Saturday 25 February 2012

Zionist Immoral Intervention

DateFriday, February 24, 2012 at 4:32PM AuthorGilad Atzmon
Alan Dershowitz

Alan Dershowitz - Zionut extrordinaire

By Gilad Atzmon

http://www.deliberation.info/

Alan Dershowitz is whining again, this time on the pages of the Jerusalem Post. Apparently The Friends Seminary of New York which assigned its students to read my papers and invited me to attend a class, has made it clear to Israeli ethnic cleanser apologist that he was not welcome in its premises.

Dershowitz Admits Defeat

In short, Dershowitz admits total defeat. The Quaker school that was “unwilling to cancel Atzmon’s appearance” made it clear to the Zionist supremacist that he was unwelcomed.

This is not the first time Dershowitz is hurt by me being welcomed while he is spitted out. Yet, I am puzzled by the fact that Dershowitz is so keen to share his humiliation with the public. Normal people tend to hide such an embarrassing developments. Dershowitz may have well developed a close affinity to himself being a victim. This tendency is indeed symptomatic within the Jewish identity discourse and Jewish culture. It is there to stop self-reflection. Rather than looking in the mirror Dershowitz celebrates self-pity hoping to buy some empathy amongst his supportive Jewish crowd. It reminds me an old Jewish joke. Why don’t Jews drink? Because it numbs the pain. Dershowitz, is not going to hide or let the pain fade, he would actually make it into his flag.

According to Dershowitz whom Noam Chomsky and many others regard as a ‘remarkable Liar’, the headmaster of the Friends Seminary, has broken his solemn promise to him, to bring him along to present the anti Atzmon argument.
  1. Dershowitz insists that the headmaster of the seminary agreed to:
  2. Speak at an assembly to the students about the “evils of anti-Semitism”.
  3. Assigned Dershowitz’ essay to the students who were assigned my essay
  4. Invite Deshowitz to address the students
Dershowitz suggests that the Seminary broke those 3 promises. “Apparently”, according to Dershowitz, “the students who were at the assembly have confirmed that the speakers only made things worse. The teacher who invited Atzmon talked about what a great musician he was. The headmaster was defensive about how his words were manipulated and justified bringing Atzmon based on Quaker principles.”
It doesn’t take a genius to realise that my work is compatible with Quaker philosophy – I preach peace and tolerance. Yet, I wonder how long is it going to take to Dershowitz to accept that my work is supported by some of the greatest humanists of our time, while he, has managed to buy himself a horrendous reputation of a compulsive liar and a defender of a genocidal State. How long will it take for Dershowitz, ADL and AZZs to accept that calling me an ‘anti Semite’ or a ‘holocaust denier’ is counter effective. First, because I am not. Second, because it only proves that Jewish culture has lost its capacity to engage in any process of self reflection or productive exchange.

By now it must be clear to my detractors that all those Jewish smear campaigns against myself and The Wandering Who only achieved one thing. They proved how valid my criticism of Jewish identity Politics is.

Dershowitz is deluded enough to believe that the real reason behind his rejection was “pressure from hard-left members” within the faculty. He is obviously wrong. Dershowitz ideology and manners are incompatible with humanism let alone Quaker philosophy. There is no room for Dershowitz in any pluralist or tolerant institute and not because of his supremacist or racist views, but because the elder Zionist is an opponent of elementary freedoms and human rights.

As one would expect, Dershowitz reverts to the usual Zionist pressure.
“Unless I am invited to address the students inside the school, I will appear outside the school, where I will hand out my essays to those students who are willing to read them and will address those students who have an interest in hearing a response to anti-Semitism. I am also considering inviting parents, students and other members of the Friends Seminary community to an event, in a venue outside the school, where these issues can be discussed openly and candidly.”
Watch some exciting moments from the MLK memorial concert @ Friends Meeting House, an event Dershowitz attempted to destroy
http://youtu.be/AaKNXvLqDpg


I am perplexed, if Dershowitz is so convinced by his argument, why wouldn’t he debate me? Is he afraid? Probably and he has a good reason. However, Dershowitz offer is indeed an amazing development, the notorious supremacist offers some free Zionist supplementary teaching for Quaker youngsters. This must be ideal, the students will be able to enjoy both worlds. They will encompass the true meaning of peace in the morning and then learn how to justify a Zionist massacre just before they go to bed. lol

Dershowitz ends his daily drivel saying, “the Friends Seminary, like other elite schools around the United States, teaches our future leaders.” For once, I agree with Dershowitz. This is exactly why the Quaker institute assigned a humanist paper by myself while Dershowitz and his paper were not allowed entry.
The_Wandering_WhoTo read The Primacy of the Ear, the paper that was assigned by the Quaker faculty click here.

Gilad Atzmon’s New Book: The Wandering Who? A Study Of Jewish Identity Politics Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk.

The wandering who- Gilad Atzmon

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9 Palestinians Injured in Clashes with IOF at Martyr’s Funeral

Nine Palestinians were injured Saturday in clashes in al-Ram, north of Al-Quds, with Israeli occupation forces for a secondPalestinian martyr day following the funeral of a Palestinian Israel martyred the previous day in occupied West Bank.

Talat Ramia, 25, died in surgery late Friday after Israeli occupation soldiers shot him in the chest with live fire at a protest, Ma’an news agency reported. Israel's army claimed the protester had fired fireworks at the soldiers.
The Israeli soldiers fired tear gas canisters heavily at the protesters as well as rubber-coated bullets at young men who threw stones from a distance far from the rest of the crowd, Ma’an reporter said.

That clash was one of a sequence between the Israeli occupation and Palestinian protesters angry over Israeli violence and desecration of sanctities in the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Al-Quds.

Al-AqsaPalestinian prime minister in Ramallah, meanwhile, denounced Israel's "resort to force" against non-violent protests in the West Bank, saying he held the Israeli government "completely responsible" for the incident.

