Sunday, March 31, 2024

For the first time in 20 years, Erdogan's party loses elections to opposition party in Turkiye

    Sunday, March 31, 2024   No comments

According to preliminary data, the opposition party is leading ahead of the ruling party for the first time in 20 years in Turkey, and opposition mayors of major cities – Ankara, Istanbul, and Izmir – have retained their positions.

Erdogan acknowledged that the ruling party did not achieve the desired results in the municipal elections, the outcomes of which indicate shortcomings at the local level.

Ekrem Imamoglu, the mayor of Istanbul and the candidate of the opposition Republican People's Party, announced that he had won a new term, and his colleague, the mayor of Ankara, Mansur YavaĹź, announced his victory in the elections, while Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that these elections are "not the end of the road."

Opposition candidates advanced in the three largest Turkish cities (Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir) after about 90% of the votes were counted in the municipal elections held on Sunday.

The Turkish President said in a speech he delivered from the balcony of the headquarters of the ruling Justice and Development Party after midnight, "The municipal elections are not the end of the road, but they are a turning point."

He added, "The people have their say through the fund and send their warning to politicians through the fund, and this is a success for our democracy."

Erdogan pledged to analyze the results of the municipal elections frankly, and said, "We will review ourselves through constructive criticism."

Earlier, Ekrem Imamoglu announced that he had won a new term as mayor of Greater Istanbul, noting that he had an advantage of more than a million votes over his rival, Murat Kurum, the ruling party’s candidate.

Mansur YavaĹź, the candidate of the opposition Republican People's Party, also announced that he had won a new term as mayor of Ankara.

According to the results published by the official Anadolu Agency, Imamoglu received 50.9% of the votes, compared to 40% for his competitor, after 94% of the votes were counted.

In Ankara, YavaĹź obtained 59.7% compared to 32% for his competitor, after counting about 88% of the votes.

In all Turkish states, the Republican People's Party obtained 37.4% after counting more than 93% of the votes.

The ruling Justice and Development Party received 35.7%, while its ally, the National Movement Party, received 4.9%.

The Peoples' Democratic Party received 5.6%, and the Good Party received 3.7%.


Has US threat to force Qatar to expel Hamas out of Doha collapsed the Ceasefire negotiations?

    Sunday, March 31, 2024   No comments

Although the US has warned the leaders of Qatar as early as October that they will need to reconsider the presence of the leaders of Hamas in Doha, the US wanted to use their presence there to strike deals that it wanted. However, with the negotiations for a ceasefire going nowhere, the US administrations wanted to leverage Qatar hosting of Hamas leaders to force them to accept a proposal the Biden administration formulated. 

CNN reported recently that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken “delivered a stern message to Qatar earlier this month: Tell Hamas that they must deliver on a hostage and ceasefire deal that would halt the war in Gaza or risk getting kicked out of the Qatari capital of Doha.” That threat appears to have failed to achieve its goal and worse, it may have backfired.

First, Hamas leaders are now saying that there is no negotiation because their last counteroffer was not responded to by Israel in a way that will allow them to go on negotiating. Hamas and other Palestinian factions insist that there will be a deal only when a permanent ceasefire is approved and guaranteed by the mediators, when aid is delivered to all the people in Gaza, and when Israel forces leave Gaza, when people who lost their homes are sheltered. 

Second, Hamas and other Palestinian resistance leaders took the threat of being kicked out of Doha, the same way they way forced out Turkey, and offered a demonstration of what will happen if they are forced out of Doha: they will settle in Iran. Iran seems to be willing to not only host Hamas leaders, but to host them in a formal manner—something no other host nation has done for Hamas since their days in Syria pre-2012.

Just after the conclusion of the Persian new year celebrations, leaders of Hamas and Islamic Jihad were received by the highest officials of the Iranian government, including a couple meetings with the supreme leader. The message is clear: you can kick us out of Qatar and when you do, we will find home in a country that recognizes us as official representatives of the Palestinian peoples. That means, if Israel or the US wants to negotiate with Hamas, they will have to find someone else other than Qatar or Egypt to mediate. China and Russia willingness to receive Hamas leaders as official representatives of the Palestinian people make Iran's move less problematic.

Based on events on the ground, Hamas leaders having to leave another country to find refuge in Iran will only make Arab countries, like Qatar and Jordan look week. The daily denotations that are growing by the day in Jordan are a good indication of this trend.


