23 may 2018
Palestinian officials are condemning the “despicable actions” of the US Ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, who was recently photographed while receiving a poster depicting an aerial image of occupied East Jerusalem, in which the Al-Aqsa Mosque and Dome of the Rock have been erased and replaced by a simulation of the Jewish Third Temple.
The photo shows a smiling Friedman — who is a vocal supporter of Israel’s illegal settlement enterprise — posing next to the poster during a visit to the Israeli city of Bnei Brak.
The photo of Friedman sparked widespread controversy, forcing the US Embassy in Israel to issue a statement claiming that Friedman “was not aware of the image thrust in front of him when the photo was taken. He was deeply disappointed that anyone would take advantage of his visit to Bnei Brak to create controversy.”
Secretary-General of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO), Saeb Erekat, released a statement in reaction to the photo, asking “how long would these despicable US actions remain without being faced by an Arab and Islamic response.”
He said, according to Ma;an News Agency, that for the US ambassador to accept such a picture with a smile “indicates approval and recognition,” adding that “they are actually turning the conflict into a religious one.”
Meanwhile, Arab member of the Knesset, Ahmad Tibi, commented saying “this madman wants to make peace, good thing you did not move the embassy there!”
Mahmoud Al-Habash, a senior adviser to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas,slammed Friedman for posing with the doctored image, saying “the end result these criminals seek—and among them the terrorist settler David Friedman—is the erasure of the Palestinians from Jerusalem and their banishment from it.”
“Friedman’s appearance with a big photo of the Haram al-Sharif in which the Dome of the Rock was removed and the Temple was put in its place is a provocative move and a racist message that incites to the destruction of the al-Aqsa Mosque. This is a clear adoption of the radical Jews’ claims and beliefs about the al-Aqsa Mosque and the city of Jerusalem,” al-Habash said.
“Hiding the holy places to Islam in Jerusalem is the racist objective of extremist Jews, which is prevalent in the occupying state,” he continued.
Friedman, Trump’s former bankruptcy lawyer, has directly supported Israel’s settler movement and announced his disdain for the two-state solution — the internationally recognized solution for the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
He has been an open supporter of recognizing an undivided Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, which flies in the face of Palestinian aspirations centered on East Jerusalem becoming the capital of a future, independent Palestinian state — long considered the most viable solution for ending the conflict.
He has positioned himself as a divisive and controversial figure in Israeli-Palestinian politics, accusing former US President Barack Obama of being an “anti-Semite” and comparing American Jews who oppose the half-century occupation of the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, to prisoners who served as guards in Nazi concentration camps.
Friedman also serves as president of the American Friends in Beit El Yeshiva — a nonprofit group that supports the illegal settlement of Beit El near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank. His name appears on several buildings in the settlement that he had directly funded with his organization.
Palestinians have long feared that Israel has been attempting to shake up the status quo at the holy site, in the shape of routine Jewish incursions on the site and right-wing Israeli calls to demolish the mosque and replace it with a third Jewish temple.
The photo shows a smiling Friedman — who is a vocal supporter of Israel’s illegal settlement enterprise — posing next to the poster during a visit to the Israeli city of Bnei Brak.
The photo of Friedman sparked widespread controversy, forcing the US Embassy in Israel to issue a statement claiming that Friedman “was not aware of the image thrust in front of him when the photo was taken. He was deeply disappointed that anyone would take advantage of his visit to Bnei Brak to create controversy.”
Secretary-General of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO), Saeb Erekat, released a statement in reaction to the photo, asking “how long would these despicable US actions remain without being faced by an Arab and Islamic response.”
He said, according to Ma;an News Agency, that for the US ambassador to accept such a picture with a smile “indicates approval and recognition,” adding that “they are actually turning the conflict into a religious one.”
Meanwhile, Arab member of the Knesset, Ahmad Tibi, commented saying “this madman wants to make peace, good thing you did not move the embassy there!”
Mahmoud Al-Habash, a senior adviser to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas,slammed Friedman for posing with the doctored image, saying “the end result these criminals seek—and among them the terrorist settler David Friedman—is the erasure of the Palestinians from Jerusalem and their banishment from it.”