“We have already warned all components of the international community, especially the international Quartet, on several occasions of the dangers of maintaining silence while Israel’s violence continues against non-violent protests our people carry out,” Salam Fayyad said. "The international community's silence... contributed to further Israeli undermining of our people's lives and committing this crime."This situation gives the international community direct responsibility for the continuation of such attacks," he added.
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Syria’s 'Electronic Warriors' Hit Al Jazeera

Via FLC

"On Wednesday, the entire staff of the Al Jazeera network allegedly received an email instructing them to change their computer and email passwords.
 
Earlier in the week, the network’s server had been hacked by the self-styled Syrian Electronic Army, and some of its secrets were released to the media.
The major find to be made public was an email exchange between anchorwoman Rula Ibrahim and Beirut-based reporter Ali Hashem. The emails seemed to indicate widespread disaffection within the channel, especially over its coverage of the crisis in Syria.
 
Ibrahim wrote to her colleague saying that she had "turned against the revolution" in Syria after realizing that the protests would "destroy the country and lead to a civil war.” She went on to deride the opposition Free Syrian Army, which she described as "a branch of al-Qaeda."
 
Ibrahim also complained about the attitudes of various colleagues at the channel’s Doha headquarters, saying some of them “have refused to greet me ever since the outbreak of events in Syria because they hold a grudge against my sect.”
Al Jazeera staffers were relieved that the email exchange had been leaked, "because it exposed the station's biased and unprofessional coverage Syria.”
 
Hashem responded sympathetically, saying he had opted to sit on the fence after sending the channel footage of armed men clashing with the army which he had witnessed while reporting from northeastern Lebanon. He said that after he submitted the video, he was told to return to Beirut on the grounds that he was exhausted.
 
In her response, Ibrahim once again protested that she had “been utterly humiliated. They wiped the floor with me because I embarrassed Zuheir Salem, spokesperson for Syria’s Muslim Brothers. As a result, I was prevented from doing any Syrian interviews, and threatened with [a] transfer to the night shift on the pretext that I was making the channel imbalanced.”
Ibrahim also spoke of how Syrian activists invited onto Al Jazeera use terms of sectarian incitement on air, “which Syrians understand very well.”
 
Hashem wondered in response where the channel’s head of news, Ibrahim Hilal, stood in all this. Ibrahim answered that he was “stuck between a rock and a hard place: the agenda and professionalism..." (continue, here)
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“I need to get in and get out fast”

Comment:

During Nato's war on Libya Franklin Lamb was reporting from the western Libya, while Marie did the same from the eastern side, Nato side. They met in Tripoly and both were shocked how quickly Tripoli had fallen. Marie asked Franklin's help in getting a Visa to enter Syria. He did give her contact information for his "friends in Syria, including Dr. Bouthania Shaaban and her brilliant associate Nizar, whose friendship I value very much."  But Marie, with more than a quarter century experience in the Middle East decided to illegally enter Syria from Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley to Homs, Syria and use her contact through friends in Beirut with some smugglers (WEAPON SMIGGLERS) who agreed to take her and her colleague.

Her clear "intention" was to document the conditions of the civilian population (Besieged by Nato's Free Army)  in Homs who had been under heavy attack (used by terrorist as human shields) for the preceding two weeks.

With full respect to her history in suporting Palestinian cause, and despite of her human intention, her "humanitarian" missions, in both Libya and Syria served the brutal Nato wars.
Alex
 

“I need to get in and get out fast”
Franklin Lamb
Graphics by Alex
Al-Manar
Marie Catherine Colvin (1956-2012)
Marie Colvin left Beirut on Valentine’s Day on a fateful mission to illegally enter Syria from Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley to Homs, Syria. Her clear intention was to document the conditions of the civilian population in Homs who had been under heavy attack for the preceding two weeks.

Marie, with more than a quarter century experience in the Middle East had made contact through friends in Beirut with some smugglers who agreed to take her and her colleague, French Photographer Remi Ochlik to a makeshift media center in the besieged flash point neighborhood of Baba Amr.

Marie promised apprehensive friends in Beirut that she would return “no later than one week maximum, certainly I’ll be back by your birthday Franklin! (Feb. 26)” she told this observer.
Marie Colvin's mother, Rosemarie:
"Telling the story was her life"
According to her mother, Rosemarie, who lives in New York City, Marie planned to arrive back in Beirut on February 22nd.

As it turned out, that was the day she was killed as eleven artillery shells slammed into her cramped quarters.

An accident? Eleven rockets fired into one 30 foot wide two story building? On the 19th day of shelling of the area?

Or was Marie and her colleagues targeted as is widely claimed by witnesses on the scene in Baba Amr?

Jean-Pierre Perrin, a journalist for the Paris-based Liberation newspaper who was with Marie until the day she died said the journalists had been told that the Syrian Army was 'deliberately' going to shell their center.

Mr Perrin said: 'A few days ago we were advised to leave the city urgently and we were told: 'If they (the Syrian Army) find you they will kill you'.

'I then left the city with Marie but then she decided to go back when she saw that the major offensive had not yet taken place.'


A very dark day

” I need to get in and get out fast”, Marie said as she waited to hear from her transport team in Beirut on February 13, 2011.
Marie’s joie de vie and charm earned
her many good friends all over the World.
Marie asked my help in getting a Visa to enter Syria. I was humbled that this highly accomplished career journalist (Marie was twice named foreign reporter of the year (2001 and 2010) in the British Press Awards.

She was given an International Women's Media Foundation award for courage in journalism for her coverage of Kosovo and Chechnya. And the Foreign Press Association named her as journalist of the year in 2000) would seek my help as if I had any influence on such an issue.

I did give her contact information for friends in Syria, including Dr. Bouthania Shaaban and her brilliant associate Nizar, whose friendship I value very much.

