Aaron Bushnell, an active serviceman in the United States Air Force, burned himself to death in front of the Israeli Embassy in protest against the US policy in Gaza. Before setting himself on fire in what he called an "extreme act of protest", he said he would "no longer be complicit in genocide". Polls show that the vast majority (63%) of Americans want an immediate end to the carnage being perpetrated by Israel in Gaza.
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| USAF Engineer Aaron Bushnell |
Although Bushnell resorted to this extreme form of protest against the Biden Administration's policy of unqualified support for Israel, he was not alone in opposing it. American public opinion polls confirm that the vast majority of Americans, including Jewish Americans, want an immediate end to the Gaza carnage.
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| Gaza Ceasefire Poll. Source: ISPU |
Overall, 63% of Americans support a ceasefire in Gaza, according to a recent poll conducted by the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding (ISPU). In terms of religions, 71% of Catholics, 61% of Non-Affiliated, 60% of Protestants, 58% of White Evangelicals, 50% of Jews and 75% of Muslims support an immediate ceasefire, according to the poll.
Jewish and Muslim Democrats, like Democrats in the general public, favor an end to the violence in Gaza. The majority of Republicans in the general public also favor a ceasefire.
So why is President Biden defying the will of the American people on Gaza? The simple answer is AIPAC, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), the most powerful lobby in Washington D.C. This Israel lobby has showered its friendly politicians with money from wealthy Jewish donors. It has also ensured the defeat of those politicians who dared to speak out against Israeli policies in the Middle East. As one former Democratic senator, Ernest Hollings, put it on leaving office, ‘you can’t have an Israeli policy other than what AIPAC gives you around here.’ Or as Ariel Sharon once told an American audience, ‘when people ask me how they can help Israel, I tell them: “Help AIPAC.”’
President Jimmy Carter who helped broker peace between Israel and Egypt knows the Israel lobby well. He told Amy Goodman of "Democracy Now" many years ago: "I think it’s accurate to say that not a single member of Congress with whom I’m familiar would possibly speak out and call for Israel to withdraw to their legal boundaries or to publicize the plight of the Palestinians or even to call publicly and repeatedly for good faith peace talks..... And I would say that if any member of Congress did speak out, as I’ve just described, they would probably not be back in the Congress the next term ".
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5 comments:
Perhaps it is too much to expect white Americans or white Europeans to feel compassion for Palestinians. The more pertinent question is, why isn't the wider Arab/Muslim world showing some spine in taking a strong stand for their hapless Palestinian brethren? Why aren't they attempting (or at least threatening) a repeat of the "oil shock" of 1973 to force the Western world to pressure Israel for a ceasefire?
Coincidentally, I just noticed that an article appeared in DAWN today precisely about this morally indefensible silence/pusillanimity of the wider Arab and Muslim world on Gaza.
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"Silence, complicity of Arab nations hurtful"
Niha Dagia
Amid the death and devastation that has been unleashed against Gaza by Israel over the past several months, the thing that perhaps hurts Palestinians the most is the inaction of their Muslim brethren in the Middle East.
"The silence and, at times, complicity of certain Arab countries is indeed disheartening. They mistakenly believe they are immune to the risks faced by Palestinians," says Dr Izzeldin Abuelaish — a Palestinian-Canadian born and raised in the Jabalia refugee camp.
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I mean, its understandable if American politicians feel constrained by the influence of Jewish and Christian Evangelist lobbies (the latter of whom support Israel and its apartheid for very different reasons), and it is understandable if European politicians fear being branded anti-Semitic for vocal criticism of Israel. But what excuse does the Arab monarchies have? Even if US were to be largely immune to an energy boycott by the Arab world due to its own domestic production, Europe isn't. After stopping gas purchases from Russia, European nations like Germany depend on supplies from Qatar and petroleum from Middle East. A repeat of the 1973 embargo or at least a threat of it would work wonders. But they don't seem to be doing it for whatever reason.
THERE WILL NO TRUCE,AS NOW THE LINE IS DRAWN
TRUMP VS JOE
JOE IS IN DRIVER SEAT !
IF HE CAN EXPAND THE WAR TO IRAN AND WIN ! IT WILL BE A COUP FOR JOE !
OTHER HAND,IF PUTIN TAKES MOLDOVA = DISASTER FOR JOE !
IF CHINA MAKES A MOVE ON TAIWAN = DISASTER FOR JOE !
GETTING A GAZA CEASEFIRE WILL NOT WIN THE US POLLS FOR JOE ! SO THE WAR WILL GO ON !
TO BE PRECISE - ALL THE WARS WILL GO ON ! dindooohindoo
In germany as well, 61% call Israeli actions unacceptable and only 25% support Israel (rest neutral). However, political elites are on a different camp.
@Vineeth
"why isn't the wider Arab/Muslim world showing some spine in taking a strong stand for their hapless Palestinian brethren? Why aren't they attempting (or at least threatening) a repeat of the "oil shock" of 1973 to force the Western world to pressure Israel for a ceasefire?"
you're being naive here..Arab regimes knows that their interests are more aligned with Israel than Palestine. Any Palestinian state will be more democratic than Arab states and this would put tremendous pressure on them to give up their wealth and power. This is the complex answer. A somewhat simplified answer is that Iran is a patron of Hamas.
I am aware that Arab monarchies have their own political interests in mind in not being too supportive of Palestine, considering some past events (like the "Black September" conflict). And yes, Iran's links with revolutionary resistance groups like Hamas and Hezbollah is another reason for their lack of enthusiasm for Palestinian cause. What I meant to say was that these Arab regimes have an even weaker excuse than the Western states in abandoning Gazans to their fate.
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