A Catalyst for Peace?

Image by Getty Images via @daylife

This past week has been an exciting week for both Israelis and Palestinians. Both sides were ecstatic. Both claimed a victory.  This is a rare occurrence.

Crowds gathered in Gaza and Ramallah celebrating the release of Palestinian prisoners. The streets were decked with green Hamas flags, interspersed with Fatah flags. Cheering crowds gathered and Hamas leaders delivered speeches of victory. Many even vowed to create another Shalit until all Palestinian prisoners are freed from Israeli prisons.

In Israel, there was great jubilation. After more than five years in a Hamas prison, Gilad Shalit was freed and returned home to his parents in Mitzpe Hila in the northern Galilee. The crowds that gathered there were whooping for joy. For more than five years, many had volunteered to pressure the Israeli Government to reach this incredible day.

Both Israelis and Palestinians claimed a victory; both sides felt that something was incomplete.

Many Israelis, who lost loved ones through acts of Palestinian terrorism -suicide bombers on busses, shopping malls and in the main centres, felt that the price for Gilad's release was too high - 1028 Palestinian prisoners, who were given life sentences for their part in organizing terror attacks and murdering innocent people-Jewish and Arab Israelis-in cold blood were now released. All this was achieved for the exchange of one Israeli soldier - Gilad Shalit.

While the price was high for Israel and one can sympathize with those who lost family and friends in cruel terrorist attacks, the fact that a life languishing in an unknown Hamas prison in Gaza was saved.

As one Israeli (who had lost family through Hamas terror) said that keeping these Palestinian murderers in prison would not bring his loved ones back - releasing them would save the life of one Israeli soldier whose life was endangered. This says it all!

I speak as a father whose daughter escaped injury in a suicide bombing in a shopping mall in Netanya during the second intifada. I feel that the exchange deal was a bold move and the correct decision. Both sides are satisfied albeit with reservations, each for their own reasons.

We all wish Gilad Shalit a rapid recovery from his nightmarish ordeal and that his rehabilitation will be successful.

Is it justified that Gilad Shalit was cut off from his family for over 5 years? Is it just that the Red Cross was not all allowed to visit him during his time of captivity for so called "security reasons"?  

The Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons, while not living in luxury, were granted visiting rights, visits by the Red Cross and were even given facilities to study if they wished. They were also not held in solitary confinement. Most of these prisoners were neither "freedom fighters" nor "fighters for democracy". They were heartless killers who carried out the cruel bidding of Hamas and even Hezbollah.

Had Hamas promised to deliver their people from Israeli occupation and concentrated on that cause without killing innocent people including Palestinians, the prisoners would have had sympathy even from Israel. This is clearly not the case! Even in war, the Geneva Convention in the treatment of prisoners-of-war must be observed by the warring sides. Hamas never adhered to that. They are a terrorist group who has done nothing for the Palestinian cause for freedom from Israeli occupation. Terrorist groups abide by their own rules and the Geneva Convention does not apply to them.

Hamas are cruel to their own people. They torture Palestinians who oppose their rule, even shooting them. Documentation of this is available on the net and not only from Israeli sources. It is a miracle that Gilad Shalit survived his nightmarish ordeal in Hamas captivity.

He survived because Hamas knew that Israel would eventually bargain for Gilad Shalit’s release.  He was isolated in an unknown cell as a bargaining chip for the release of Palestinian prisoners many of whom had received life sentences for cruel terrorist acts resulting in deaths of many innocent Israelis - Jews, Muslims and Christians.

Many will say that these prisoners were "Freedom Fighters" carrying out a legitimate struggle against the occupation. As much as I despise the occupation and the illegal settler movements, including the despicable violence against Palestinians, their property and mosques, Hamas terror is not for the betterment of the Palestinian people but for the destruction of Israel. There will never be a “Palestinian Spring” under Hamas rule. Any belief in that is illusionary. Their record of human rights is dismal.

Some Palestinians say that Israel had murdered innocent people including children during Operation Cast Lead in Gaza. While the taking of innocent human life whether Israeli or Palestinian is to be condemned, one must remember that the use of human shields by Hamas, whose reverence for human lives is poor if non-existent, played a great part in the loss of innocent Palestinian lives. I have written about this at length in previous articles.

Hamas will never be the saviors of the Palestinians. Human rights, democracy and equality are not part of their lexicon. They are a cruel, autocratic group of despots who live by the mantra of Israel's total destruction. A separate Palestinian state alongside Israel is not their aim. They have stated that ad nauseam.

It is unlikely that the prisoner exchange for Gilad Shalit's lease will change the atmosphere. We must remember that this deal was signed between Hamas and Egypt and between Israel and Egypt. From this aspect we can see that direct negotiations between Israel and Hamas never occurred - certainly not on an official basis. There have been unofficial direct contacts between Israel and Hamas but this was played down.