“Friedman’s appearance with a big photo of the Haram al-Sharif in which the Dome of the Rock was removed and the Temple was put in its place is a provocative move and a racist message that incites to the destruction of the al-Aqsa Mosque. This is a clear adoption of the radical Jews’ claims and beliefs about the al-Aqsa Mosque and the city of Jerusalem,” al-Habash said.
“Hiding the holy places to Islam in Jerusalem is the racist objective of extremist Jews, which is prevalent in the occupying state,” he continued.
Friedman, Trump’s former bankruptcy lawyer, has directly supported Israel’s settler movement and announced his disdain for the two-state solution — the internationally recognized solution for the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
He has been an open supporter of recognizing an undivided Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, which flies in the face of Palestinian aspirations centered on East Jerusalem becoming the capital of a future, independent Palestinian state — long considered the most viable solution for ending the conflict.
He has positioned himself as a divisive and controversial figure in Israeli-Palestinian politics, accusing former US President Barack Obama of being an “anti-Semite” and comparing American Jews who oppose the half-century occupation of the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, to prisoners who served as guards in Nazi concentration camps.
Friedman also serves as president of the American Friends in Beit El Yeshiva — a nonprofit group that supports the illegal settlement of Beit El near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank. His name appears on several buildings in the settlement that he had directly funded with his organization.
Palestinians have long feared that Israel has been attempting to shake up the status quo at the holy site, in the shape of routine Jewish incursions on the site and right-wing Israeli calls to demolish the mosque and replace it with a third Jewish temple.
By Ramzy Baroud
Two important truths have to be restated in order to understand the context of the US government’s decision to relocate its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which officially took place on 14 May.
First, the precarious relationship between the US government and international law. Historically, the US has used international law to achieve its own political ends, and relegated international and human rights laws when they were seen as obstacles to US political and military ambitions.
A case in point was the US government’s manipulation of United Nation resolutions that paved the way for war against Iraq in 1990-91; yet, its dismissal of the UN as “irrelevant” when international consensus rejected American military intervention in Iraq in 2003.
However, a far more consistent example is the US attitude towards Israel and Palestine. For decades, the US has used its “veto” to block scores of resolutions condemning Israel’s military occupation of Palestinian land or calling for practical mechanisms to bring an end to Palestinian suffering and subjugation.
While the strategy works well at the UN Security Council, it has faced considerable limitations at the General Assembly, which is, by far, a more democratic and internationally representative body than the UNSC. Various US ambassadors – notable amongst them Madeline Albright and, today’s Nikki Haley – have unleashed wars of verbal abuse, threats and outright bullying against countries that refused to toe the American line.
Haley, in particular, although the least politically-experienced of all US ambassadors, has been the most outspoken. Her attacks on Palestinians and their supporters – as in the majority of the international community – are now staple in media coverage of UN proceedings.
While it is true that the US move to relocate its embassy is a “violation of international law”, it is of little essence to American foreign policy, which is essentially predicated on challenging or violating global principles of peace and conflict resolution.
The other important context is this: as per American law the US embassy was, legally speaking, already relocated to Jerusalem many years ago. “The Jerusalem Embassy Act” of 1995 was made effective on 8 November of that same year, thus becoming public law, bypassing the consent of the president. It passed with an absolute majority in the Senate (95-5) and the House (374-37).
Using a loophole in that same law, past administrations have signed a waiver, once every six months, to delay the inevitable move, which was intended to take place by 31 May 1999. The resolution was introduced by a Republican majority Congress; however, it won near consensus from both parties.
Although US President Donald Trump had signed the waiver once, in June 2017, a few months later, in December, he decided to take US support of Israel a step further by recognising Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. On 14 May 2018, that became a reality.
While it is important to remember that Trump’s decision, however daring, is consistent with the US anti-UN, anti-Palestinian and pro-Israel attitude, a question must be asked: why now?
The answer can be approached in three different ways: first, the kind of politician Trump is (extremely opportunistic); second, the nature of his political base (right-wing conservative Christian-Evangelicals) and, finally, the mounting political pressure which his faltering administration is experiencing on a daily basis.
