FRFI 216 August/September 2010

Echoing George Bush’s infamous 2002 characterisation of Sharon as a ‘man of peace’, Barack Obama described Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu as a man who ‘wants peace’ following their White House meeting on 6 July – just five weeks after the murderous attack on the Gaza Flotilla. Obama also ‘commended’ him ‘on the progress that’s been made in allowing more goods into Gaza’. The meeting was an opportunity for Obama to reiterate the strategic importance of Israel for US imperialism, despite the problems in their current relations: ‘the bond between the United States and Israel is unbreakable; it encompasses our national security interests, our strategic interests’. BOB SHEPHERD reports.

The murderous attack by Israeli commandos and navy on the Gaza Flotilla, in which they killed nine activists and wounded over 40 more, triggered a huge wave of international anger among ordinary people. Demonstrations took place across the world to condemn the attack and the siege of Gaza. This opposition to both Israeli actions and the support it gets from the US, Britain and the EU is causing problems for imperialism as it pursues its wider strategic interests in the Middle East and Central Asia. Israel is still a strategic asset but its extreme and, at times seemingly uncontrollable, actions are creating significant strain.

After the attack, Israel came under  pressure from its imperialist backers to partially lift the siege of Gaza to dampen down this opposition. The carrot the US and Britain offered Israel was that they would block the demands for an independent, internationally-organised inquiry into the event. The US succeeded in its manoeuvres as the UN Security Council passed a toothless resolution which called for the Israeli government to set up its own inquiry. This ‘inquiry’ will be headed by former Israeli Supreme Court Justice  Jacob Turkel, and will have as its other two members Canadian Brigadier-General Watkins and former Ulster Unionist leader David Trimble.

In May, Trimble, along with ex-Spanish Prime Minister Aznar, helped set up the Europe-wide ‘Friends of Israel Initiative’. A statement by the Initiative in the Wall Street Journal on 8 July, signed by Trimble and other founding members, defended Israel’s attack: ‘The recent Flotilla crisis in the Mediterranean provided yet another occasion for Israel’s detractors to renew their frenzied campaign. It was so even before the facts of that tragic incident had come to light. Eyes were blind to the reasons why Israel had to respond to the Gaza flotilla’s clear provocation.’ The Turkel Commission is now supposedly investigating the political decisions taken in the run-up to the assault on the Flotilla and whether Israel broke international law.

In the first step of what Israel hopes will be a whitewash of its crimes, the Israeli government’s own inquiry into the military assault against the Flotilla announced its findings on 12 July. Unsurprisingly, it completely exonerates the military involved in the attack, attributing any ‘mistakes’ to the decision-making process: ‘On the one hand, there were no wrongdoings and no negligence in any fundamental areas during a complicated and complex operation; but on the other hand, there were mistakes that were made in decisions, including some taken at relatively high levels, which meant that the result was not as had been initially anticipated.’ The role of the Turkel Commission will be to continue this cover-up, making sure that no one at a ‘high level’ faces any comeback for ‘decisions’ made in the Flotilla attack.

The siege of Gaza

On 20 June Israel announced the partial lifting of the siege of Gaza, stating that goods would be allowed into Gaza unless they were on a banned list. However, building materials such as cement, steel and wood will only be allowed across the border if they are for special projects controlled by the UN or similar bodies. The plan to ease the siege was brokered by Tony Blair, who is the representative of the EU and the Quartet in the region. Blair’s priority, as usual, was to make sure the interests of Israel were defended: ‘As I have said in the past few days, Israel has the clear right to defend itself and protect its security. The best way to do this is to ensure that weapons cannot reach Gaza whilst allowing into Gaza the items of ordinary daily life, including materials for the construction of homes... the decision to allow foodstuffs and household items is a good start... we continue to call for the release of Corporal Shalit whose ongoing detention is totally unjustified.’

The reality is that the siege continues and the lives of ordinary people in Gaza have hardly changed since Israel’s announcement. On a visit to Gaza on 18 July, EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said that no significant changes have been made since her last visit four months earlier. On the same day 25 organisations that work in Gaza, including Oxfam and Medical Aid for Palestinians issued an open letter to Ashton which said:

‘Even with the announced changes, the blockade continues to be in violation of Israel’s obligations as the occupying power under international law. It condemns Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, half of whom are children, to poverty and violates their human rights...

‘With a view to the next [EU] Foreign Affairs Council on 26 July, we urge you to agree on coordinated political action to ensure the full lifting of the blockade and to enable rebuilding of Gaza’s economy, focusing on the following five essential steps:

1) ending the ban on exports from Gaza;

2) allowing movement of people into and out of Gaza;

3) ensuring sufficient capacity and efficiency of the crossings;

4) allowing the entry of construction materials for the private sector;

5) ensuring access to Gaza’s agricultural land and fishing grounds.’

In their letter the organisations state that a 2005 agreement allowed 400 trucks a day to leave Gaza carrying goods and produce for export, but in reality, only 259 trucks have left in three years. They point out that the so-called security buffer zone imposed by Israel on the Gaza side of the border fence covers nearly a third of Gaza’s farmland and is hampering agricultural production. Farmers who attempt to enter this zone are regularly fired on by the Israelis, and many have been killed. The extent of the fishing grounds for Gaza have also been reduced by Israel from 20 miles off shore to just three, resulting in meagre catches and contributing to the nearly 90% poverty rate among Gaza’s 4,000 fishermen.

Settlement expansion in the West Bank

The Israeli human rights organisation B’Tselem published a report at the beginning of July which details the ever-expanding population of Zionist colonial settlers (www.btselem.org/Download/201007_By_Hook_and_by_Crook_Eng.pdf).

Over 500,000 settlers now live in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, where they physically control over 42% of the land. The report explains how successive Israeli governments have used financial incentives to encourage people to move into the settlements. The more recent expansion of the settlements is also detailed: for instance, between 2001 and 2009, the land area occupied by the three largest West Bank settlements, Modi’in Illit, Betar Illit and Ma’ale Adumim, grew by 78%, 55% and 34% respectively.

Although Israel has agreed to suspend settlement expansion until September 2010 and has avoided any repetition of the diplomatic gaffe when it announced plans to build 1,600 new homes for Orthodox Jews in East Jerusalem in March during a visit by US Vice President Biden, it has now recommenced demolitions of Palestinian buildings in East Jerusalem, six of which were destroyed on 13 July.

Despite all this, Abbas and the Palestinian Authority continue to engage in the farcical proximity talks. At the time of going to press they are in the sixth round. Abbas is under pressure from the US to agree to direct talks, but the Zionists have not offered him anything of note. On 5 July the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine condemned PA Prime Minister Fayyad for meeting with Israeli Defence Minister Barak: ‘a meeting with this criminal racist has no justification whatsoever, and takes place amid ongoing occupation, attacks on our people in Jerusalem and the continued siege on the steadfast Gaza Strip’.

Isolate the racist Israeli state!

Boycott Israeli goods!

Victory to the Palestinian people!