I mentioned to Marie that I hoped they are both well but that I was worried about them. We used to see a lot of Bouthania on TV. One of her jobs was as Media adviser to Bashar Assad on TV but now nothing.

Bouthania is a great woman and Syrian nationalist from Homs whose eyes welled with tears as she explained to me not long ago that she could not visit her mother’s grave in Homs because she would be killed.

I urged Marie to try to meet with Bouthania who I am certain would help her if she possibly could. I am not sure if the two women ever did make contact.

It was clear to Marie’s friends that she needed to document the story of Homs and to tell the story and give a voice to the voiceless who had been under bombardment since February 3rd.

Her mom said Marie had been told twice by her editor to leave the country because of the danger she was facing, but Marie replied that she "wanted to finish one more story".

The London Times editorialized that Marie’s reporting and subsequent death had strengthened global opposition to oppression and that "Marie stood for truth and courage, which, when brought together, are the greatest moral force on the planet."

The Sunday Times editor John Witherow said in a statement that Colvin “believed profoundly that reporting could curtail the excesses of brutal regimes and make the international community take notice.”

Simon Kelner, chief executive of the Journalism Foundation wrote that: "Marie Colvin embodied all the qualities required of a great journalist: bravery, integrity and a fearless desire to seek the truth. At a time when newspapers are under intense scrutiny, her work is a reminder of the fundamental purpose of journalism, and her death, along with the French photographer Remi Ochlik, represents a dark day indeed."

In her own words, Marie explained not long ago how she viewed a reporter’s job.

"You hear all this talk about the meaning of the media, the need for integrity etc etc," she said during a November 2010, talk at London’s St Bride's Church – the "journalists' church" on Fleet Street at an event to honor fallen journalists.

"But isn't it quite simple? You just try to find out the truth of what’s going on and report it the best way you can. And because we are kind of romantic, our sympathy goes towards the underdog."

It was after the loss of her eye that Marie elaborated publicly on her reason for covering wars. She wrote of the importance of telling people what really happens and about "humanity in extremis, pushed to the unendurable". She explained "My job is to bear witness. I have never been interested in knowing what make of plane had just bombed a village or whether the artillery that fired at it was 120mm or 155mm. I write about people so that others might understand the truth.”
Colvin in Chechnya in 1999.
She was acknowledged by her peers
as Britain’s foremost war correspondent.
Photograph: Dmitri Beliakov/Rex
Ironically, on Thursday 2/23/12, as Marie’s sheet draped body lay atop rubble near the media house, awaiting evacuation, the invasion on Baba Amr that she had predicted and risked and then gave her life trying to report on began with armored Syrian units and tanks entering and shelling the neighborhoods starting in late morning.

As of late afternoon February 24, 2011 Marie and Remi’s bodies have still not been able to be evacuated nor have three journalists wounded in the same attack that killed their colleagues.

A true friend and a great humanitarian and journalist

Marie (on the right shaking hands with MG)
helped the BBC's Jeremy Bowen get one of the major
final interviews with Col Gaddafi
I had known of Marie Catherine Colvin since the late 1980’s when we crossed paths at the Grand Hotel in Tripoli, currently a base for the Zintan militia, and like everyone then and since we basically sat around the hotel lobby for lots of hours waiting for an appointment with “the Brother Leader” or one of his associates for whatever reason brought us to Libya.

I followed Marie’s work over the years and was in contact in 2001 when she lost her left eye reporting on the Tamil resistance in Sri Lanka.

But I was honored to get to know Marie know much better during this past summer and fall, again in Libya, and we continued to stay in regular contact mainly via email.

It was following the August 21-2nd rout of the pro-Gadhafi defenders of Tripoli that Marie arrived in Tripoli from months of covering the rebels in the east and then in the west.

On August 22nd, the nearly empty Corinthia Bab al Africa hotel where I was staying suddenly filled with dozens of arriving Journalists who, like Marie, had been following the rebels advance toward what some were calling “the final battle at Tripoli”.

We immediately reconnected and began helping each other. She briefed me for hours on what had been going on in the east and I filled her in on what I knew about developments in Tripoli. Both of us, like just about everyone, were shocked how quickly Tripoli had fallen and how the claimed 65,000 well-trained loyalist defenders that the regimes persuasive spokesman Musa Ibrahim assured us would be waiting in all the streets and alleys and on every roof top of Tripoli for the expected arrival of the “NATO rebels” had suddenly vanished.

The arriving brigades of journalists were disappointed to find the 5 star Corinthia Hotel without water, or employers to clean the rooms, no electricity most of the time, not much worth eating or much else that they had looking forward to. Of course this did not mean the hotel would lower its astronomical room rates and the place made a financial killing as did the Rixos and Radisson Hotels.

I was able to show Marie a ‘secret’ bathroom off the lobby that no one had discovered and it was the only one in the Corinthia to my knowledge that was not filthy and overflowing. She also appreciated a hidden plug I showed her that worked off a hotel battery backup near the mezzanine that she could use to make coffee—which she always seemed in search of-- and to charge her laptop and mobile.

In appreciation Marie supplied me with some of those cups of noodles things that I learned many in the international press survived on when amenities faded. Actually, some of them taste pretty good at 3 am as we would sit outside the hotel watching the city and the sea.

Marie was the only person I trusted with the knowledge that Mohammad, the black gentleman from Mali was hiding in my room from gangs of wannabe lynchers from Misrata. He got plenty of cups of noodles also.

Marie also met my Chadian princesses friends and she agreed immediately that the treatment I was receiving including the Sahara paste was just what my infected leg needed. Marie particularly enjoyed “Dr.Fatima’s cactus flower drink” since no whiskey or vodka was available.
November of 2010 with Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall
who became her friend and whom Marie liked very much.
She would let me ride with her as she investigated the stories she wanted to cover and she introduced me to Irish journalist Patrick Cockburn who was staying at the Radisson Hotel where conditions were only marginally better than Marie and I were experiencing. Sitting together on the Radisson patio I mentioned to Marie and Patrick that during the summer I used the swimming pool at the Radisson plenty. Patrick informed us that these days hotel guests would dip buckets of water from the swimming pool to flush their toilets.