If we see this prisoner exchange as a catalyst for peace negotiations and an improvement in the atmosphere between the two sides, the chances are very remote.

This exchange has raised the support for Hamas substantially at the expense of President Mahmoud Abbas. Even the latter’s declaration of a Palestinian state is on the back burner. While his popularity rose for a short period, it is not so today. Hamas has come out of the cupboard in Ramallah. This was never the case before as we saw from scenes of Hamas flags there.

The release of Gilad Shalit is a great morale booster for future IDF ballotees and their parents as well as the citizens of Israel. They will see that Israel will never abandon a single soldier in captivity. It is unfortunate that Gilad sat for such a long time in captivity until his release. Perhaps this could have been achieved earlier. Anyway, it is better late than never.

Related articles

• Gilad Shalit Released: Israeli Soldier Freed In Exchange for 1000 Palestinians (inquisitr.com)
• Who sets the captive free: Gilad Shalit's release in Gaza (blogs.berkeley.edu)
• The Release of Gilad Shalit: What It Says About The State of Israel (socyberty.com)
• Gilad is home and free!! Hit Like to celebrate! Watch this (oneway2day.wordpress.com)
• Prisoner swap fueled tensions, created little goodwill (macleans.ca)

Unilateral Declaration of a Palestinian State

Image via Wikipedia

The frustration of the Palestinians was enacted at the UN General Assembly on 23rd Sept 2011.  Most countries of the world support the bid to declare a Palestinian state. The Israeli Government and the US are against it. The US has no power of veto in the General Assembly.

It will not be surprising if the unilateral declaration reaches the UN Security Council where the resolution will reach a dead end because of the US veto. This will dampen things for the Palestinians. At the same time it will isolate Israel even further and will harm US credibility in the Palestinian world. It remains to be seen whether Israel's strong public relations exercise at explaining their perspective will persuade some countries to support its stand, is questionable.

However the ramifications are important for the Palestinians for a number of reasons:

1. It is a great morale booster for them psychologically.
2. It can isolate Israel even further from the world of nations.
3. The world status of the US is weakening, because of its economic woes and its costly involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan.
4. Israel sent PM Netanyahu to plea its case against the unilateral declaration of a Palestinian state. This may be viewed as a futile automatic reaction because of panic.
5. Netanyahu delivered his speech to the UN General Assembly bearing the illegal settler stench on his back which means no end to building of settlements in the West Bank and the continuation of the occupation.

Continuation of the occupation is incompatible with a two-state solution and it behooves Netanyahu to explain his support of a two-state solution without giving up the settlements in occupied Palestinian lands. Logically this seems impossible.

Israel cannot be blamed for the changes in the Middle East because of various Arab uprisings. We can blame Israel for the lack of vision and apathy to ride the storm as if nothing has happened.

Both countries - Israel and Palestine have shown intransigence towards getting the peace process back on track. Israel has its right wing government and the Palestinian Authority signed a pact with Hamas in Gaza. The situation is very complex and the extremists in both cases are preventing negotiations for peace.

Perhaps the declaration of a Palestinian state will clear the air. Hamas will have to moderate its stance towards Israel. It is unlikely that this will occur because the General Assembly vote will be overwhelming in its support of a Palestinian state. This will serve the purpose of delegitimizing Israel even further. Much of the blame for this (not all) can be blamed on the Netanyahu Government with its settlement policy.

The visionless, unimaginative Netanyahu Government has done nothing to prevent Israel's deteriorating world image nor has it ever given a hint of the “painful concessions” that it is prepared to make for the sake of a true and lasting peace. Avigdor Lieberman, Israel's Foreign Minister has been making “Rambo-like” utterances against the Palestinians and the Arab World in the past. He is even on record as saying that Israel should blow up the Aswan Dam some years ago.

Lieberman's side-kick, Danny Ayalon,the Deputy Foreign Minister, behaved like a spoilt child with Turkey's ambassador at the beginning of last year. After that, the Mavi Marmara flotilla imbroglio and the false pride of not apologizing to clear the air have also received accolades from Israel's right wing.

It seems that the Israeli Government does not want to give up any settlements in the occupied Palestinian lands or make any movement towards peace. The illegal settlers are more important in the occupied Palestinian lands than peace.

23rd Sept 2011 arrived and ended. We must also bear in mind the incredible pro-Israel speech of Pres. Barrack Obama of the US in the UN General Assembly a on 21^st Sept 2011. Such a “Zionist” speech could be a record of support of Israel's stand. Perhaps we could view it as a prologue for Netanyahu's speech. Whether Obama made this speech in order to regain Jewish voter support and US citizen support, which has been sagging, is a possibility. Both PM Netanyahu and Pres. Mahmoud Abbas gave their much anticipated speeches at the UN General Assembly. Both stuck to their original mantras and said nothing new.

