inherent distortion that
typifies the UNHRC treatment of Israel and the hijacking of the important human
rights agenda by nondemocratic countries."
~~~~~~~~~~
It's good news that the Organization for Security and Co-operation in
Europe has rejected -- in a 28 - 21 vote --a Palestinian Authority
application to join the organization as an observer.
Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon stated that this
positive result was achieved in part because of Israeli diplomatic efforts.
There will be no end, however, to the ways in which the PA will seek
increased legitimacy via international bodies:
The Palestinian Arabs are seeking to participate in a
UN-associated arms treaty conference -- which is working
towards establishment of a binding treaty to regulate the
global weapons market -- as "Palestine," a full
state.
~~~~~~~~~~
©
Arlene Kushner. This material is produced by Arlene Kushner,
functioning as an independent journalist. Permission is granted for it to be
reproduced only
with
proper attribution.
No comments:
Post a Comment