The big winner in Israel’s elections was Itamar Ben Gvir, leader of the ultra-right Otzma Yehudit (Jewish Power) party, who is set to be the next Homeland Security Minister. As a lawyer Ben Gvir defended Israeli nationalist terrorists in the courts, threatened the late PM Rabin before he was assassinated by a rightwing Zionist, and has been convicted 8 times for incitement and related felonies. In his victory speech, Ben Givr vowed: “It is time that we will be back the owners of this land, it is time that our kids will feel safe to walk around the streets.”
+ Still it’s unlikely that the Israeli elections will change much. It will continue on pretty much the same thuggish, defiant, unrepentant course set by Ariel Sharon. Governments come and go with greater frequency now but the oppressive Zionist imperative remains. What will have to change is the rationale of the US for supporting such a brutal regime that flaunts human rights and international law with the impunity of an NYPD street cop. It no longer has the hollow liberalism as represented by Yair Lapid to hide behind. The violent racism that was once implicit is now explicit. At most, it will give the Biden administration the chance to issue a few entirely performative press releases remonstrating against some atrocity before approving the next Israeli aid package.
+ 2,747,943: number of Palestinians living in the West Bank.
+ 0: number of Palestinians living in the West Bank who were permitted to vote in the Israeli elections.
+ 687: the number of houses and buildings Israel has demolished in the West Bank this year.
+ Thomas Friedman took to his usual pasture in the NYT to graze over the re-election of Netanyahu and concluded that the “Israel We Knew is Gone.” Who’s this “we” you’re talking about, Friedman? And what “Israel”? The Israel of Sabra and Shatila? The Israel that ran over Rachel Corrie? The Israel of phosphorus bombs in Gaza? The Israel of an Apartheid Wall? The Israel that shot Linda Abu Akleh in the head? History ain’t changed.
Extract from his weekend Counterpunch throwaway Roaming Charges goodie.
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