Marie’ great sense of humor and concern for others made her a joy to be around and we kept in touch by phone and email while moving in and out of Libya.

She was a unwavering supporter of the Palestinian cause and wrote and produced documentaries, including Arafat: Behind the Myth for the BBC in 1990. She was equally at ease among royalty or peasants, although she preferred the company of the latter she once told me.
Franklin Lamb is doing research in Lebanon. He is reachable c\o fplamb@gmail.com
He is the author of The Price We Pay: A Quarter-Century of Israel’s Use of American Weapons Against Civilians in Lebanon.
He contribute to Uprooted Palestinians Blog

Please Signhttp://www.petitiononline.com/ssfpcrc/petition.html

Shatila Palestinian Refugee Camp
Beirut Mobile: +961-70-497-804
Office: +961-01-352-127



Marie Colvin ✆
9/28/11


to me


Dear Franklin,

Lovely to hear from you. How is Shatila camp these days? I haven't been there for a while but when I am next in Beirut I get a tour and briefing ok? How is Bayan al Hout? Please give her my love. Is everyone heartened by Abbas'call for a State?

Sadly, I will miss you in Tripoli as I am scheduled to return on Sunday. Would it be possible for you to send me Omar's number? I would only contact him if you felt it was okay.
Obviously, no names to be used.
Send your news when you have a chance, hope all is well with you.
Bring something a bit warmer for this trip, the rain set in today although I'm sure it will stay hot for a while.

Sincere regards,

Marie
Marie took an interest in her friends work and often commented on particular articles she liked:
Shortly before she left for Homs I received a short final email from her on Saturday February 12, 2012 concerning a piece on the Palestinian refugees in Lebanon and their struggle for civil rights.

Marie Colvin ✆ mariecolvin@hotmail.com

Feb 12

to me

Powerful piece Franklin. Thank you for reminding us. Best regards, Marie

Marie Colvin


Marie’s final audio report was during the night of 21 February during British ITN news report from Homs from arguably the middle of the world's most dangerous war zone: Marie reported: "The Syrians are not allowing civilians to leave … anyone who gets on the street is hit by a shell. If they are not hit by a shell they are hit by snipers. There are snipers all around on the high buildings. I think the sickening thing is the complete merciless nature, whether or not the target, they are hitting civilian buildings. “

The next morning 2/22/12, shortly before she died, Marie filed her final written report. It is testimony to the quality of her reporting, her humanity and her skill and passion in telling the human drama she witnessed.
A few excerpts:
“The scale of human tragedy in the city is immense. The inhabitants are living in terror. Almost every family seems to have suffered the death or injury of a loved one.
A baby born in the basement last week looked as shell-shocked as her mother, Fatima, 19, who fled there when her family’s single-story house was obliterated. “We survived by a miracle,” she whispers. Fatima is so traumatized that she cannot breastfeed, so the baby has been fed only sugar and water; there is no formula milk.
Fatima may or may not be a widow. Her husband, a shepherd, was in the countryside when the siege started with a ferocious barrage and she has heard no word of him since.
It is a city of the cold and hungry, echoing to exploding shells and bursts of gunfire. There are no telephones and the electricity has been cut off. Few homes have diesel for the tin stoves they rely on for heat in the coldest winter that anyone can remember. Freezing rain fills potholes and snow drifts in through windows empty of glass. No shops are open, so families are sharing what they have with relatives and neighbours. Many of the dead and injured are those who risked foraging for food.
Marie Catherine Colvin will never be far from the hearts of those who were honored to know her from her writings and sincere friendship. Marie’s murder is a great loss for all people of good will.
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'"The voices calling for Assad's departure grow louder every time they refuse to involve themselves militarily in the overthrow of the same man!'"

Via FLC

"... Still, it was good to be reassured that "we are not favouring the idea of anybody attacking Iran at the moment". Maybe later, then. Or maybe after President Assad eventually falls, thus depriving Iran of its only – and valuable – ally in the Middle East. Which is, I suspect, what a lot of the roaring and raging against Assad is all about. Get rid of Assad and you cut out part of Iran's heart – though whether that will induce the crackpot Ahmadinejad to turn his nuclear plants into baby-milk factories is another matter. For here's the rub. The mighty voices calling for Assad's departure grow louder every time they refuse to involve themselves militarily in the overthrow of the same man. The more they promise not to "do a Nato" on Syria – every time they claim there can be no "no-fly" zones over Syria – they get angrier and angrier at Assad. Why doesn't he just go off to retirement in Turkey, end the theatre once and for all, and stop embarrassing us all?
Needless to say, Hague-Hague waffles on and on about Syria, too, while presumably not "favouring the idea of anybody attacking Syria at the moment". And this is a real stinker for the Foreign Secretary. He was rightly denouncing the killing of Marie Colvin this week – I last saw her in the final, joyous days of the Egyptian revolution, heading, as usual, towards the crack of tear-gas grenades – but hundreds of other innocent human beings have been cruelly killed in Syria without so much as a whisper from Hague-Hague. And some of these were killed by the armed opposition to Assad ...
No, we are not going to involve ourselves in Syria, thank you very much. Because the new Cold War in the region which Hague was blathering on about has already started over Syria, not Iran. The Russians are lined up against us there, supporting Assad and denouncing us. Just what reaction Putin expects from any Assad replacement is a mystery. Nor will a "new" Syria necessarily be the pro-Western democracy that Hague-Hague and others would like to see..."
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Two People, One Hummus

Two People, One Hummus
by Gilad Atzmon

A talk given in Toronto at The Islamic Society of York, Canada 24.2.12

I was asked to talk to you today about the on-going dispute within our ranks between those who support the One State Solution for the Israeli Palestinian conflict, and those who advocate Two States for the two people.