Pro-Palestinian protesters in Jordan, March 30, 2024.


Norman Finkelstein: Israel is facing an existential crisis and South Africa offers a model for a one-state

    Sunday, March 31, 2024   No comments

The American Jewish historian, Norman Finkelstein, argues that “Israel” is facing an existential crisis for the first time since its establishment, and suggests that South Africa offers a model for a one-state solution for one people of different backgrounds.

The American Jewish thinker and historian who opposes the Israeli occupation policy, Norman Finkelstein, said that “Israel” has obstructed all political solutions in its war on the Gaza Strip. In a symposium held with students at Princeton University, Finkelstein said: “At the current stage at least, we have reached the end of any kind of diplomacy to resolve the conflict,” adding that “talk about a two-state solution seems absolutely ridiculous, and there is no diplomatic solution.” appears in the horizon".

 He pointed out that "Israel is determined to impose a military victory and will not back down from that goal."  Finkelstein explained, “On the other hand, the Secretary-General of Hezbollah said it explicitly, that he will not accept a military defeat for Hamas, and that this will not happen,” adding that “these two goals are not reconcilable, either victorious or defeated.”

Finkelstein believed that "at the level of the Arab and Islamic worlds, a conclusion has been reached that living with Israel is impossible," adding that according to the Arab and Islamic worlds, it is "moronic and must go. For this reason, there is no political solution on the horizon in the short term."

 He pointed out that "Israel is facing, for the first time in its history, a crisis of existence and legitimacy," pointing out that "its main opponent in this regard is South Africa, the country that is confronting it at the International Court of Justice and presenting itself as a model for a one-state solution for one people."

 As for the United States, “the American Democratic Party is facing a crisis with its broad popular base that objects to Israel’s crimes, and the party’s leadership can no longer ignore that base,” according to Finkelstein.

 He continued by saying: "I was shocked and astonished by US Senator Chuck Schumer's speech last week. Senator Schumer has always been fanatical about Israel, and he was the one who called for the economic strangling of Gaza."

 The American writer pointed out that “Senator Schumer, along with New Jersey Senator Menendez, were at the forefront of those opposing the deal with Iran,” explaining that “he served as the official spokesman for the Israeli government in our country.”

 He considered that "Schumer's statements critical of Israel are beyond expectations."

Finkelstein's talk and comments were published on YouTube.


It must be noted that the two-state solution is promoted as the only solution, which is now becoming very hard to realize, when other examples from around the world point to other alternatives. One of these examples mentioned here is the South Africa example. For years the apartheid regime created systems that dehumanized the people of South Africa. The oppression was built in part on the false idea that Africans are incapable of building and running a democracy. All that was proved wrong: Africans overthrew the racist regime but did not purge South Africa of white people. The preserved South Africa as one country for all.

Other examples of single-state solutions to conflict zones are in the Middle East region and they were in part promoted and engineered by Western governments and their regional allies. The Lebanese example is just on the other side of the border: After 15 years of civil war, Christians and Muslims settled to live, still in tension, but in peace, thanks to a power-sharing system that allows Christians, Shia Muslims, and Sunni Muslims to create a calibrated power sharing system to preserve the national unity of Lebanon.

After the US invaded Iraq, the constitution and institutions that were produced under the authority of the occupying forces of the United States, produced a power sharing structure that allows the Kurdish people, the Sunni Muslims, and the Shia majority to live in relative peace. It is worth noting that the current president, then a senator, Biden, promoted the idea of breaking up Iraq—a tri-state solution if you will.

If the South African, Lebanese, and Iraq models of a single-state solution whereby different peoples, separated by religion or ethnicity, can coexist and govern through power sharing structures, why would a single-state solution that would allow Jews, Christians, and Muslims to live in peace through some sort of power-sharing formular be impractical? And how would a two-state solution solve the problem of the non-Jews, nearly 30% of the population who are Christian and Muslim, who would end up in Israel under any border configuration, should the two state-solution come into existence?

As the world community is forced to address this 75-year old conflict, there is much to be learned not only from the moral force that compelled South Africa to stand against genocide, but to offer a practical example of many peoples in one nation living in relative peace despite the cruelty of the past.

Saturday, March 30, 2024

Demonstrations in Morocco are escalating and demanding an end to the siege, starvation, and killing of civlians in Gaza by Israel's armed forces

    Saturday, March 30, 2024   No comments

Demonstrations and marches in support of Gaza continue in dozens of Moroccan cities, as demonstrators demand an end to the siege, starvation, and killing practiced by the Israeli occupation against the residents of the Gaza Strip for nearly 6 months.