First regarding Trump himself: In March 2016, then Republican presidential candidate, Trump, delivered his famous speech before the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). Here, he revealed the type of politician he truly is – by Washington’s standards, a “good politician”, as in one devoid of moral values.
In his speech he made many promises to Israel. The large crowd could rarely contain its giddiness.
Of the many false claims and dangerous promises Trump made, a particular passage stood out, for it offered early clues to what the future administration’s policy on Israel and Palestine would look like. The signs were not very promising:
“When the United States stands with Israel, the chances of peace really rise and rise exponentially. That’s what will happen when Donald Trump is president of the United States,” Trump declared, an untrue statement that was preceded with a loud applause and ended with an even louder cheer.
The truth, however, is that Trump’s love affair with Israel is actually relatively recent. He had made several pronouncements in the past that, in fact, irritated Israel and its influential backers in the US. But when his chances of becoming the Republican nominee grew, so did his willingness to say whatever it takes to win Israel’s and its friends’ approvals.
Second, Trump’s evangelical base: Trump is desperate to maintain the support of the very constituency that brought him to the White House in the first place. This right-wing, white, conservative, Christian-Evangelical constituency remains the foundation of his troubled presidency.
This constituency, a major bloc in the US political system, voted for Trump in solid numbers. Among the white Evangelicals, 81 per cent reportedly voted for him.
Although these voters claim to be “value voters”, their take on morality is often inconsistent and, at times, quite bizarre. Their “love” for Israel, for example, is quite provisional as they believe in prophecies pertaining to the “second coming of Jesus Christ” as a prelude to the “Rapture”: it is then that the faithful will be sent to heaven, and all the rest, including the Jews, will perish in a hellish eternity.
However, according to that inexplicable thinking, for the prophecy to be fulfilled, Jews would have to be in complete control over the land of Palestine.
As moronic and dark such ideas may seem to the rest of the world, they have created a temporary alliance between Israel’s right-wing government, the Evangelicals (of whom Vice President, Mike Pence, is an important member) and Donald Trump.
Which leads us to the third and final point: The massive political pressure suffered by Trump’s vulnerable administration.
The US is currently experiencing unprecedented political instability and polarisation. Talk of impeaching the president is gaining momentum, while his officials are often paraded before the Department of Justice investigators over various accusations, including collusion with foreign powers. Trump, himself, is being accused of various demeaning charges of indecency and corruption.
Under these circumstances, there is no decision or issue that Trump can approach without finding himself in a political storm, except for one issue, that of accommodating Israel to the fullest extent. Indeed, being pro-Israel has historically united the US’ two main parties, the Congress, the media and many Americans, leading among them, Trump’s political base.
However, Trump’s decision will neither cancel nor reverse international law. It simply means that the US has decided to drop the act, and walk wholly into the Israeli camp, further isolating itself from the rest of the world and, once more, openly defying international law.
- Ramzy Baroud is a journalist, author and editor of Palestine Chronicle.
Two important truths have to be restated in order to understand the context of the US government’s decision to relocate its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which officially took place on 14 May.
First, the precarious relationship between the US government and international law. Historically, the US has used international law to achieve its own political ends, and relegated international and human rights laws when they were seen as obstacles to US political and military ambitions.
A case in point was the US government’s manipulation of United Nation resolutions that paved the way for war against Iraq in 1990-91; yet, its dismissal of the UN as “irrelevant” when international consensus rejected American military intervention in Iraq in 2003.
However, a far more consistent example is the US attitude towards Israel and Palestine. For decades, the US has used its “veto” to block scores of resolutions condemning Israel’s military occupation of Palestinian land or calling for practical mechanisms to bring an end to Palestinian suffering and subjugation.
While the strategy works well at the UN Security Council, it has faced considerable limitations at the General Assembly, which is, by far, a more democratic and internationally representative body than the UNSC. Various US ambassadors – notable amongst them Madeline Albright and, today’s Nikki Haley – have unleashed wars of verbal abuse, threats and outright bullying against countries that refused to toe the American line.