Interestingly enough, this is a topic I hardly comment on, and not because I am short of vision, opinion or ideas, but rather because I do believe that the fate of the people in Palestine and Israel should be decided by the Israelis and the Palestinians themselves. I, for instance, fail to see what qualifies a NYC Jewish academic or activist to determine how people should live in Palestine or anywhere else. Furthermore, I have never seen a Palestinian trying to advise Western solidarity activists how to run their life. I argue then, that our 'interventionist' enthusiasm to preach to others on how they should live is actually slightly pretentious.

But the subject is obviously deeper: in spite of the fact Israel is an organic sovereign State - it is already recognised as a one State by the nations, it has a single sewage system, one electric grid, one pre-dial international code - many Western world leaders insist that it should actually be divided into two. But don’t you think that it is pretty unusual for the 'international community' to blindly follow the Zionist ideology and draw a racially inspired line between the two people on the land?

So, rather than entering an endless and futile debate here, I propose that we should begin from a point at which we all agree: I presume that we all accept that Israel is currently a one State, yet it is dominated politically and spiritually by an ethnocentric discriminatory political system.

Israel defines itself as the Jewish State and the practical meaning of it is pretty devastating. It is racially driven. Israeli laws favour the Jewish population over the indigenous people of the land. Israel is impervious to universal and ethical thoughts. It is basically set to serve one tribe at the expense of the people of the land.

I would insist that in order to tackle any subject to do with Israel/Palestine conflict resolution we must first understand; what is Israel is all about? Surely, we must ask what the Jewish nature of Israel entails. We should, once and for all, grasp the relationship between Zionism and Jewishness.

Zionism presented itself initially as a Utopian promise to bring to life a new "authentic ethical and civilised Jew"; it promised to make Jews into "people like all other people". But the Israeli reality has proved to be the complete opposite of that aspiration. Zionism has totally failed. The Israelis have been proven to be the most unethical collective in the history of the Jews. One may wonder, why, where and when did it all go so wrong? Why did Zionism fail? If Zionism was a unique moment of Jewish reawakening and self-reflection, then why didn't it provide on its promises? I believe that the answer is devastating. Zionism was doomed from its very beginning, for in spite of its pseudo-secularist agenda, it was entangled with a quasi-religious ideology, and inevitably, it transformed the Bible into a land registry, and turned God into an estate agent. It was the Jewishness of the Jewish State then, that prevailed over the early Zionist utopia. It is the Jewishness in Israel that has lead to ethnic cleansing, segregation, isolation, and ultimately , the resurrection of the European ghetto walls.

In order to contemplate a prospect of a peaceful future then, we must be able to understand the complicated relationship between Jews, Zionism, Israel and Jewishness, and we have to ask whether there is any lucid vision of peace within the Jewish ideological and cultural discourse.

But are we even allowed to ask these questions? I say certainly yes, we must – after all, Israel openly, consciously and even proudly defines itself as the Jewish State. Its air-planes drop bombs on densely populated Palestinian neighbourhoods whilst decorated with Jewish symbols. Surely then, we are entitled to ask what Jewishness means and what is its role within the Jewish psyche and spirit.

In my book The Wandering Who I have attempted to untangle this knot. I have tried to understand what is Jewish identity politics all about? I have exposed the continuum between Zionism, Jewish anti-Zionism and some elements within the left. In the book I try to find out, what is the meaning of Jewishness and how is it related to Jewish politics and Jewish political power?

In the last few pages of the book I elaborate on a fictitious peace scenario in which an imaginary Israeli Prime Minister who grasps, pretty much out of the blue, that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict can be resolved with just a single statement.

In a press conference, the imaginary Israel PM announces to the world and his/her people:

"Israel realises its unique circumstances and its responsibility for world peace. Israel calls the Palestinian people to return to their homes. The Jewish state is to become a state of its citizens, where all people enjoy full equal rights".

Though shocked by the sudden Israeli move, political analysts around the world would be quick to realise that, considering Israel is the representative of world Jewry, such a simple Israeli peaceful initiative won't just resolve the conflict in the Middle East, it would also bring to an end to two millennia of mutual suspicion and resentfulness between Christians and Jews. Some right-wing Israeli academics, ideologists and politicians join the revolutionary initiative and declare that such a heroic unilateral Israeli act could be the one and only total and comprehensive fulfilment of the Zionist dream, for not only have Jews returned to their alleged historical home, they also have managed, at last, to love their neighbours and be loved in return.

But don't hold your breath - as much as such an idea is thrilling, we shouldn't expect it to happen any time soon, for Israel is not an ordinary state and such a scenario doesn't fit into its Jewish ethno-centric ideology that is driven by exclusiveness, exceptionalism, racial supremacy and a deep inherent inclination toward segregation.

The meaning of it is very concerning. For Israel and Israelis to fulfil the initial Zionist promise and become 'people like other people', all traces of ideological superiority must be suppressed first. For the Jewish state to lead a peace initiative, Israel must be de-Zionised - it should first stop being the Jewish State. Similarly, in order for an imaginary Israeli PM to bring peace about, he or she must be de-Zionised first.

As things stand, the Jewish State is categorically unable to lead its people into reconciliation. It lacks the necessary ingredients needed to think in terms of harmony and reconciliation- at present, Israel can only think in terms of Shalom , a term which, in reality, only means 'peace and security for the Jews'.