During the solidarity march called for by a number of local non-governmental bodies, including the Moroccan Authority for Supporting the Nation’s Issues, on Friday evening, the participants denounced the continued Israeli aggression against Gaza, which they described as “contrary to all human rights and international standards.”

According to a statement by the Moroccan Authority for Supporting the Nation's Issues, the demonstrators demanded that the government stop normalization with Israel once and for all, denouncing international silence and complicity, and Arab and Islamic failure to support Palestine.

The demonstrators considered that "Israel's challenge to all humanitarian laws and standards, in light of Western support for it," is unacceptable, and demanded that the residents of Gaza be protected and that "Israel" be prevented from displacing them from the Strip. They stressed that the Rabat march is considered a continuation of the activities in support of Gaza, in parallel with the occasion of commemorating “Land Day.”

The statement added that participants in the marches raised Palestinian flags and chanted solidarity slogans in support of Gaza, such as “The people want to liberate Palestine,” “Palestine is a trust... and normalization is treason,” “We are going to Jerusalem... martyrs in the millions,” and “Despite the bombing and siege. “Free Gaza will not collapse” and others.

They called for immediate and urgent intervention and pressure to stop the war, open the crossings, and lift the siege on the Palestinians.

It should be noted that calls are continuing to organize new protests in various regions in the context of support and support for Palestine, the resistance and Gaza, in the context of the protest activities witnessed by the Moroccan street since the beginning of the Al-Aqsa flood on October 7, 2023.

The statement of the “Moroccan Authority for Supporting the Nation’s Issues” pointed out that 100 demonstrations in support of Palestine were organized in 52 Moroccan cities, explaining that “more than 100 demonstrations were organized on Friday, in 52 cities, in support of Gaza, which presents honorable images of steadfastness and struggle,” according to the statement of the authority. .

The statement also indicated that marches and demonstrations spread across dozens of cities and regions in Morocco, most notably in Tangier, Sidi Yahya, Kenitra, El Jadida, Tetouan, Beni Mellal, Chefchaouen, Chaouen, Azrou, Casablanca and Agadir.

Today, Saturday, marks the anniversary of “Land Day,” when Israel occupied vast areas of Arab population’s lands in 1976.

Palestinians everywhere in the world commemorate “Land Day,” which falls on March 30 of each year, by launching several activities in solidarity and support for Palestine and the cause.

This year's anniversary comes amid the escalation of the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip since last October 7, and the escalation of the settlement attack in the West Bank.

It is noteworthy that tens of thousands of Moroccans demonstrated last February in the main roads of the capital, Rabat, in rejection of the Israeli genocide against the people of the Gaza Strip, demanding an end to the normalization of relations between Morocco and “Israel.”

The demonstrators raised banners in front of the Parliament building in the center of the capital, reading: “Stop the massacre,” “Normalization is treason,” and “No embassy, no ambassador.” They also set fire to the Israeli flag.

  



Wednesday, March 27, 2024

Another US government employeee resigning in protest of gaza War: "Why I’m resigning from the State Department"

    Wednesday, March 27, 2024   No comments

Another US government employeee resigning in protest of gaza War: "Why I’m resigning from the State Department", the State Department employee, Annelle Sheline, PhD,  wrote on CNN.


For the past year, I worked for the office devoted to promoting human rights in the Middle East. I believe strongly in the mission and in the important work of that office. However, as a representative of a government that is directly enabling what the International Court of Justice has said could plausibly be a genocide in Gaza, such work has become almost impossible. Unable to serve an administration that enables such atrocities, I have decided to resign from my position at the Department of State.

...

President Joe Biden himself indirectly admits that Israel is not protecting Palestinian civilians from harm. Under pressure from some congressional Democrats, the administration issued a new policy to ensure that foreign military transfers don’t violate relevant domestic and international laws.

...

She also invoked another employee of US government, Aaron Bushnell, US Navy Pilot, who committed the most extreme act of protest, setting oneself on fire.

I am haunted by the final social media post of Aaron Bushnell, the 25-year-old US Air Force serviceman who self-immolated in front of the Israeli Embassy in Washington on February 25: “Many of us like to ask ourselves, ‘What would I do if I was alive during slavery? Or the Jim Crow South? Or apartheid? What would I do if my country was committing genocide?’ The answer is, you’re doing it. Right now.”

