The death of the three allegedly kidnapped Israeli youths saddens me. It is appalling but before we rush to judgment as to who killed them let us analyze the facts.
Israel came off one of its worst diplomatic months ever. In April, Israel reneged on releasing Palestinian prisoners it had committed to releasing and then it announced further illegal settlement housing starts amid US attempts to salvage the talks. US Officials blamed Israel. The Palestinians sought membership in 15 international agencies and are about to seek membership in the International Criminal Court. The Palestinians have ended 7 years of rift between Hamas and Fatah, much to Israel's chagrin. Countries across the globe, including the US, welcomed the new Palestinian unity government despite by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's plea otherwise. France, UK and several other European countries warned their businesses not to do business with corporations that profit from the Israeli occupation of Palestine. The Presbyterian Church voted to divest from 3 US corporations who so profit.
Indeed, the diplomatic tide against Israel was being written on the wall.
A week before these youths went missing, the head of the Israeli Mossad predicted that 3 Israeli youths would go missing. Israel in all its communications demanded that the PA disavow the unification agreement between Hamas and Fatah. That was the Israeli intent behind its Operation Brother's Keeper. Israel may have already known the fate of the missing teenagers.
It is not beyond the realm of belief that Israel would sacrifice the lives of its citizens for the greater good, to gain sympathy from world public opinion. So let us not condemn anyone here because it is not proven if they were kidnapped, even the NY Times questioned the "alleged" kidnapping.
It is also within the realm of belief that Israel will fabricate charges on some innocent Palestinians to cover its tracts. Let us not forget the thousands of alleged confessions that Israel gained through the use of torture.
Let us not forget that the US courts found Mohammed Salah innocent despite the torture induced confession written in Hebrew. At Israel's insistence, Salah was put on the terrorist watch list, was stripped of his ability to work and support his family and was striped of any rights. He fought back against the Israeli accusations and won.
Yes, the murders of these 3 Israelis needs to be condemned in the strongest terms. But so does the murder of 8 Palestinian children during the massive operation to find the missing Israelis. The collective punishment perpetrated against the Palestinian population also needs to be condemned.
You cannot condemn one act and not the other.
Israel came off one of its worst diplomatic months ever. In April, Israel reneged on releasing Palestinian prisoners it had committed to releasing and then it announced further illegal settlement housing starts amid US attempts to salvage the talks. US Officials blamed Israel. The Palestinians sought membership in 15 international agencies and are about to seek membership in the International Criminal Court. The Palestinians have ended 7 years of rift between Hamas and Fatah, much to Israel's chagrin. Countries across the globe, including the US, welcomed the new Palestinian unity government despite by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's plea otherwise. France, UK and several other European countries warned their businesses not to do business with corporations that profit from the Israeli occupation of Palestine. The Presbyterian Church voted to divest from 3 US corporations who so profit.
Indeed, the diplomatic tide against Israel was being written on the wall.
A week before these youths went missing, the head of the Israeli Mossad predicted that 3 Israeli youths would go missing. Israel in all its communications demanded that the PA disavow the unification agreement between Hamas and Fatah. That was the Israeli intent behind its Operation Brother's Keeper. Israel may have already known the fate of the missing teenagers.
It is not beyond the realm of belief that Israel would sacrifice the lives of its citizens for the greater good, to gain sympathy from world public opinion. So let us not condemn anyone here because it is not proven if they were kidnapped, even the NY Times questioned the "alleged" kidnapping.
It is also within the realm of belief that Israel will fabricate charges on some innocent Palestinians to cover its tracts. Let us not forget the thousands of alleged confessions that Israel gained through the use of torture.
Let us not forget that the US courts found Mohammed Salah innocent despite the torture induced confession written in Hebrew. At Israel's insistence, Salah was put on the terrorist watch list, was stripped of his ability to work and support his family and was striped of any rights. He fought back against the Israeli accusations and won.
Yes, the murders of these 3 Israelis needs to be condemned in the strongest terms. But so does the murder of 8 Palestinian children during the massive operation to find the missing Israelis. The collective punishment perpetrated against the Palestinian population also needs to be condemned.
You cannot condemn one act and not the other.
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