But what about world Jewry; can they push their Israeli brothers towards a reconciliation? I don't actually think that they can. I recently came across some devastating statistics gathered by the Institute for Jewish Policy Research (JPR). The poll studied 'The attitudes of Jews in Britain towards Israel'. It revealed that "the vast majority of (British Jewish) respondents exhibit strong personal support for, and affinity with, Israel: 95% have visited the country; 90% see it as the 'ancestral homeland'‌ of the Jewish people, and 86% feel that Jews have a special responsibility for its survival."‌

Though some Jewish 'progressive' voices insist to tell us that Diaspora Jews are drifting away from Israel and Zionism, the JPR report reveals the complete opposite - Nine out of ten British Jews feel close affinity towards a war criminal, ethnic cleanser, racist discriminatory state.

But what about the one out of ten Jew who openly opposes Israel? Is he or she going to speak out and help us to get the message of peace across? I am not so sure either. It is more likely that he or she are going to do any thing they can to prevent us from from talking about Jewishness and the fact that 90% of their brothers identify with the Jewish state. Ahead of my Toronto appearance, the organisers of tonight's event were subject to endless harassment by various Jewish 'anti' Zionist organisations and individuals. Like their Zionist brothers most Jewish anti Zionist are largely concerned with Jewish tribal matters- they will fight anti Semitism, 'Holocaust denial' or any attempt to understand Jewishness from a universal perspective. Yet, as the JPR poll reveals, they will achieve very little within their respective communities.

But the situation may not be totally grim. I am actually slightly optimistic. For more than a while I am convinced that the only people who can bring peace about are actually the Palestinians, because Palestine, against all odds and in spite of the endless suffering, humiliation and oppression, is still an ethically-driven ecumenical society.

So what do we do for the time being- should we fight for one state or two states? I guess that you gather by now that I am a strong supporter of a one State. I would love to see Israel being transformed into a state of its citizens. I would also openly admit that I do realise that this State won't be a Jewish State. It will be Palestine. It is about time to say it openly- Israel belongs to the past. And yet, I contend that it is the facts on the ground that would determine the future of the region. And what we see on the ground maybe encouraging.

In spite of the, pain, animosity and distrust between the two people, there is one principle both Israelis and Palestinian would agree upon, namely "Two People, One Hummus". It may sound frivolous, banal or trivial to say that, but it is actually far more profound than just a culinary suggestion. Israelis are gradually becoming the minority on the land. As I once heard Palestinian Ambassador to Britain Manuel Hassassian commenting, 'Israel has many lethal bombs, the Palestinians have only one bomb, the demographic one'.

Interestingly enough, when Israelis want to feel authentic, they do not speak in Yiddish or Aramaic, they actually swear in Arabic and eat hummus. The meaning of it is simple, deep in their hearts the Israelis know that Palestine is the land and Israel is just a state. When Israelis want to bond with the Zion they actually plagiarise the indigenous people of the land, for deep inside the Israeli knows that the sky, the sea, Al Quds, Mount Olive, the Sea of Galilee, the Wailing Wall, the Arabic language and the Hummus belong to the land. They also grasp that oppression, exceptionalism, supremacy belong to the State — their own Jewish State.

'Two People one Hummus' is my image of peace and reconciliation. The Land will Stay forever - the failing Jewish State is already subject to historical research. The two people will dine together- and they won't just share the hummus: they may even share the pita bread between them.

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America's shameless: "It is just despicable ... to see two permanent members of the Security Council using their veto while people are being murdered!"

Via FLC

"... They took a tentative step toward recognition by declaring the council to be “a legitimate representative” of the Syrian people, a possible precursor to calling it “the legitimate representative.”
 
Despite the show of unity, which diplomats said they hoped would impress upon Assad that the end of his family’s four-decade autocratic rule is inevitable and at hand, there were signs of division. Some nations argued for arming Assad’s foes, while others called for the creation of protected humanitarian corridors to deliver aid.
 
Neither idea was included in the conference’s final document, which instead focused on steps nations should take to tighten the noose on the regime, including boycotting Syrian oil, imposing travel and financial sanctions on Assad’s inner circle, and working with the opposition to prepare for a post-Assad Syria, including lucrative commercial deals....
 
Highlighting the divisions, though, Saudi Arabia called publicly for weapons and ammunition to be sent to the opposition, .... Clinton demurred on the question..... "
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Alan Hart: ‘Israel makes Holocaust II inevitable’

"Alan’s article is very informative and surgical. However, it has a few historic mistakes. I pointed out some of those mistakes in my comment I left at his blog. However, for some reasons, Alan decided not to publish it. "

You are not the only one, he did the same with me. How you dare to say he commit historic mistakes.

Perez used him in the so called "Peace Conspiracy" to drag Arafat into Oslo trap.

For Alan History start with Holocaust, and there is no Solution other than recognizing Israel as Jewish nuclear state. He do theoritacly believe that that Israel should not exist, but, on ground, because they told him that if Israel goes down it would take the world with it, Israel should exist, and Palestinians, Arabs, and Muslims should recognize Israel as a Jewish state to avoid the final ethnic cleansing of Palestine. For Alan Palestine is WB and Gaza . In other words Alan is calling for the final ethnic cleansing of Israeli Arabs to defuse the real demogrphic bomb.

Alan, like anti-zionist zionits, is not really concerned  about the Zionist monster occupying the world, he is worried because the global tide of anti-Israelism would turn into anti-Semitism, and makes a new Holocaust inevitable.


Alan Hart: ‘Israel makes Holocaust II inevitable’

 Posted on |
Alan Hart is a British news correspondent, author (Zionism: The Real Enemy of Jews) and blogger. He had interviewed several world leaders including Israeli prime minister Golda Meir, Shimon Peres, PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat, King Faisal of Saudi Arabia, King Hussain of Jordan and US president Jimmy Carter. Gold Meir called Alan a “good friend”.
Alan Hart, who has been involved in Middle East conflict for over three decades, believes Israel has no right to exist. In August 2007, Alan wrote to then leader of British Opposition, Israel-Firster David Cameron: ““The Zionist state which came into being as a consequence of Zionism terrorism and ethnic cleansing had no right to exist and more to the point could have no right to exist unless it was recognized and legitimized by those who were dispossessed of their land and their rights during the creation of the Zionist state. In international law, only the Palestinian could give Israel the legitimacy it craved“.