I can no longer continue what I was doing. I hope that my resignation can contribute to the many efforts to push the administration to withdraw support for Israel’s war, for the sake of the 2 million Palestinians whose lives are at risk and for the sake of America’s moral standing in the world.

In October, another State Department official in the bureau that oversees arms transfers, Josh Paul, resigned this week in protest of the Biden administration’s decision to continue sending weapons and ammunition to Israel as it lays siege to Gaza in its war with Hamas.

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

Media Review: The New York Times debunks its own reporting on alleged sexual assaults in Kibbutzim by Hamas on October 7

    Tuesday, March 26, 2024   No comments

The US newspaper "The New York Times" is reporting about a new video that demolishes the story of the alleged sexual assault, which was previously reported by the same newspaper--The New York Times, in which it alleged that Hamas committed "crimes of sexual violence and rape on the 7th of last October."

The newspaper referred to a previous claim by an Israeli military medic, in which he claimed that “two teenage girls, killed in the October 7 attack, were subjected to sexual assault.”

The New York Times reported that the unnamed medic, who is from an Israeli commando unit (and served as the source of the allegation), was among dozens of people who were interviewed in an article published by the newspaper on December 28, which dealt with “sexual violence on the 7th of May.” October". He claimed that he discovered "the bodies of two partially clothed girls in a house in the Kibbutz settlement (Be'eri) with signs of sexual violence."

However, now the newspaper reports about footage taken by an Israeli soldier who was in “Be’eri” on October 7, and which it reviewed, refuting this narrative. The paper explained that this footage shows “the bodies of three female victims, fully clothed and with no clear signs of sexual violence in a house where a number of residents believe the assaults allegedly occurred.”

The newspaper quoted the settlers as saying, “there was no talk about the killing of two teenage girls in any other house in Be’eri.” Accordingly, the settlers concluded from the video that “the girls were not subjected to sexual assault.”

The newspaper referred to what was said by Nili Bar-Sinai, a member of a kibbutz group, who researched allegations of “sexual assault” at home, and said that “this story is false,” denying the existence of victims of sexual assaults.

On March 4, the spokesman for Kibbutz Be’eri, Michal Paikin, denied the accounts contained in the report published by the New York Times in December of last year, under the title “Screams Without Words,” which reported it contains allegations that Hamas used “sexual violence as a weapon on October 7,” according to the newspaper’s description.

In his statements to the US website The Intercept, the spokesman for Kibbutz Be'eri, an agricultural community within the Gaza Strip, refuted the accounts reported by the NYT newspaper.

Kibbutz Be'eri spokesman Michal Paikin cast doubt on "the graphic, highly detailed claims of the Israeli Special Forces medic, who served as the source of the allegation, and whose claims were published in the New York Times, the Washington Post, and CNN" and other media.

It should be noted that while reporting on the alleged sexual violence committed by Palestinians was extensive and persistent in western media outlets, UN reported sexual violence committed by Israeli officers, which US officials seem to confirm recenlty as well as by UN experts, went underreported or unreported. Researchers have also noted that when allegations of serious abuses or violations committed by armed forces of Western States are reported, Western media will go beyond due diligence to verify the information and sometimes refute it through resource-heavy investigations. However, when instances of alleged abuse by at the hands of non-Western actors are reported, Western media will report it without due diligence checks. The reporting of the fake story about Hamas beheading 40 babies and other atrocities, which was spread at the highest level of government and by mainstream media outlets is a good example of this media bias.




Monday, March 25, 2024

With US refrained from using its veto this time, 14 UNSC members adopted a resolution calling for a cease fire in Gaza

    Monday, March 25, 2024   No comments

None of the UNSC P5 member States used their NO vote; that is all it took.


For the first time, the UN Security Council adopted a resolution calling for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, more than 5 months after the Israeli war, as the United States - the main supporter of Tel Aviv - refrained from using its veto this time.

The resolution presented by non-permanent members of the Security Council calls for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, stressing the urgent need to increase aid and demanding the removal of all obstacles to its delivery.

Algeria's representative to the United Nations, Ammar Ben Jama, said that the adoption of the resolution is a message to the people of Gaza that the international community feels their pain and has not abandoned them.

He continued, saying, "We want Palestine to become a full and sovereign member of the United Nations."