Both leaders appealed to their respective audiences and said what their audiences wanted to hear. There were no refreshing new ideas or signs of any vision for a new deal or a move towards negotiations for peace.

Abbas gave a speech that evoked great applause from those supporting the Palestinian side. The applause for Netanyahu's speech was from the Israel side and from the US. The applause for Netanyahu was conspicuous by its absence. Many members even walked out.

Netanyahu even made a show appeal to Abbas to start negotiations for peace without pre conditions. He knew that this would not happen.

Netanyahu's emphasis on the "truth" that he came to reiterate was a cover for right wing Greater Israel and his settlement policies rather than any true desire for a true peace. We are all aware that the problems of the schism between the Israeli and Palestinian narratives of Israel's establishment since 1948 remains as wide as ever and is allowed to cloud any form of rapprochement between the two peoples.

The Netanyahu Government maintains that the settlement issue is not the reason for the deadlock in negotiations but Israel's establishment as a Jewish state in 1948. There were no Israeli settlements in the West Bank prior to June 1967 nor was there ever any peace between Israel and the Palestinians either. This, in Netanyahu's view, proves his point that Israel's right to exist was always denied by the surrounding Arab states.

In my honest opinion (for what it is worth), Netanyahu has made a valid point and the events that have occurred does prove this. The various terror attacks in the 1990s after PM Rabin's assassination and suicide attacks on Israel's civilian population also added to the belief in the impossibility of peace between Israel and the Palestinians.

On the other hand, despite all the various nuances in Abbas's speech, there were no utterances of denial of Israel's right to exist or any desire to destroy Israel. If anything, there was a desire to renew negotiations for peace and recognition of a Palestinian state alongside Israel in peace. Does this mean support for Israel's deligitimization? This was not apparent in Abbas's speech at all. So we must put both speeches in the correct perspective despite the wide gaps in direction because of lack of trust and goodwill on both sides.

There is no doubt that the occupation does not add much to Israel's credibility in its desire for peace due to illegal settlement activity. As I have mentioned many times in previous posts, illegal settlement activity with its destruction of Palestinian agricultural land for illegal building activity was a great error and no matter what Netanyahu says will ever justify usurping Palestinian lands.

Israel's security needs are important, understandable and justifiable. Israelis do not wish a Hamas and Hezbollah takeover of the West Bank, which could be disastrous for Israel. We experienced Hamas rockets being fired into Israel from Gaza since 2005 with great destruction to property and lives. If Israel returns the West Bank to Palestine rule and withdraws all the illegal settlements in the occupied Palestinian lands, will there be peace and no threats from Hamas and Hezbollah? If missiles fall on Israel will be repeated as in the Gaza withdrawal, if a Palestinian state is established any reasonable person can understand Israel's fears.

Despite this, a Palestinian state alongside Israel should be the aim of peace negotiations without compromising the security of both sides and ensuring that the relationship between the two states be based on respect, coexistence, justice, human rights and democracy. Once there is trust between the two sides and a true desire to solve the complicated issues existing between the two sides, a Palestinian state could be a model for emulation. We need two Mandela-like leaders of vision that could achieve this. It is unfortunate that both Israel and Palestine do not have a Mandela.

What is clear from all the hype over Palestine's unilateral declaration of an independent state is that it is a non-starter without serious negotiations for peace with Israel to end the conflict. The continuation of the old mantras on both sides will not achieve this.

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• Israel's Challenge: 'Let's Negotiate Peace' Now (abcnews.go.com)
• VIDEO: Abbas makes UN statehood bid (bbc.co.uk)
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A Palestinian State and Israel's World Standing

While PM Netanyahu is lobbying the world of nations not to support Palestinian intentions of declaring a Palestinian state unilaterally, the US will veto the declaration when it reaches the Security Council if it comes to the vote.

Despite the Israeli Government’s juggling and manipulations, Israel has reached a new low in its credibility in the eyes of the Palestinians and the world.

The debacle with Turkey does not help matters at all and only adds to the "dwang" that Israel finds itself.

The handling of the Mavi Marmara flotilla affair was pathetic. The findings of the 105 page UN Palmer Report on this affair were fair towards Israel and even stated that Israel acted legally in the blockade of Gaza.

Despite this, Israel could have apologized to Turkey for the loss of life. It would not be a sign of weakness on Israel's part but a sign of strength. It could have cleared the air and placed the ball in PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey’s court to clear the air and rebuild trust between Israel and Turkey. After all both sides have much to gain if relations between the two countries are restored to normal as soon as possible. Both countries are facing a common Iranian threat which cannot be overlooked as well as deep economic and military interests.

