I hate the 'blame both sidesism' that people use to describe Palestine/Israel.

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PkQ4HZAepYc]

I agree with John Oliver here and well done to him for being one of the few public voices to call it like it is.

Also, the Biden administration has just approved a major arms sale to Israel:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/05/17/power-up-biden-administration-approves-735-million-weapons-sale-israel-raising-red-flags-some-house-democrats/

The Republicans would have done the same and other Governments (including the British one) are complicit with other arms sales and uncritical allegiance. This is a problem that could be solved by a [i]genuinely [/i]even-handed approach. That would involve the international community having the will (it has the means) to force the dominant antagonist not to further breach international law and to stop Israeli ethnic cleansing of Palestinian land. Yes, also make sure that Israel is protected from its neighbors and Israeli Jews do not become the oppressed minority instead. The blockades, bombs, and settlements are about domination, not protection though: let's be clear.

I just wish people would stop pretending it's a war between equals when it's more of military occupation. Albeit one which is given preferential treatment because it is seen as a key part of NATO interests, as well as being a weird prophecy project for the American evangelical right.

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Northwest · M

The arms deal was approved on May 5th, and Congress notified. Congress has until the end of the week to vote on it, and the vote must be Presidential veto proof.

It is NOT a war between equals, but it's not a war that the Western powers, and some regional powers (Saudis, Emirates, Kuwait) would like to see Hamas win, or appear to win.

The unspoken truth, is that they all want Hamas clipped, as it's a danger not only to Israel, but primarily to the Palestinian people's chance of peace. Of course Netanyahu and those who brought him to power, are just as big an obstacle to peace, but nothing is going to change that, except for a political change from within Israel.

Palestinians exhibited an unprecedented (since the Intifada) show of unity. Normally, the PA and Israeli Arabs would not give a shit about Hamas, but Netanyahu's SS troops have taken it too far in Jerusalem.

I like John Oliver, but just as he points out the lopsided nature of the conflict, he's also misidentifying it, using classic war terms, declaring it's an apples to apples comparison. It is not. It's apples to oranges.

A very complex situation. Netanyahu asked Biden for one more day, to finish off the head of Qassam Brigades.

There's also an internal Israeli political struggle. Gantz (min. of defense), does not want Netanyahu to reap the political benefits, as Gantz tries to "accomplish" something, as so far, none of the goals sought by Israel have been achieved: 1) the head of the Qassam brigades is not only still out there, but most of the civilian casualties resulted from strikes that were designed to kill him, but ended up hitting residences he was not at; 2) Hamas has not lost its ability to fire rockets, and Israel is nowhere closet to figuring out how they continue to fire; 3) only a tiny portion of the tunnels have been destroyed, not enough to cripple Hamas; 4) Hamas' popularity is up.

This was not a well thought out Israeli action, but the minute Hamas fired its first on Jerusalem, Netanyahu had no choice, and despite the Gaza devastation, Hamas will emerge the winner.

In addition to the civilian casualties, the primary victim is the unity government, Jewish-Arab, that would have brought the first Arab ministers into the Israeli government, to replace the Netanyahu government. That's no longer a possibility and Netanyahu may be back.

Burnley123 · 41-45, M

@Northwest I don't agree that internal Israeli politics is the only obstacle to change. The west, America in particular, could cut aid or arms sales. The mere threat of this would force Israel into serious concessions irspective of leader. Its not a narrow strategic issue but a systemic one

Northwest · M

@Burnley123 [quote]The west, America in particular, could cut aid or arms sales. [/quote]

[quote]The unspoken truth, is that they all want Hamas clipped, as it's a danger not only to Israel, but primarily to the Palestinian people's chance of peace.[/quote]

Burnley123 · 41-45, M

@Northwest If it was about peace, Israel would not be violently evicting people in east Jerusalem or bombing so many civilian and cultural centres. I know you are against that but I don't think wanting to damage Hamas is the real justification.

Northwest · M

@Burnley123 [quote]If it was about peace, Israel would not be violently evicting people in east Jerusalem or bombing so many civilian and cultural centres. I know you are against that but I don't think wanting to damage Hamas is the real justification.
[/quote]

I am pointing out the harsh reality: Netanyahu and Gantz have been granted, by the West, a day or two to try to take out the Qassam leader. It is going to cost more civilian lives. Nothing about this says this is about PEACE.

The internal political conflict in Israel, is just as bad it is in the USA. The Netanyahu government does not want a 2-state solution, and they're using legal, not violent, means, to empty Jerusalem out of its Arab residents. Behind the scenes, however, it is allowing Orthodox extremists, primarily American settlers, to wage violence. Technically, and in the case of these houses, the Arab residents are not the actual owners: they were given these homes by Jordan, in 1956, following the eviction of their Jewish owners. But it's a Domino effect.

Netanyahu points to the rockets that continue to fall on Israel, as justification that the Western powers cannot ignore, to wipe out all the progress made by Gazans over the past 2 decades, and there has been a lot of progress in making it look like a modern territory. When I first visited it, the place was literally a shit hole. I have several American Jewish friends who volunteered to open up and staff the first medical clinics in Gaza, after it transferred to Palestinians.

In the meanwhile, Hamas continues to provide him with justification. They don't care about the civilians either.