Haley, in particular, although the least politically-experienced of all US ambassadors, has been the most outspoken. Her attacks on Palestinians and their supporters – as in the majority of the international community – are now staple in media coverage of UN proceedings.
While it is true that the US move to relocate its embassy is a “violation of international law”, it is of little essence to American foreign policy, which is essentially predicated on challenging or violating global principles of peace and conflict resolution.
The other important context is this: as per American law the US embassy was, legally speaking, already relocated to Jerusalem many years ago. “The Jerusalem Embassy Act” of 1995 was made effective on 8 November of that same year, thus becoming public law, bypassing the consent of the president. It passed with an absolute majority in the Senate (95-5) and the House (374-37).
Using a loophole in that same law, past administrations have signed a waiver, once every six months, to delay the inevitable move, which was intended to take place by 31 May 1999. The resolution was introduced by a Republican majority Congress; however, it won near consensus from both parties.
Although US President Donald Trump had signed the waiver once, in June 2017, a few months later, in December, he decided to take US support of Israel a step further by recognising Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. On 14 May 2018, that became a reality.
While it is important to remember that Trump’s decision, however daring, is consistent with the US anti-UN, anti-Palestinian and pro-Israel attitude, a question must be asked: why now?
The answer can be approached in three different ways: first, the kind of politician Trump is (extremely opportunistic); second, the nature of his political base (right-wing conservative Christian-Evangelicals) and, finally, the mounting political pressure which his faltering administration is experiencing on a daily basis.
First regarding Trump himself: In March 2016, then Republican presidential candidate, Trump, delivered his famous speech before the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). Here, he revealed the type of politician he truly is – by Washington’s standards, a “good politician”, as in one devoid of moral values.
In his speech he made many promises to Israel. The large crowd could rarely contain its giddiness.
Of the many false claims and dangerous promises Trump made, a particular passage stood out, for it offered early clues to what the future administration’s policy on Israel and Palestine would look like. The signs were not very promising:
“When the United States stands with Israel, the chances of peace really rise and rise exponentially. That’s what will happen when Donald Trump is president of the United States,” Trump declared, an untrue statement that was preceded with a loud applause and ended with an even louder cheer.
The truth, however, is that Trump’s love affair with Israel is actually relatively recent. He had made several pronouncements in the past that, in fact, irritated Israel and its influential backers in the US. But when his chances of becoming the Republican nominee grew, so did his willingness to say whatever it takes to win Israel’s and its friends’ approvals.
Second, Trump’s evangelical base: Trump is desperate to maintain the support of the very constituency that brought him to the White House in the first place. This right-wing, white, conservative, Christian-Evangelical constituency remains the foundation of his troubled presidency.
This constituency, a major bloc in the US political system, voted for Trump in solid numbers. Among the white Evangelicals, 81 per cent reportedly voted for him.
Although these voters claim to be “value voters”, their take on morality is often inconsistent and, at times, quite bizarre. Their “love” for Israel, for example, is quite provisional as they believe in prophecies pertaining to the “second coming of Jesus Christ” as a prelude to the “Rapture”: it is then that the faithful will be sent to heaven, and all the rest, including the Jews, will perish in a hellish eternity.
However, according to that inexplicable thinking, for the prophecy to be fulfilled, Jews would have to be in complete control over the land of Palestine.
As moronic and dark such ideas may seem to the rest of the world, they have created a temporary alliance between Israel’s right-wing government, the Evangelicals (of whom Vice President, Mike Pence, is an important member) and Donald Trump.
Which leads us to the third and final point: The massive political pressure suffered by Trump’s vulnerable administration.
The US is currently experiencing unprecedented political instability and polarisation. Talk of impeaching the president is gaining momentum, while his officials are often paraded before the Department of Justice investigators over various accusations, including collusion with foreign powers. Trump, himself, is being accused of various demeaning charges of indecency and corruption.
Under these circumstances, there is no decision or issue that Trump can approach without finding himself in a political storm, except for one issue, that of accommodating Israel to the fullest extent. Indeed, being pro-Israel has historically united the US’ two main parties, the Congress, the media and many Americans, leading among them, Trump’s political base.