Erdogan may not be Israel-friendly and his actions are demagogic in tone, but this is the Turkish people's choice and we must respect that with all the dissension that comes with it. We must have the strength to see beyond that. Turkey was Israel's strategic ally for many years and it is a pity that Israel's relations with Turkey has reached a low that seems to be irreconcilable.

The credibility of the Netanyahu Government is almost non-existent. Netanyahu pays lip service to the two-state solution but in practice hopes that it will never happen. Building of new homes in occupied Palestinian lands has reached a new unprecedented record. Nibbling away at Palestinian land certainly illustrates Netanyahu's true intentions instead of the hogwash that he portrays to the world. It should not surprise anyone that it is Netanyahu's way of maintaining his right wing coalition by deceiving his closest ally - the US!

At the same time, these delaying tactics create great frustrations for the Palestinians, who see the Palestinian state reality disappearing. The logistics on the ground created by Israel's desire to maintain the occupation can be viewed by facts on the ground.

This is unjustifiable and it will eventually erode Israel's standing in the world even further. There will come a time when the US will not be able to use the veto to support Israel and not pay a heavy price for doing so.

During the hot summer month of August 2011, a ground roots protest movement camped on

Rothschild Ave

in Tel Aviv. Demonstrators pitched tents, protesting against the lack of affordable housing. The protests spread like wild fire all over Israel. It brought people of all ages out into the streets of all the main cities and towns in Israel.

The protests gained a lot of support across the political spectrum. That is its weakness rather than its strength! While the protest movement had a noble and justified cause, it was applicable to only part of the population. Conspicuous by its absence were the Palestinian citizens of Israel. Where were their voices? There were those Israelis who made comparisons with the Arab spring that is sweeping the Middle East. Nothing could be further from the truth. Here there were no serious calls for the Netanyahu Government to resign.

It was a non-violent polite protest movement requesting the government to change its priorities and to improve the housing situation for young people. In Israel, it does not work that way. The piggish capitalism in the hands of a few tycoons keeps the prices high of not only housing but also basic foodstuffs.

Another holy cow that was tactfully avoided was the heavy defense spending to maintain and increase settlement activity. Suddenly building in the occupied Palestinian lands accelerated as mentioned earlier. Is this the solution to solve the high prices of housing in cities within the "green line"?

In other words the massive protests over housing may have acted as a catalyst to a renewal of an increased building pace in the occupied West Bank. It did not weaken the Netanyahu Government but strengthened its resolve to accelerated settlement activity beyond the "green line". No wonder the protest movement is "non-political". All the masses that supported it were mainly right wing. It becomes "political" if the left sought a solution which included all Israel's citizens irrespective of race, colour and creed.

No doubt, a change of priorities apart from social and economic must also include support for the establishment of a Palestinian state alongside Israel and an end to the immoral occupation. If this essential ingredient is lacking then security expenditure and illegal settlement activity will continue to exact a high price. This affects the price of housing and basic foodstuffs as well. It is an important point that was barely mentioned during the duration of the protests.

The Netanyahu Government is aware of this and do not intend to make any changes in their priorities apart from establishing a cosmetic Trajtenberg Committee to investigate the gripes and do a plaster job until the next elections. By this time all will be forgotten as it will be back to business as usual. There was definitely something artificial and shallow about the protests as those leaders who initiated it were not from the grassroots of Israeli society, but rather from the upper crust. The upper crust would never seek true change on a wider spectrum. True peace with a new vision to end the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict was most conspicuous by its absence. This is the crux of keeping prices in all spheres high. This is the reason why I could not identify with the protest movement as it was sectarian. No mention was even made of those who were evicted from their homes in East Jerusalem to make way for further Jewish settlement. House demolitions in the occupied Palestinian lands were unmentioned in these protests.

The unilateral declaration of a Palestinian state deserves our support. It is our best investment to ensure a true peace between Israel and Palestine. Bibi Netanyahu hype and panic is harmful for the achievement of true peace in our area.

Since writing this article, news of a hooligan attack on the Israeli Embassy in Egypt occurred. Only after a request was made by Israel to President Obama of the US, did the Egyptian Army send their commandos to quell the hooliganism. Fortunately the fiasco ended without loss of life. Hooliganism against the Israeli Embassy needs to be condemned by all people. This barbaric act is destructive, immoral and unjustified. Despite this, Israel deserves credit for acting with restraint bearing in mind that Egypt is in a state of turmoil and instability because of the revolutionary changes and is unable to cope with the lawlessness and hooliganism that is becoming rampant. We sincerely hope that this will not destroy diplomatic relations between Egypt and Israel for the benefit of all peoples in the Middle East.

Image via Wikipedia

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The Demonstrations in Israel – Is it an Exercise in Futility?




The demonstrations in Tel Aviv 6th August 2010. Over 300 000
Israelis were present - a real record!

