The tide is slowly turning in the United States as more American groups, including some American-Jewish organisations, are airing severe criticism of Israeli policies and actions and showing increasing sympathy towards Palestinians since the establishment of Israel in 1948 and its continuing expansionist policies, leading to virtual control of the Occupied Territories.
But a surprising anti-Israel whiplash came from US Vice-President Joe Biden, a firm supporter of Tel Aviv, who acknowledged his “overwhelming frustration” with Israel’s government, accusing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s administration of leading the country in the wrong direction. Speaking last Monday during the annual gala of J Street in Washington, an American-Jewish organisation that supports a two-state solution for the Palestinians and Israelis, Biden commented: “I firmly believe that the actions that Israel’s government has taken over the past several years — the steady and systematic expansion of (illegal) settlements, the legalisation of outposts, land seizures — they’re moving us, and, more importantly, they’re moving Israel in the wrong direction.”
He maintained that those policies were moving Israel towards a “one-state reality”, meaning, a single state for Palestinians and Israelis in which eventually, Israeli Jews will no longer be the majority. “That reality is dangerous,” Biden, who visited Israel recently, added, explaining that he was not encouraged from meetings with Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas about “the prospect for peace in the near future”.
Philip Weiss, co-founder and editor of Mondoweiss, wrote last week that US Senator Bernie Sanders, who aspires to be the Democratic nominee in the upcoming American presidential election, had said that “the United States must be even-handed in the Israel-Palestine conflict and that Benjamin Netanyahu is not always right and that Israel attacked Gaza with disproportionate force”. He observed that “these stunning revelations have already transformed US discourse”.
Roger Cohen, a columnist of The New York Times, wrote that “Netanyahu’s government is a don’t-give-an-inch government. “There comes a time,” said Sanders, “when if we pursue justice and peace, we are going to have to say that Netanyahu” makes mistakes. He concluded: “A growing number of Americans committed to Israel ... believe that time is now.”
What has been also most stunning has been Netanyahu’s ugly vow that Israel would never give the occupied Golan Heights back to Syria — a statement that disappointingly failed to prompt a severe response from the Obama administration. More so, as it was apparently timed to disrupt the visit of US President Barack Obama to Saudi Arabia and his presence at the meeting of the influential Gulf Cooperation Council. He made his offensive remarks at what has been described as a “festive” meeting of the Israeli Cabinet in one of the illegal Jewish colonies in the Israeli-occupied strategic Syrian territory. Additionally, the offensive Israeli remarks coincided with a meeting in Geneva to settle the divisive situation in the Arab state. Apparently, Netanyahu had discussed this issue over the phone with US Secretary of State John Kerry.
Adding insult to injury, the illegal Israeli colonists, the Washington Post revealed in a front-page feature, “are opening a bold new front in their battle for legitimacy: Tourism”. Their approach is to welcome biblical tourists, that is, “evangelical Christians and Jews who want to vacation at ancient sites that appear in the Old Testament and Torah — and ‘geopolitical tourists,’ travellers who want to see the reality behind the headlines”. Palestinian leaders, the Post article continued, are incensed. “They block every chance to have a sovereign Palestinian state while promoting the growth of Israeli colonies,” said Xavier Abu Eid, a Palestinian Liberation Organisation adviser.
He complained, according to the Post, that historic Jericho, Burqin and Nablus in the Palestinian West Bank get relatively a few tourists. “Once-popular Bethlehem has the West Bank’s highest unemployment,” he said, “while illegal Israeli [colonies] are developing new industry under the support of the Israeli government.”
This new tactic and other offensive political approaches by Israel or Israeli colonists should prompt Palestinians to establish more information and tourist offices in the western world, particularly the US. These could be staffed by Palestinians who settled in these countries since they are more familiar with their neighbours in the West.
George S. Hishmeh is a Washington-based columnist. He can be contacted at ghishmeh@gulfnews.com
