Tagged with Israel

The US-Israeli nexus begins to show cracks

eg_il_026572How will the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, with this Gaza war the third in 6 years and unlikely to be the last, ever end? US support for Israel has always been seen as unquestioning and unconditional (except, interestingly, during the reign of George W. Bush), but that is now under greater strain than ever before.

It rested however on certain key principles which are now beginning to fray badly. One was a shared belief in the two-state solution to which hitherto Israeli leaders have always paid lip service and some like Yitzhak Rabin genuinely believed in. Another was the legendary power of the Jewish lobby in Washington in corralling US public opinion to the side of Israel at any time of crisis. Both are wearing thin. Continue reading →

On the “Obsession” with Israel and Palestine

Israel-Palestine-e1297092190649I think James Bloodsworth has been unfair locating the opposition to Israel’s bombing and invasion of Gaza in the matrix of revolutionary identity politics. Yes, in the fractured universe of British radicalism the Israel/Palestine conflict is an occasion for position-taking, and, as with nearly all positions assumed, be it war in the Middle East, the attitude to Labour, or whether capitalism has been restored in China, they are a locus for identity work. However, it is a mistake to say this determinesopposition to Israel. Their “obsession” derives neither from freaks of character nor unacknowledged anti-semitism: it’s because mainstream politics recognises, treats and privileges the Israel/Palestine conflict as a strategic priority in ways other persistent conflicts are not. It matters to the left because official society says it matters. Continue reading →

Peter Hain is right – the two-state solution is dead

Peter HainIn his recent contribution to the Israel-Palestine debate, Peter Hain did something remarkable. In a speech at Swansea University, the Labour MP, former Northern Ireland secretary, and veteran anti-apartheid campaigner broke with the consensus that a two-state solution spells the best chance of securing a just and peaceful resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Unsurprisingly, Hain was rebuked by the Party which reiterated its commitment “to a two-state solution with a viable Palestinian state living side by side with Israel”.

That sounds like an admirable goal, but is it even achievable? Observers of the peace process over the years will be familiar with the historic failure of negotiations based on the two-state paradigm. With time, Israel’s occupation of the West Bank has become increasingly entrenched and permanent, whilst the ongoing colonisation of Palestinian land by settlements, illegal under international law, has put to rest any hope of that coveted “viable Palestinian state”. Continue reading →

Israel: on the dilemma of how to vote

As Israel goes to the polls, Labour Friends of Israel whose motto is “working towards a two state solution” are, through their Deputy Director, advocating over at Progress a vote for Ha’avoda – the Israel Labour Party which now styles itself as a centre party and is no longer (contrary to Progress claims) a member of the Socialist International. Uri Avnery, who writes a regular column at Gush Shalom, has his own advice on who to vote for. The first Israeli to have met with Yasser Arafat, Uri has a rather longer history of active support for Palestinian statehood than Labour Friends of Israel. Continue reading →

Time to stand with the Palestinian people

The recent outbreak of violence in Gaza is the most significant attack on the Palestinian territory since Israel launched Operation Cast Lead in 2008-09. Airstrikes have already killed at least 14 including an 11 month old baby. Numerous other casualties have been inflicted on Palestinian civilians, with an estimated 250 maimed or wounded, despite Israeli assurances these bombings are “surgical” and “targeted”.

Reports across the media claim that, before his extra-judicial assassination by an IDF airstrike, Ahmed Jabari, Hamas’ military leader, was considering a permanent truce. Israel’s act of pre-emptive aggression now appears to have ended any chance of a peace deal in the immediate future and has only served to escalate violence and inflict more suffering onto innocent civilians.

Continue reading →