 

In my previous article, I wrote that the demonstrations sweeping Israel have brought the people out into the streets in increasing in numbers. Is this an exercise in futility? Time will tell but my gut feeling is “yes”.

The end of the school holidays is round the corner. This means that many demonstrating parents - many of whom are on vacation - will be involved in buying expensive school books and raking up money to pay for the "free education" of their children.

Apart from this, the Palestinians are indicating that they intend to declare the establishment of a Palestinian state unilaterally in the UN General Assembly. As we all know, this symbolic act does not carry much weight but as a diplomatic move it will cause severe problems for Israel resulting in its increasing isolation in the world. There are to date 130 states who have indicated support for this move.

The US will use its veto in the UN Security Council if the declaration reaches this Council for the vote. This could cause problems for the Palestinians. The US may decrease its financial support for the Palestinian cause. However, as the situation remains now, there is a question mark as to what tactics the Palestinians will adopt in their unilateral declaration of independence.

PM Netanyahu will exploit the Palestinian issue and re-hash the Iranian threat in order to unite the nation, thus sidetracking the Israeli people to unite against the "common threat". He will say that Israel's existence is under threat and this will rally all the demonstrators to support him and his government. The likelihood of this tactic succeeding is large, the demonstration and its achievements, if any, will be forgotten, and it will be business as usual. There is nothing like a call to the blood to unify the people in its support of the present Israeli Government. It reminds me of the apartheid white Government of South Africa in its attempt to unify the whites against the blacks by screaming "Swart Gevaar (black danger) from the left"!

 

Another reason that renders the nationwide demonstrations futile is that the core of the social and housing problems are severely overlooked. The core is based on two big problems that were hardly mentioned:

1. The occupation, including continuous building of subsidized houses in the territories. Apart from being morally unjustifiable to build on Palestinian land it requires an IDF presence to protect the settlers which is a drain on Israel's financial resources.

 2. Housing for ultra-Orthodox religious Israelis, who spend their time studying Talmud and Torah and do not work. This community of parasites is given money by the government in coalition deals with the religious Shas and Torah Judaism Parties.

Most of the demonstrators are right wing supporters anyway. They are politely requesting the right wing government to change their priorities and solve their housing and cost of living problems.

This will never happen. The focus of the demonstrations should be to call for elections to rid the country of the insensitive right wing government and elect a new government that will change its priorities and move away from tycoonization and swinish capitalism.

All that we are witnessing now is a request for the leopard to change its spots rather than changing the government through the ballot box. This so called steering clear of hot potato political issues weakens the demonstration's cause and toadies to the government in the hope of improving the economic status of the middle class. This will not occur.

What has the Netanyahu coalition done? As expected, they have established a populist, impotent commission to alleviate the expensive housing problems. It will be headed by Prof Manuel Trajtenberg, an economist.

While the occupation and religious party extortion continues there will never be a solution to the housing crisis or the disproportionate expenses. Israelis will continue to pay for the high cost of food basics, education, and childcare.

The demonstrations should be for a change of government rather than a request that the same government should change its ways. Surely this is a non-starter for change if not futile.

If the demonstrators go out of their way to avoid political issues such as the occupation, discrimination of non-Jewish minorities, preferential treatment of the ultra-Orthodox communities and the illegal settlers in a bid to maintain the coalition of the most divisive and racist government in Israel's history, then the country-wide demonstrations are due to fail, as its message of social parity is really applicable to the Jewish majority only.

The demonstrations gave the impression of a carnival like atmosphere with the appearance of performers and singers pulling the crowds out into the streets. There were even visits by Likud Knesset members to the tent encampments expressing support. This is a paradox and weakens the cause. In any case, Netanyahu knows that his grassroots support remains intact. If elections are held now he will still win. He knows that the issues in the international arena will unite the country and reinforce the ghetto mentality of most Israelis to maintain the status quo.

In reality there is no Israeli summer. It is just a temporary success.

We must remember that the fight for social justice must be all embracing. Under the Netanyahu Government, it is sectarian and exclusive. It is hardly applicable to Palestinians with Israeli citizenship, not to mention Palestinians in occupied territories. This government must go so that social justice can be applicable to all. These are values worth supporting. It can never be achieved under the racist Netanyahu-Lieberman-Barak axis. THEY MUST GO VIA THE BALLOT BOX BEFORE THESE IDEALS ARE ACHIEVED! Peace will never be achieved while this axis remains.

An occupying power that has sectarian interests can never achieve social justice even for their own electorate. Not to mention the Israeli Arab Community.

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• Questions About a Palestinian State - New York Times (nytimes.com)

The Israeli Summer

July and August are the hottest months in Israel. The temperatures are in the mid thirties to forties with an uncomfortable humidity of close to 70%. Tempers are frayed and people are feeling the heat.