Alan’s latest article, entitled Is Holocaust II inevitable? is worth reading for both pro-Israelis and anti-Israelis. Alan Hart provides answer to his own question – that the only way Holocaust II can be avoided, “if the Jews of Europe and America distance themselves from the Zionist monster before it’s too late to do so“.
Alan’s article is very informative and surgical. However, it has a few historic mistakes. I pointed out some of those mistakes in my comment I left at his blog. However, for some reasons, Alan decided not to publish it.
For example, Alan keeps calling Israel “a Jewish State”, which is incorrect because it was never recognized as a Jewish state by its major sponsors, i.e. the US, USSR and UK. A copy of the document on left shows that US president Harry Truman had crossed the word “Jewish” from Israel’s name.

Alan also equates “anti-Israelism” with “anti-Smitism”, which is not true. The great majority of Zionist leaders, though born to Jewish mothers, were confirmed atheists. Furthermore, modern-day Jews are descendents of Asiatic Khazarian Turks or North African Berbers. They don’t belong to the Semite tribes of prophet Jacob (Israel).

Alan’s calling the next possible ethnic-cleansing of Jews due to the Zionazi policies of the state of Israel (and not by Muslim world policies) as “Holocaust II” is also incorrect. According to Jewish history, Jews have already went through two Holocausts. For example, Holocaust I is mentioned in Jewish Talmud (Gittin 57b): “Four billion Jews were killed by the Romans in the city of Bethar – While Gittin 58a claims that sixteen million Jewish children were wrapped in scrolls and burned alive by the Romans. And then there is Holocaust II – the Judeo-Christian Nazi Holocaust of “Six Million Died”.
Here are some highlights from Alan Hart’s article:
  • Zionism wants and needs anti-Semitism in order to justify anything and everything its monster child does.
  • The Zionist state is not interested to live in peace with its neighbors.
  • On July 19, 1969, Henry Kissinger (a Zionist Jew and war criminal) then national security adviser, told President Richard Nixon that Israelis are “probably more likely than any other country to actually use their nuclear weapons“.

Alan refuses to accept the so-called “two-state solution” for the Occupied Palestine. “In the words of an old English cliché, Jewish groups which are critical of Israeli policy but limit their effort to calling for an end to Israeli occupation are flogging a dead horse,” he wrote.

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“Time is running out for the Syrian opposition to establish its credibility & viability"

Via FLC

'Victory not at hand!'
"... The divisions and shortcomings within the council were fully on display last week when its 10-member executive committee met at the Four Seasons Hotel in Doha, Qatar — its soaring lobby bedecked with roses and other red flowers left over from Valentine’s Day...
 
“They were in a constant, ongoing struggle, which delayed anything productive and any real work that should be done for the revolution,” said Rima Fleihan, an activist. She was representing Syria’s Local Coordination Committees, an alliance of grass-roots activists, on the council until she quit in frustration this month. “They fight more than they work,” Ms. Fleihan said. “People are asking why they have failed to achieve any international recognition, why no aid is reaching the people, why are we still being shelled?”
 
Even by comparison with Libya, where infighting among rival militias and the inability of the Transitional National Council to exert authority fully created turmoil after the successful uprising there, Syria’s opposition appears scattered.... The United States and other Western governments are also wary of the uncertain role of Islamists in Syria....
 
“This is a manufactured problem,” said Burhan Ghalioun, the council president, in a brief interview outside an executive committee meeting last week. “Some independent people don’t want to join the S.N.C., but there is no strong opposition power outside the national council.” He said lack of money was the group’s most acute problem. Although the Qatari government picked up the bill for the Doha meeting and for frequent travel, council members said that no significant financial support from Arab or Western governments had materialized despite repeated promises, ....
 
After communicating via Skype with activists in embattled cities like Homs, Hama and Idlib, council members admitted sheepishly that those activists just flung accusations at them, demanding to know why they seemed to swan from one luxury hotel to the next while no medical supplies or other aid flowed into Syria.
 
The bickering takes place in plain sight. “Is this any way to work?” yelled Haithem al-Maleh, an 81-year-old lawyer and war horse of the opposition movement, “They are all stupid and silly, but what can I do?”...
 
No one from Syria’s ruling Alawite community, sits on the executive committee, despite repeated attempts to woo a few prominent dissidents. The fight over Kurdish seats remains unsettled even... The council has also not reconciled with members of another opposition coalition, the Syrian National Coordination Committee, some of whom remain in Syria ....
 
“Time is running out for the Syrian opposition to establish its credibility and viability as an effective representative of the uprising,” said Steven Heydemann, who focuses on Middle East issues at the United States Institute of Peace, a research group financed partly by Congress.
 
Even the council’s diplomatic efforts remain troubled. The council has yet to appoint an official envoy in Washington, .... The key issue the council is grappling with right now is how to coordinate an increasingly armed opposition. The council says it supports the defensive use of weapons. But exiled Syrian Army officers who formed the Free Syrian Army, based in Turkey, have stayed aloof from the council, and even they do not really control the many local militias that adopt the army’s name alone."
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Hana‘ Ash-Shalabi; A Struggle Against Administrative Detention


source: google images
Today, 28 year old Palestinian female political prisoner Hana’ Yahya Ash-Shalabi enters her 9th day of an open-ended hunger strike in the Israeli HaSharon jail. She is currently in solitary confinement and, according to latest reports, her health condition is deteriorating. Hana’ was kidnapped from her home in Burqin, Jenin on 16.02.2012 and has been ordered in administrative detention for 6 months.