However, Trump’s decision will neither cancel nor reverse international law. It simply means that the US has decided to drop the act, and walk wholly into the Israeli camp, further isolating itself from the rest of the world and, once more, openly defying international law.
- Ramzy Baroud is a journalist, author and editor of Palestine Chronicle.
21 may 2018
Palestinian activists expel an American delegation from Beit Jala in response to the opening of the embassy in Jerusalem -21/5/2018
A group of Palestinian resistance activists expelled a US Consulate delegation from a graduation ceremony, for Palestinian students who were studying in US study programs, at one of Beit Jala city restaurant in the Bethlehem Governorate.
The activists intercepted the convoy of cars belonging to the US Consulate in Beit Jala, threw eggs at the cars and raised slogans condemning US policies towards the Palestinian people and cause. video
“Our message today is that there is no place for the US government in Palestine. This government, which is consistent with the occupation and participates in all of its projects, will have no place in Palestine. We love the American people,” said activist Mazen al-Azza.
For his part, activist Mahmoud Zawahra said: ”Our message is clear that the Palestinian people do not welcome this delegation and say to them, ‘This delegation is not welcome in Palestine’.”
Zawahra added :”This delegation is not welcome in our land after the United States recognized that Jerusalem is the capital of the Zionist entity that is raping our land and our people.”
Activist of the Popular Resistance Committees to confront the Wall and the settlements Ahmad Odeh said, in an interview with a PNN reporter: ”The message of all Palestinian people, on this day, is that the Palestinian people do not accept injustice or persecution.”
Odeh added: ”We love the American people, because it helps and stands by the Palestinian people, but the American administration is very biased towards the occupation state and opened its embassy in Jerusalem, a few days ago.”
He pointed out that: “After all that the American administration did, they come, today, to the heart of the West Bank, trying to look good in front of us, as Palestinian people,” adding: “We tell them we will not surrender and our response is clear today.”
A group of Palestinian resistance activists expelled a US Consulate delegation from a graduation ceremony, for Palestinian students who were studying in US study programs, at one of Beit Jala city restaurant in the Bethlehem Governorate.
The activists intercepted the convoy of cars belonging to the US Consulate in Beit Jala, threw eggs at the cars and raised slogans condemning US policies towards the Palestinian people and cause. video
“Our message today is that there is no place for the US government in Palestine. This government, which is consistent with the occupation and participates in all of its projects, will have no place in Palestine. We love the American people,” said activist Mazen al-Azza.
For his part, activist Mahmoud Zawahra said: ”Our message is clear that the Palestinian people do not welcome this delegation and say to them, ‘This delegation is not welcome in Palestine’.”
Zawahra added :”This delegation is not welcome in our land after the United States recognized that Jerusalem is the capital of the Zionist entity that is raping our land and our people.”
Activist of the Popular Resistance Committees to confront the Wall and the settlements Ahmad Odeh said, in an interview with a PNN reporter: ”The message of all Palestinian people, on this day, is that the Palestinian people do not accept injustice or persecution.”
Odeh added: ”We love the American people, because it helps and stands by the Palestinian people, but the American administration is very biased towards the occupation state and opened its embassy in Jerusalem, a few days ago.”
He pointed out that: “After all that the American administration did, they come, today, to the heart of the West Bank, trying to look good in front of us, as Palestinian people,” adding: “We tell them we will not surrender and our response is clear today.”
Panama's president Juan Carlos Varela has refused to move his country's embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Occupied Jerusalem.
According to Israel Hayom newspaper on Monday, Varela said during his visit to Tel Aviv last week that Panama supports the political negotiations and hopes that there will be a dialogue on the two-state solution.
Varela affirmed, "We will stay in Tel Aviv, but we will wait and see what other countries will do. At the same time, we will support the negotiations between Israel and Palestine."
He said, as quoted by the Hebrew newspaper, "Every country has the right to decide where its embassy will be located," adding that his country prefers to wait and leave a room for negotiations.