Many people are on holiday and public places are overcrowded. "Tent cities" within the main cities have sprung up like mushrooms - beginning in Ave Rothschild in Tel Aviv and spreading like wild fire to the periphery, Jerusalem, Haifa, Ashdod, Ashkelon and Kiryat Shmona as more and more people of every political viewpoint rally in unison to demonstrate.

It started as a protest against the outrageous rental prices making it almost impossible for young people to rent apartments. It then snowballed into including social and economic gripes of almost every sector in the country. Israel is in the midst of a doctors' strike, this issue has joined up with the protesters, whose salaries, and living expenses for basics is not commensurate with their earnings.

In the coming weeks, the protests will reach its zenith and the disruption of traffic will increase. Mothers wheeling their babies in prams of all sizes joining the fray, protesting over the high cost of disposable diapers, alternative milk formulae and crèches. The salaries are not keeping pace with the increasing cost of living.

The Histadrut (Trade Unions) have joined the demonstrations and this could herald the end of the protests. The protests are justified and are deserving of our support. The partnership of the Netanyahu coalition and wealthy tycoons has produced a heartless capitalism, insensitive to the struggling middle class which are being forced into eventual poverty. The wage earner who works in factories and contract laborers will have it even worse, especially foreign workers who have almost no representation at all.

It is absurd to say that the struggle is non-political. It is political as it is the result of deliberate neglect of the salaried employee by not only the Likud coalition but also the preceding Israeli governments. It is just that the situation deteriorated further as the distribution of wealth became more unequal thanks to the tycoonization of the Israeli economy and adoption of the maximum greed that capitalism has to offer.

Israel has a monstrous dinosaur in its midst which retains all the land that can be released at the pace of a slow intravenous drip keeping the prices high at the will and whim of tycoons with their greedy profit motives. The awful burocratic institution that ensures high prices is the Israel Lands Authority. This cancer keeps the prices high - a boon to tycoons who can buy this land as it is released for high prices and reselling for massive profits for even higher prices. This is the one side of the coin. Here we have a perfect example of a lucrative partnership between the various Israel Governments and the tycoons. The victims are the citizens of Israel who find it almost impossible to purchase or rent an apartment at reasonable prices.

Another factor that keeps the prices high of almost every commodity is the occupation. The expense of maintaining the occupation is astronomical. The IDF has to be on the alert to maintain this illegal and immoral enterprise is astronomical. A government that screws the Palestinian people will eventually screw its own citizens. The price for denying the Palestinians the right for an independent state will be paid for by Israeli citizens in increased taxes, higher prices for essential goods and general cost of living expenses.

Despite these demonstrations, we must bear in mind the looming of September and the unilateral declaration of a Palestinian state in the UN General Assembly. Netanyahu will exploit this as a threat to Israel's existence, thus throwing the ball into the hands of the Histadrut. The Histadrut will then fall for Bibi Netanyahu's ruse and withdrew its support for the demonstrations. The protests will decrease in intensity, things will return to normal, and it will be business as usual with hardly a dent to support of the occupation mongering Netanyahu coalition.

The settlers who live in occupied Palestinian lands get subsidies from the government to build. The claim that all the protests are non-political is insipid. What is happening is very political indeed. All political parties are using the demonstrations for their own advantage. Yesterday we witnessed two right wing louts - MK Michael Ben Ari and Itamar Ben Gvir exploiting their own racist causes. They made a call for increasing settlement in the occupied territories as a solution for the high rentals and cost of living.

The “non-political” demonstrations are no threat to the present government will achieve very little if anything. The leadership of the demonstrations even stated that that they do not seek the downfall of the Netanyahu coalition. On Saturday evening 6^th August 2011 there were over 300 000 demonstrators in the streets of Tel Aviv including other cities and towns in Israel.

It is unlikely that this will change the political power in Israel apart from giving it a bit of a shaking.

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The Boycott Laws

A national paranoia has settled over Israel. It began with the formation of the right wing coalition composed of the Likud, right wing religious parties, ultra-Orthodox parties and a vacillating Labor Party under Ehud Barak's leadership.

This party that had a glorious past, now has an uncertain future, especially after Ehud Barak destroyed it and fell into the arms of Netanyahu's coalition hook, line and sinker, forming the Ha-atzmaut Party.

Barak left a rather fragmented Labor Party full of squabbling, potential leader hopefuls, bent on destroying what is left of the emaciated left wing in Israel. The chances of this self- destructive party taking the lead for change and upholding democratic principles is zero, unless a dynamic leadership, free of squabbles and political stains, emerges. The possibility of this occurring is remote.