The adoption of the resolution came after the Council failed to pass an amendment to the draft by adding the phrase “permanent ceasefire.”

UN Secretary-General AntĂłnio Guterres said a failure to implement the resolution would be “unforgivable.”

“The Security Council just approved a long-awaited resolution on Gaza, demanding an immediate ceasefire, and the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages.

This resolution must be implemented. Failure would be unforgivable,” Guterres wrote on X.

Last Friday, Russia and China used their veto power to drop a US draft resolution calling for a ceasefire “in the framework of a deal to release the hostages,” a formulation that the Arab countries, Moscow, and Beijing described as “politicized and ambiguous.

The United States has previously systematically opposed the term “ceasefire” in United Nations resolutions, and has obstructed 3 texts in this context, since the beginning of the war.



Aljazeera coverage of demontrations denouncin "the ongoing Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip"

    Monday, March 25, 2024   No comments

Aljazeera provided detailed coverage of people protesting the war in Gaza, but did not provide any comments as to why none of these events is happening in Qatar and other Gulf States.

On Saturday, Aljazeera reported that protesters around the world took to the streets to denounce the "the ongoing Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip", and provided a list of countries and cities where such demonstrations took place. 

Arab and foreign cities witnessed demonstrations to denounce the ongoing Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip, and the participants called for a ceasefire.

The demonstrators called on the international community to take urgent action to stop the Israeli war on Gaza and send humanitarian aid to the Palestinian people.

Britain

Thousands of Britons demonstrated in more than 30 cities in solidarity with the Palestinian cause and in support of Palestinian rights, led by the capital, London, from which 11 demonstrations were launched alone.

The demonstrators chanted slogans demanding an immediate end to the Israeli war and genocide in the Gaza Strip, the entry of aid to its besieged residents, and holding Israel accountable for its crimes.

Germany

The German capital, Berlin, witnessed a protest march denouncing what they described as genocide committed by Israel in Gaza.

In the march called for by the Unified Palestinian Committee in Berlin, the protesters denounced Israel's use of starvation as a weapon against civilians. The demonstrators also denounced the German government's support of Israel with weapons.


Austria

In the Austrian capital, Vienna, dozens demonstrated in solidarity with the Palestinian people.


On Maria Hilfer Street, an important street in Vienna, the demonstrators carried Palestinian flags and banners reading “Immediate ceasefire,” “No to genocide,” and “Free Palestine.”


Sweden

In the Swedish capital, Stockholm, a massive demonstration took place in support of Palestine and Gaza.


The demonstrators demanded an end to the Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip and the entry of humanitarian aid to the residents of the Strip who are suffering from famine.


Finland

Dozens organized a human chain in the Finnish capital, Helsinki, in support of Gaza and denouncing the ongoing occupation massacres against the Palestinian people.


The protesters raised Palestinian flags and demanded an immediate end to the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip and the entry of humanitarian aid.


Italy

In northern Italy, hundreds demonstrated in the city of Milan in solidarity with Gaza and denouncing the occupation's massacres against the Palestinian people.


South Korea

In East Asia, dozens of activists demonstrated in the city of Seoul, South Korea, to denounce the ongoing Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip.


The demonstrators raised Palestinian flags and chanted slogans against the international position regarding the war in Gaza and the continued massacres.


Tunisia

In the Arab world, Tunisians demonstrated on Habib Bourguiba Street in the capital, Tunis, in solidarity with the Palestinian people and in protest against the continued Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip.


The demonstrators demanded an end to the massacres and violations against the residents of Gaza. They denounced the international silence regarding the crimes of the Israeli occupation, and the continued closure of border crossings, preventing the passage of food and health aid to the people of the Gaza Strip.


Morocco

In turn, several Moroccan cities, including Oujda, El Jadida, Meknes, and Tangier, organized vigils to demand an end to starving the residents of the Gaza Strip and to lift the siege imposed on them.


The demonstrators called on Arab and Islamic countries to take urgent action to stop the Israeli war and send humanitarian aid to the Palestinian people, denouncing at the same time the inability of the international community to stop the war in Gaza.


Yemen

In Yemen, the Ansar Allah Houthi group said that more than 148 squares in the governorates it controls witnessed, on the second Friday of the month of Ramadan, massive demonstrations in support of the people of the Gaza Strip, which has been subjected to an Israeli war that has been going on for months.