Paraguay on Monday opened its embassy in Occupied Jerusalem to become the third country to take this step following the US and Guatemala.
US president Donald Trump in December 2017 recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and announced his plan to move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to the holy city. On 14th May, the US embassy in Jerusalem was officially opened.
According to Israel Hayom newspaper on Monday, Varela said during his visit to Tel Aviv last week that Panama supports the political negotiations and hopes that there will be a dialogue on the two-state solution.
Varela affirmed, "We will stay in Tel Aviv, but we will wait and see what other countries will do. At the same time, we will support the negotiations between Israel and Palestine."
He said, as quoted by the Hebrew newspaper, "Every country has the right to decide where its embassy will be located," adding that his country prefers to wait and leave a room for negotiations.
Paraguay on Monday opened its embassy in Occupied Jerusalem to become the third country to take this step following the US and Guatemala.
US president Donald Trump in December 2017 recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and announced his plan to move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to the holy city. On 14th May, the US embassy in Jerusalem was officially opened.
In a stinging opinion-piece entitled “I mourn, not because I am Palestinian”, Nigerian trade unionist and human rights activist, Owei Lakemfa, blasted African countries for attending the opening of the United States embassy in Jerusalem, while 60 Palestinian protesters were being mowed down in the Gaza Strip:
“I am African living in Nigeria. I mourn because a dozen African countries were dining and wining in the new American Embassy in Jerusalem while their Israeli hosts were murdering dozens of defenseless Palestinians.”
Representatives from Cameroon, Congo, Ivory Coast, Rwanda, South Sudan, Kenya, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Angola, Zambia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo attended the event hosted by the Israeli government, and which marked America’s official recognition of Jerusalem as the capital city of Israel. The US embassy move has been universally condemned.
Although the Nigerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs denies that its representative had attended the event, Lakemfa suggests that there was still a Nigerian presence at the opening of the embassy. “Never mind that Nigeria is still trying to fish out the ghost that represented it,” the former General Secretary of the Nigeria Labor Congress wrote.
Lakemfa, who also served as Secretary-General of the Organization of African Trade Union Unity (OATUU), questioned the logic of the attendance of these African countries, as all of them voted against the move at the UN General Assembly in December.
“The logic of our presence in the nest of killers baffles me; none of the African countries dining and clapping at the new American embassy voted in the United Nations for the United States in December 2017.”
“Kenneth Kaunda would be quite disappointed,” he wrote of Zambia’s presence, while “Tanzania would make Mwalimu Julius Nyerere turn in his grave that his heirs would be clinking glasses and smiling sheepishly while Israel massacred Palestinians,” he wrote.
Given its own history of genocide and massacres, Lakemfa was equally baffled by the presence of Rwanda.
In contrast, Lakemfa wrote that South Africa, a country with memory and consciousness, came out boldly on the side of justice by recalling its ambassador.
Lakemfa is not the only African activist to slam Africa’s presence at the event. Julius Malema, one of South Africa’s representatives at the Pan-African Parliament and leader of the Economic Freedom Fighters in South Africa, accused those African states who were at the embassy event of undermining the Palestinian liberation struggle.
“We are very disappointed at African countries which had celebrated the declaration of Jerusalem as the official capital city of Israel by the USA. That is the highest form of betrayal because we as Africans should know that colonialism and imperialism have no place in humanity. It’s a violation of human rights to go and occupy the land of Palestinians. We don’t support that,” Malema told South African media.
Source:Afro-Palestine News Wire Service
“I am African living in Nigeria. I mourn because a dozen African countries were dining and wining in the new American Embassy in Jerusalem while their Israeli hosts were murdering dozens of defenseless Palestinians.”
Representatives from Cameroon, Congo, Ivory Coast, Rwanda, South Sudan, Kenya, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Angola, Zambia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo attended the event hosted by the Israeli government, and which marked America’s official recognition of Jerusalem as the capital city of Israel. The US embassy move has been universally condemned.
Although the Nigerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs denies that its representative had attended the event, Lakemfa suggests that there was still a Nigerian presence at the opening of the embassy. “Never mind that Nigeria is still trying to fish out the ghost that represented it,” the former General Secretary of the Nigeria Labor Congress wrote.