These developments strengthened the Netanyahu coalition of right wingers and weakened the left even further. A process of delegitimizing the Israeli left had begun. Anti-democratic laws such as the Pledge of Allegiance, Naqba laws, right wing racist rabbis received increased support from religious fundamentalists whose hatred for non-Jews has become more prevalent. Refusal of renting apartments to Arab students in Safed and other areas is becoming more acceptable and legitimate amongst religious Zionist extremists. At the same time, many Israelis are becoming more right wing and apathetic.

A parallel situation occurred in South Africa prior to the demise of apartheid. More draconian laws limiting freedom of expression became common place in apartheid South Africa in the 1960s, 1970's and 1980's. After this, world boycotts against apartheid South Africa, played a vital role in the ending of race discrimination leading to majority black rule with Nelson Mandela elected as president in April 1994.

Is Israel also going down the path of fascism and McCarthyism by stifling opposition? Has the right wing laid claim to Israel together with the settlers in the occupied territories? Anybody who opposes the anti-democratic laws that the Netanyahu coalition has introduced is viewed as a traitor and stands a chance of being severely dealt with under this newly enacted law.

Superficially it seems to be the case. The so-called major opposition party - Kadima, initially supported the anti-boycott bill but withdrew their support when the bill was re-worded to appear less severe. This does not say much for the Kadima Party, which sits on the political fence. The official opposition party Kadima is an offshoot of the Likud whose platform in certain instances is even more right wing than the Likud.

The Boycott Law is a blot on democracy! This means that you cannot pay lip service or organize campaigns to boycott products produced in the occupied West Bank.

Are these all knee jerk reactions by the Netanyahu Government? It could very well be. The fear of Israel's deligitimization by the world and growing anti-Semitism may be a factor. The world is against the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and the settlers living on usurped Palestinian lands which is a severe obstacle for the establishment of a Palestinian state. The world wishes to see two states for two peoples. However, the Netanyahu coalition exploits the situation and instills fear of anti-Semitism and Israel's deligitimization by maintaining a static situation. It is a pandering to the right and extreme right as well as to the settlers rather than moving toward a two state solution.

If Israeli law professors, actors, writers and various academics oppose this law because it clamps down on one's personal freedom - does this mean that they are serving the interests of Israel's enemies and seek to delegitimize Israel?

There is an erosion of democratic values in Israel. Most Israelis are apathetic towards democratic values and this was reflected in voting patterns in the previous election. Slowly or maybe rapidly this anti-democratic trend under the powerful Yisrael Beteinu faction of Avigdor Lieberman is gaining more support. It is fear of freedom of choice which they view as a danger to Israel's existence.

The illegal settlers in the occupied West Bank have never had it so good. The boycott law has been enacted to protect their interests by force by suppressing opposition to purchasing products of industries on the West Bank. This is just the beginning of a downward slope towards a right wing settler-oriented, right wing religious fanaticism supported by the government.

The idea of BDS (boycott, divestment, sanctions) is illegal and anybody who engages in promoting this will be dealt with severely according to the law.

This law must be opposed by all who value democracy and freedom of speech.

Personally I oppose boycotts of Israeli products as well as divestment and sanctions. However I do support BDS when it involves illegal settler entrepreneurs and academics involved in Ariel University which is hard core right wing and settler oriented. We ought to have the right to be against this university and to boycott it.

The next step will be enacting laws against those who oppose the occupation. Once there is a trend to enact laws that are anti-democratic, there is no end to suppressing the opposition.

Israel claims that it is the only democracy in the Middle East. Now with The Arab uprisings, (the outcome of which is still uncertain) this claim may soon change.

People will not take to the streets to oppose these laws apart from a few dedicated democrats as this is not cottage cheese. We must ask ourselves whether we are serious about achieving peace with our Palestinian neighbours and the Arab world.

All weird and unnecessary laws that border on racism and right wing hegemony as if Israel is the property of the right wing and its allied rabbinical fundamentalists will not lead to peace and coexistence with our neighbours. If anything it will lead to an uncanny resemblance to Islamic self righteous fundamentalism. This can only deepen the conflict.

The loutish behaviour of the "kippa-cladded, tzitzit dangling, payot swaying" hill top youth will gain more legitimacy as they plunder and destroy Palestinian property.

Is it necessary to recognize Israel as a Jewish State? Is it necessary to restate and emphasize the obvious which is stated in Israel's Declaration of Independence? Israeli and Arab citizens of Israel have never disputed this. It is a Netanyahu delaying tactic to prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state.

The Palestinian leadership in their frustration has lost their patience with Israel. Salam Fayyad has achieved much in improving and creating economic viability in the West Bank. He has also beefed up security and created confidence in the economy of Palestine. Violence and terror against Israel has dropped by 96%. Israel has not given him the credit he deserves for this almost impossible feat. The frustration of the Palestinian leadership has made them determined to unilaterally declare an independent Palestinian state in September 2011 based on the pre-June 1967 borders. It remains to be seen as to how much world support they will get in the UN General Assembly.

