24.10.06

Extremist party joins Israel government

From Electronic Intifada:
''World Silent as Facists join Israel government . In a frightening but long expected move, Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert has brought the Yisrael Beitenu party into his coalition government. The party's leader, Avigdor Lieberman, is to be vice prime minister and, as "Minister for Strategic Threats," a key member of Israel's "security cabinet" in charge of the Iran portfolio.

Yisrael Beitenu is a dangerous extremist party with fascist tendencies that has openly advocated the "transfer" of Palestinians, including the transfer of Arab towns within Israel to a Bantustan-like future Palestinian entity. It has made clear that a Jewish supremacist state is more important than a democratic one. The party, whose strongest base is among Russian immigrants brought to Israel in the 1990s, surged at the Israeli election earlier this year, taking eleven seats in Israel's 120 seat Knesset.''

''In an interview with an Israeli newspaper in September, Yisrael Beitenu leader Lieberman said: "The vision I would like to see here is the entrenching of the Jewish and the Zionist state...I very much favour democracy, but when there is a contradiction between democratic and Jewish values, the Jewish and Zionist values are more important." (Scotsman, October 23, 2006)

In addition to espousing ethnic cleansing, Lieberman has a long history of inciting discrimination, hatred and violence against Palestinians within the Jewish state and living under Israeli military occupation in East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza Strip. When he served as minister of transport in a previous government, Lieberman called for all Palestinian prisoners held by the Israeli occupation authorities to be drowned in the Dead Sea and offered to provide the buses ("Lieberman blasted for suggesting drowning Palestinian prisoners," Ha'aretz, July 11, 2002). He has proposed to strip the citizenship of, and expel any Palestinian citizen of Israel who refuses to sign a loyalty oath to the Jewish Zionist state ("A Jewish demographic state," Ha'aretz, June 28, 2002).

In 2002, Lieberman declared, "I would not hesitate to send the Israeli army into all of Area A [the area of the West Bank ostensibly under Palestinian Authority control] for 48 hours. Destroy the foundation of all the authority's military infrastructure, all of the police buildings, the arsenals, all the posts of the security forces... not leave one stone on another. Destroy everything." He also suggested to the Israeli cabinet that the air force systematically bomb all the commercial centers, gas stations and banks in the occupied territories (The Independent, March 7, 2002). And, he has proposed bombing Egypt's Aswan Dam, despite that country's peace treaty with Israel since 1979. What will he propose to do to Iran?

Hebrew University professor Ze'ev Sternhell, a leading Israeli academic specialist on fascism and totalitarianism, was quoted by the Scotsman newspaper as terming Lieberman "perhaps the most dangerous politician in the history of the state of Israel."''

When Hamas formed the Palestinian Authority government, the world stopped its aid to the Palestinians punishing them in a savage way and the US is still looking for alternatives to Hamas by financing a civil war between Palestinian factions in the territories.

Look how the world is reacting to Yisrael Beitenu (Israel our home) joining Israel government in a key position, SILENCE. And when the EU is asked about the matter, the answer is: "You will understand that we cannot interfere with the setting up of a foreign government. This is a matter for which the concerned State alone is responsible," wrote Cristina Gallach, the official spokesperson for Javier Solana, the EU High Representative for foreign policy, in an email responding to a query about whether the EU would impose sanctions on Israel if Yisrael Beitenu joined the government. ''

Never before such double standards have been applied in international politics . This is frightening. How would you like your international justice from now on ? A la carte for some and the standard menu for others.

11 comments:

Texas Bankruptcy Nerd said...

Funny, the EU and US somehow found a way to condemn the democratically-elected Hamas Government... but now we're all of a sudden not in the business of telling other countries what to do when it comes to Israel. Interesting double standard... Then again I'm not surprised at all.

Anonymous said...

Since the government policy hasn't changed, what can be boycotted? If Fatah and Hamas would have formed unity government and accepted the quartet conditions, that government would not have been boycotted.
The current Israeli government with Lieberman is not renegging on any agreement with the Palestinians unlike the Hamas government did.

Sophia said...

e,

This is the second time in a second day you are planting disinformation on this blog. I don't have time to correct you. next time I am going to erase your comment.
1-For now I must tell you that:
Hamas was a party with an extremist agenda as opposed to Fatah but it is nonetheless a resistance movement, compared to Yisrael Beitenu which is an extremist occupation movement.
2-Since its election, Hamas was not given one minute to integrate the political process. The international community retaliated with extreme measures while it is silent about YB integrating the Olmert goverment.
-Hamas did make some moves toward a recognition of Israel into its 1967 borders. They signed a joint statement with the prisoners movement to get out of the economic and military crisis provoked by the election of Hamas as representative to the Palestinian people. How did israel reacted ? They increased their daily incursions and violence in gaza as to silence any voice of peace and they invaded Lebanon, why ? because they don't want to be recognised inside the 1967 borders.
-Hamas did try its best to form a unity government with Fatah. these efforts collapsed because israel and the US are chanelling money and weapons to Fatah promising to try their best to find an alternative to Hamas. Why then form a unity government with Hamas when the US and Israel will rush to put you in power ? Why share the power ?