Lakemfa, who also served as Secretary-General of the Organization of African Trade Union Unity (OATUU), questioned the logic of the attendance of these African countries, as all of them voted against the move at the UN General Assembly in December.
“The logic of our presence in the nest of killers baffles me; none of the African countries dining and clapping at the new American embassy voted in the United Nations for the United States in December 2017.”
“Kenneth Kaunda would be quite disappointed,” he wrote of Zambia’s presence, while “Tanzania would make Mwalimu Julius Nyerere turn in his grave that his heirs would be clinking glasses and smiling sheepishly while Israel massacred Palestinians,” he wrote.
Given its own history of genocide and massacres, Lakemfa was equally baffled by the presence of Rwanda.
In contrast, Lakemfa wrote that South Africa, a country with memory and consciousness, came out boldly on the side of justice by recalling its ambassador.
Lakemfa is not the only African activist to slam Africa’s presence at the event. Julius Malema, one of South Africa’s representatives at the Pan-African Parliament and leader of the Economic Freedom Fighters in South Africa, accused those African states who were at the embassy event of undermining the Palestinian liberation struggle.
“We are very disappointed at African countries which had celebrated the declaration of Jerusalem as the official capital city of Israel by the USA. That is the highest form of betrayal because we as Africans should know that colonialism and imperialism have no place in humanity. It’s a violation of human rights to go and occupy the land of Palestinians. We don’t support that,” Malema told South African media.
Source:Afro-Palestine News Wire Service
20 may 2018
Following the relocation of the US embassy in Israel to Occupied Jerusalem last week, an American congressman is calling on Washington to recognize Israeli sovereignty in the occupied Golan Heights.
In an interview published Sunday, Florida Rep. Ron DeSantis told the Hebrew-speaking Walla news website he had brought the proposal before the Congressional Committee on Foreign Affairs, of which he is a member, on Thursday.
Israel captured the Golan in 1967 from Syria and annexed the territory in 1981, in a move never recognized by the international community— which still regards it as occupied.
DeSantis told Walla he had suggested that amendment to a chapter on Syria in the US military’s budget. Though the move would be largely symbolic, he noted, approval could encourage the administration to take a position on the matter.
The congressman claimed his action seemed to him a natural follow-up to the embassy’s relocation from Tel Aviv to Occupied Jerusalem last Monday.
The congressman said that just as Washington’s relocation of its embassy would help take Occupied Jerusalem off the table in peace negotiations, American recognition of Israel’s sovereignty in the Golan Heights would clarify it has no intention of forcing Jerusalem to relinquish the territory.
DeSantis attended the ceremony celebrating the opening of the Jerusalem embassy last Monday. He had long been a proponent of the move and last March led a Congressional fact-finding mission to Israel on a possible relocation.
US President Donald Trump’s decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital last December and to relocate the embassy there has been universally condemned and rejected by most world leaders including the European Union.
The move also led to widespread anger in the Arab world and to violent Palestinian protests.
A mass demonstration along the Gaza Strip’s border with Israel Monday over the US embassy ceremony led to the murder of over 60 Palestinians by Israeli gunfire.
In an interview published Sunday, Florida Rep. Ron DeSantis told the Hebrew-speaking Walla news website he had brought the proposal before the Congressional Committee on Foreign Affairs, of which he is a member, on Thursday.
Israel captured the Golan in 1967 from Syria and annexed the territory in 1981, in a move never recognized by the international community— which still regards it as occupied.
DeSantis told Walla he had suggested that amendment to a chapter on Syria in the US military’s budget. Though the move would be largely symbolic, he noted, approval could encourage the administration to take a position on the matter.
The congressman claimed his action seemed to him a natural follow-up to the embassy’s relocation from Tel Aviv to Occupied Jerusalem last Monday.
The congressman said that just as Washington’s relocation of its embassy would help take Occupied Jerusalem off the table in peace negotiations, American recognition of Israel’s sovereignty in the Golan Heights would clarify it has no intention of forcing Jerusalem to relinquish the territory.