This is not the first time for Hana’: she had been in administrative detention for 6 executive times since 14.03.2009, and was released in October 2011 under the latest prisoner exchange deal after spending 2 and a half years in Israeli detention without charge or trial. Through her hunger-strike, Ash-Shalabi is protesting against her illegal detention and to demand an end to the policy of administrative detention. Administrative detention is a procedure that allows the Israeli military to hold prisoners indefinitely on secret evidence without charging them or allowing them to stand trial. Israeli prison authorities use administrative detention as prolonged detention, and in some cases Palestinian detainees are held captive without charge or trial for 5 or even 10 years. One example is 47 year old Palestinian political detainee Ahmad Nabhan Saqer from Askar refugee camp, who is being held in administrative detention since four years. Saqer was detained 3 consecutive times and held each time in administrative detention, thus spending a total of 12 years in Israeli captivity without charge or trial.

Yahya Ash-Shalabi told reporters that the Israeli occupation forces raided his family home at 1:30 am on 16.02.2012, held all members of his family hostages while they searched the house and confiscated all mobile phones and computers. Then the Israeli occupation soldiers kidnapped his daughter Hana’, who was blindfolded and handcuffed, to an unknown destination. Later, Ash-Shalabi was informed that his daughter was in administrative detention. After visiting her, Yahya Ash-Shalabi said that Hana’s spirits were high and that she will continue her hunger strike until she is released. Like most Palestinian families, Ash-Shalabi family is not new to Israeli terrorism; Samir Ash-Shalabi, Hana’s 24 year old brother, was killed by Israeli occupation forces on 29.09.2005. Her sister Huda was held as administrative detainee and her brothers were also held captives in Israeli dungeons. On 23.02.2012, and in support of their daughter’s struggle for freedom and in protest of her illegal detention, Hana’s 67 year old parents have started an open-ended hunger strike in a protest tent set in front of their family home. Yahya Ash-Shalabi said that they will continue the hunger-strike until the release of their daughter and the abolishment of administrative detention.

Currently, there are over 4500 Palestinians held captive in Israeli dungeons, including 6 women, 166 children and 320 administrative detainees. According to Palestinian prisoner solidarity sites, over 20,000 administrative detention orders were issued since 2000 by the Israeli occupation authority. On 24.02.2012, the 320 Palestinian administrative detainees held captive without charge or trial declared a boycott of Israeli military courts. This boycott is to start on 01.03.2012 in protest of these sham courts that are used by the Israeli occupation army and the Israeli intelligence as a cover for illegal detention based on “secret” files and lack of indictment.

Hana’ Ash-Shalabi is one of 6 Palestinian female political prisoners currently held captive in Israeli dungeons:
1. Lina Ahmad Al-Jarbouni, from Arrabet Al-Batouf, Al-Jalil, in Israeli captivity since 15.4.2002, received 17 years sentence.
2. Woroud Mahir Qasim, from At-Tira, Al-Muthallath, in Israeli captivity since 04.10.2006, received a 6 years sentence.
3. Salwa Abdel-Aziz Hassan, 52 years old from Hebron, in Israeli captivity since 19.10.2011.
4. Ala’ Al-Ju’ba, a minor from Hebron, in Israeli captivity 07.12.2011.
5. Saja Al-Alami, 18 years old from Beitunia, Ramallah, in Israeli captivity since 09.01.2012.
6. Hana’ Ash-Shalabi, 28 years old, from Burqin, Jenin, in Israeli captivity since 16.02.2012
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Eight Short Interviews with Russia Today on Syria and Libya

February 23rd 2012 | كتبها
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Spoiling for War on Syria

by Stephen Lendman

My PhotoNearly a year ago, Western-backed insurgent violence erupted. Heavily armed foreign fighters supplemented internal ones. Al Qaeda's very much involved.

Russian and Chinese peace initiatives are spurned. Washington, rogue NATO partners, and pro-Western regional allies want conflict.

Reports suggest Jordan's hosting 40,000 heavily armed insurgents along Syria's southern border ready to intervene. Former Libyan Al Qaeda commander Abdelhakim Belhadj commands nearly half of them.

Iraqi fighters are massed to Syria's east, ready to join them. So are so-called Free Syrian Army insurgents north in Turkey. Perhaps escalated violence is planned for Sunday, February 26, when Syrians vote up or down on Assad's new draft constitution.

A mass supportive turnout would embarrass Washington, its allies, and insurgent leaders. Preventing it violently may be planned.

Syrian National Council and Free Syrian Army dissidents reject it out of hand. So does Washington. White House spokesman Jay Carney called it "laughable. It makes a mockery of the Syrian revolution. Promises of reforms have usually been followed by an increase in brutality and have never been delivered by the regime" since protests began.

Other US officials made similar disparaging remarks. Washington want protracted conflict to replace Assad with a pro-Western regime.

They ignore his repeated good faith reform announcements and thousands of released prisoners. At the same time, insurgent violence continues. He's blamed for confronting it responsibly. So would other leaders to restore order.

Fundamental International Law

International law backs them. The UN Charter's Article 51 states:
"Nothing in the present Charter shall impair the inherent right of individual or collective self-defense if an armed attack occurs against a Member of the United Nations, until the Security Council has taken measures necessary to maintain international peace and security. Measures taken by Members in the exercise of this right of self-defense shall be immediately reported to the Security Council and shall not in any way affect the authority and responsibility of the Security Council under the present Charter to take at any time such action as it deems necessary in order to maintain or restore international peace and security."
In addition, individual states may use defensive force against armed attacks until the Security Council acts. Other exceptions don't apply, including armed reprisals. Calling them unlawful, the General Assembly said all states must refrain from using them.

The right of self-defense is limited solely to deterring armed attacks, preventing future ones after initial assaults, or reversing the consequences of enemy aggression, such as heavily armed Western-backed Syrian insurgents.
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