Related articles

• Netanyahu defends anti-boycott law (jta.org)
• Netanyahu opposes inquiry into left-wing groups (jta.org)
• You: Israel Outlaws Pro-Palestinian Boycotts (nytimes.com)
• Israelis Divided Over Boycott Bill, Poll Finds (huffingtonpost.com)
• Poll shows Israelis divided over boycott bill (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
• Vote set on Israeli settlement boycott bill (seattletimes.nwsource.com)

The Flotilla - Provocation or Humanitarian?

There is a large amount of hype in the Israeli Press concerning the flotilla scheduled to set sail for Gaza. Delays were caused by damage to the propellers of two ships. Israel denies responsibility for this.

The flotilla will eventually set sail for its destination. The aim and justification for the flotilla is questionable.

The idea of "freeing Gaza" from the Israeli blockade is only part of the story. The well meaning peace activists who believe in an end to the occupation, justice and equality for the Palestinians are misinformed and naïve.

I do not intend to attack the peace activists of the flotilla. I am sure that the majority of these peace activists are noble and believers in human rights. Their ideology is sound.

The framework under which they have been recruited is far from sound and just. The aim is partial and hypocritical. It is also a well orchestrated political provocation.

The Israeli occupation is unjust and colonialist. Israel's settlement policies in the occupied Palestinian Lands are proof of this. In Gaza, this is not the case. Gaza is ruled by Hamas that is oppressive, anti-democratic and inhuman, even towards the Palestinians of Gaza. Their human rights record is poor. The treatment meted out to opponents of Hamas rule is cruel, not to mention their treatment of women.

Gaza is not free nor will it be free even if the flotilla would succeed in pressuring Israel to remove the blockade. Will this make Hamas change its attitude towards Israel or become democratic in the spirit of the Arab uprisings in the Middle East? The answer is a definite "no!"

If the peace activists had decided that their "Free Gaza" slogan means an end to Hamas tyranny, the Israeli blockade and the establishment of a democratic Palestinian State including the West Bank living side by side with Israel and at peace then I would support the peace activists on the flotilla. This is not the case here. The aim of the peace activists is ending the blockade and no mention is made of ridding Gaza of Hamas tyranny.

This political provocation is working to Hamas's advantage. We are aware that Hamas is an ally of the cruel, tyrannical Ahmadinajad regime of Iran and its Hezbollah proxy - the allies of Bashar al Assad of Syria. These evil regimes are being strengthened and given legitimacy by the short sightedness of these naïve "peace activists". The idea of bringing essential goods into Gaza will achieve nothing. Hamas will ensure that these supplies will not arrive in the hands of those Gazans who are destitute and poverty stricken. Hamas at best will distribute these supplies to their own croneys. Hamas can only survive on Palestinian poverty and unrest. It has no programme for rehabilitating the Palestinians of Gaza.

Those who stand to gain from the peace activists are Hamas and their allies whose record on peace, democracy and human rights is more than appalling. The naïve "peace activists" are being used and supported by Hamas and their anti-democratic Palestinian extremists. If Hamas were to go - so would the blockade! Let us cease being hypocritical and see the wood for the trees. In any case, the border between Egypt and Gaza is now open. The blockade was a Mubarak-Israel affair. There was weapon smuggling from Iran that has been arriving into Gaza via the sea, hence the blockade.

Why are there no flotillas sailing to Syria to protest against the despotic Assad regime that has massacred close to 2000 demonstrators in Syria? Why are they not going to Ahmadinajad's Iran or off the coast of Libya against the evil Qaddafi regime? Their voices are silent!

It seems as if the peace activists of the flotillas are not concerned with human rights or the spirit of the Arab uprisings. They have a very narrow agenda supported by Hamas. What about Gilad Shalit the Israeli soldier held captive by Hamas for five years? He has been refused family visits during this period as well as Red Cross visits. The Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons have more rights including family visits than Gilad Shalit. The blockade, as bad and inhuman as it appears, is not the only issue. It is more than that.

Every person who is concerned with human rights should condemn the flotillas destined for Gaza as a hypocritic action by ill-informed, Hamas manipulated peace activists being used for strengthening support for the anti-democratic forces of evil as personified by Hamas, Hezbollah, Assad's Syria and Ahmadinajad's Iran.

Related articles

• Cheese and Peace (shimonzk.blogspot.com)
• Anti-Greece rallies planned in support of blocked flotilla (ctv.ca)
• Gaza-bound aid flotilla runs grounded in Greece (rt.com)
• Why is the flotilla heading for Gaza to break the blockade? (rt.com)
• Gaza flotilla organizers say Israel sabotaged 2nd ship (ctv.ca)
• Second Gaza flotilla sabotaged, say ship’s organizers (theglobeandmail.com)