Now next time you plant disinformation on this blog, I am going to erase your comment. you are warned and there is only one warning.

Anonymous said...

Wow! You did erase e's reply calling for a debate!
Why don't you trust your readers to decide what is a good argument and what isn't? Isn't that the basis of freedom of speech?

Sophia said...

Anonymous,
This is a personal blog so it is up to me to detrmine its content. I am for the freedom of speech but it seems that you are judging without knowing what e has been writing in the comment section. Also if you are for the freedom of speech why you hide your real name because after having checked my counter it appears to me that you are a regular visitor and that you comment usually under another name. Why hide your criticism ? Because I won't take it ? Of course I can take any criticism but I don't open the door to disinformation on this blog. I don't have time to correct.

Anonymous said...

Sophia,
Please explain the difference between misinformation and debating. I want to follow your rules and make sure my comments are not erased.

When I say that most countries have diplomatic relations with Israel is that misinformation?
I concluded from this that if they though that Israel was a Nazi regime they would not have relations with it. If this move is not allowed, please explain why?
e

Texas Bankruptcy Nerd said...

Sophia, to be fair, I think you can let his buffoonery speak for itself. Remember, le montrer c'est plus puissant que le dire

Anonymous said...

why he doesn't know about what he talks? because he has diffrent opinion then your?
I agree with him, I am israeli and I consider liberman to facist.
but you...you don't consider hamas to facists, you don't consider hezbolla to facist...even when both of them hurt in cevilians...and this is not matter what israel was doing...they hurt in cevilian and you don't consider them to facist.
let me tell you something...the peace will come only when arabs and israeli looks at themself before they blame the other...I try to do it but I don't see you try... I only see in your blogs hate on israel, blame, reviling...you show in your blogs only bad stuff on israel (and there is bad stuff I know...but hi, you are not perfect also.) I have not seen here one good post on israel only the bad thing...you don't show the left in israel, you show the right...you don't show the most of the israeli you show only the settlers...and then the people who read your blogs only hate israel more...I can show you a lot of bad stuff on lebanon...but I try to find the good in lebanon and not the bad things.
stop hate us so much believe me if you look on this conflict in a diffrent point of view you will suprise.
if you want to beleive that israel is facist country that want to kill all the arabs so I am very sorry for you...'cause it is not the true, and you lie to your readers.
good day and try to smile...(:

Anonymous said...

Sophia,
I am trying to have a debate and if I don't agree with you it doesn't mean I am providing disinformation.

You say that Hamas is "a resistance movement, compared to Yisrael Beitenu which is an extremist occupation movement."

Rreasonable people can disagree on this. I think Hamas is a terrorist organization because it supported suicide bombings of women and children. You may not agree but we can debate this.

Yisrael Beitenu is mainly interested in promoting the interests of Russian immigrants to Israel and in my opinion is just as much a social movement as any other kind of movement. They happen to believe that Jews have the right to Judea and Samaria. I may or may not agree with them but in a democratic society I think they have the right to voice their opinions.

Forget Israel and the US for a moment. The main reason the Europeans are boycotting the Hamas government is that it is unwilling to accept previous agreements signed by the Palestinian authority. It is a well accepted norm that new governments always accept however reluctantly international agreements of previous governments.

Both the Egyptians and the Qatari's have put at least part of the blame for lack of agreement on a unity government on Hamas. Are they mistaken?

I am trying to start a debate not plant disinformation. I believe through debate better understanding can be reached.

If you are not even willing to have a discourse with me, how are you going to change the opinions of other Israelis and Americans?

I am at least reading your blog and willing to consider what you say seriously. I want to explore every possible alley that may lead to peace. Isn't that good from your prespective?

Sophia said...

e,
A debate is possible when people share the following:
Good will
Reconising facts but differing in their ideological position
A capacity to empathise with other people
A real desire to make concessions on some, but not all points.
A good knowledge of the situation they are debating
Honesty

E, I have been in the blogging business for one whole year posting nearly every day. Every time I post something negative to the image of Israel, I have an army of bloggers who suddenly spring from nowhere to defend the contrary and to flood the comment section of nonsense.

I really don't have time for these games. I have regular commentators and friends visiting the blog. We don't always agree. I even have few commentatators who always disagree. We open a debate when I feel I can go for it. Moreover, I consider this blog as mine, the fruit of a daily labor. I am not willing to discuss with you and I think I have some rights on the content of the blog.
You can comment whenever you feel. Please not more than once per post as to permit to other people to express their opinions, lies, insinuations and lack of respect are not permitted and will be erased.

This prevails also for the other new comentators who sprang from nowhere the last day because I posted articles critical of Israel.

Anonymous said...

Now I know why lebanon is in the 107 place in the free press.
and israel in the 50 place
...ok you don't want to hear the other side, you want only to praise your country and to abuse israel...it is fine...but another few month when the war will start again , please stop your crying and you hypocrisy 'cause now we know who you are and we don't want with you peace...in this war you need to blame only yourself...'cause now I know that you are the blame.
n.b. I anonymos only because I am not signed to this blog.

 
Since March 29th 2006