DeSantis attended the ceremony celebrating the opening of the Jerusalem embassy last Monday. He had long been a proponent of the move and last March led a Congressional fact-finding mission to Israel on a possible relocation.
US President Donald Trump’s decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital last December and to relocate the embassy there has been universally condemned and rejected by most world leaders including the European Union.
The move also led to widespread anger in the Arab world and to violent Palestinian protests.
A mass demonstration along the Gaza Strip’s border with Israel Monday over the US embassy ceremony led to the murder of over 60 Palestinians by Israeli gunfire.
19 may 2018
The New York Times reports an Israeli firm may have illegally aided US President Trump win the 2017 presidential elections by launching covert multimillion-dollar online manipulation campaign.
Three months before the US general elections, the president's son, Donald Trump Jr., met with a group of specialists to get the upper hand against Democratic rival Hilary Clinton—among which was "an Israeli specialist in social media manipulation" now embroiled in special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into possible Russian elections meddling and violations by Trump's campaign team, according to The New York Times.
The specialist, Joel Zamel, is the founder and one of the owners of Psy-Group, which was working at the time on a proposal for Trump's campaign team for a "covert multimillion-dollar online manipulation campaign to help elect Mr. Trump," according to three people involved and a fourth briefed on the effort.
Both Trump and Zamel denied moving forward with the campaign, noting it was scrapped after Psy-Group consulted an American law firm who informed it of its illegality, as foreign states, companies or individuals are forbidden from being involved in any US elections.
Despite this, Zamel was reportedly paid some $2 million after the election by one of Trump's associates.
Zamel has since been questioned about the August 2016 meeting by Mueller's investigators. Additionally, "at least two FBI agents working on the inquiry" have traveled to Israel to interview Psy-Group employees.
According to one source cited by The NYT, the special counsel's team has worked with the Israeli police to "seize the computers of one of Mr. Zamel's companies."
Investigators have also examined Zemel's ties in Russia.
According to the report, wich was published on Saturday, one of Zemel's companies worked with oligarchs related to Russian President Vladimir Putin, including Oleg V. Deripaska and Dmitry Rybolovlev, who hired his company to conduct online campaigns against their competitors.
A lawyer representing Zemel denied that his client or any of his companies had been involved in any way in the US elections, noting he is cooperating fully with investigators and that "the US Justice Department clarified from Day one that Joel and his companies have never been a target of the investigation."
Three months before the US general elections, the president's son, Donald Trump Jr., met with a group of specialists to get the upper hand against Democratic rival Hilary Clinton—among which was "an Israeli specialist in social media manipulation" now embroiled in special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into possible Russian elections meddling and violations by Trump's campaign team, according to The New York Times.
The specialist, Joel Zamel, is the founder and one of the owners of Psy-Group, which was working at the time on a proposal for Trump's campaign team for a "covert multimillion-dollar online manipulation campaign to help elect Mr. Trump," according to three people involved and a fourth briefed on the effort.
Both Trump and Zamel denied moving forward with the campaign, noting it was scrapped after Psy-Group consulted an American law firm who informed it of its illegality, as foreign states, companies or individuals are forbidden from being involved in any US elections.
Despite this, Zamel was reportedly paid some $2 million after the election by one of Trump's associates.
Zamel has since been questioned about the August 2016 meeting by Mueller's investigators. Additionally, "at least two FBI agents working on the inquiry" have traveled to Israel to interview Psy-Group employees.
According to one source cited by The NYT, the special counsel's team has worked with the Israeli police to "seize the computers of one of Mr. Zamel's companies."
Investigators have also examined Zemel's ties in Russia.
According to the report, wich was published on Saturday, one of Zemel's companies worked with oligarchs related to Russian President Vladimir Putin, including Oleg V. Deripaska and Dmitry Rybolovlev, who hired his company to conduct online campaigns against their competitors.
A lawyer representing Zemel denied that his client or any of his companies had been involved in any way in the US elections, noting he is cooperating fully with investigators and that "the US Justice Department clarified from Day one that Joel and his companies have never been a target of the investigation."