The Houthi Al-Masirah satellite channel reported in a news item on its website that the capital, Sanaa, witnessed a massive million-man demonstration in solidarity with the Palestinian people who are being subjected to genocide in the Gaza Strip.


The demonstrators stressed the necessity of continuing Yemeni military operations in support of the Al-Aqsa Flood Battle until the aggression stops and the siege on the Palestinian people is lifted.



Sunday, March 24, 2024

Canada bans the export of weapons to Israel... Will other Western governments follow

    Sunday, March 24, 2024   No comments

In a remarkable decision, Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Jolie announced that her country would suspend arms exports to Israel, describing the decision as important and that it was “not a symbolic change.”

This step comes after Parliament approved a non-binding resolution proposal presented by the New Democratic Party, urging the government on a set of points, including demanding an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, halting further arms export permits to Israel, and ensuring continued support for UNRWA and active work to establish the State of Palestine. As part of a comprehensive and just peace in the Middle East.

Despite the non-binding nature of the resolution, it represents a historic step, according to what many observers described, and comes in line with the shift witnessed in Ottawa’s speech towards the war on Gaza.

Following the October 7 operation, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau issued a statement in support of Israel and its right to defend itself, before later announcing his condemnation of the pro-Palestinian marches.

The contrast between Ottawa and Tel Aviv became clear with Canada voting in favor of a UN resolution for a ceasefire in Gaza in December, while Jolie later stated that her country had not agreed to issue a permit to export military lethal products to Israel since October 7, as It has stopped issuing any permits at all since January 8.


The stage before submitting the proposal to a vote witnessed strenuous efforts by representatives of the ruling Liberal and New Democratic parties to amend a proposal from the latter that included many points, the most important of which was urging the government to call for an immediate ceasefire, suspension of trade in all goods and military technology with Israel, and official recognition of the state of Israel. Palestine.


These efforts resulted in fundamental amendments to many items, as a more flexible formula was agreed upon, including “stopping further permits and transferring arms exports to Israel, and working with international partners to actively pursue the goal of reaching a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the Middle East, including: This is the establishment of the State of Palestine as part of a negotiated two-state solution.”


The move of the ruling party’s representatives is due to many reasons, the most important of which is that voting on the proposal in its initial form, yes or no, would have led to damage to the party’s popularity among one of the two blocs, whether supporting Israel or opposing the war on Gaza.


This is important given that next year's general election will be held amid an unprecedented decline in the Prime Minister's popularity, according to a Mainstreet Research poll, which showed Trudeau trailing his biggest rival, the Conservative Party, by more than 15 points. While 63% of respondents expressed a somewhat negative or unfavorable view of Trudeau.


The arrival of the Liberals and New Democrats to a settlement formula also strengthens the agreement between the two parties, as the two parties signed an agreement in 2022 that allowed the Trudeau government to continue without the threat of a no-confidence vote against it in Parliament by the opponents, as the two parties have 181 deputies out of 338.


Canada, the main ally of the United States, provides Israel with military aid annually, but it has already reduced its arms shipments to Israel to non-lethal equipment, such as communications equipment, after the war that Israel declared on Gaza following the October 7 attack.


A Canadian official told news agencies, requesting anonymity, that the conditions on the ground make it difficult for Canada to export any type of military equipment to Israel.


Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Jolie confirmed to the Toronto Star that Ottawa will halt future arms exports.


The issue of arms delivery to Israel raises public anger in a number of countries around the world and has led to legal measures being taken in many of them.


Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau expressed great concern about the possible Israeli attack on the city of Rafah, which houses hundreds of thousands of displaced people.


Canada is not the first to decide to suspend arms sales to Israel. The Netherlands, Japan, Spain and Belgium preceded it, and many other countries said that they would no longer buy Israeli weapons.


Last week, a group of Danish NGOs said they would sue Denmark to stop arms exports to Israel, citing fears that its weapons would be used to commit serious crimes against civilians during the war in Gaza.


Meanwhile, a Dutch court in February ordered the Netherlands to ban all exports of F-35 fighter jet parts to Israel over concerns they would be used to violate international law in Gaza.


Israel denounced the decision to suspend arms sales, and its Foreign Minister Israel Katz commented by saying that the decision “undermines Israel’s right to defend itself against Hamas terrorists.”


“History will judge Canada’s current behavior harshly,” he wrote on the X platform.


But US Senator Bernie Sanders welcomed the Canadian move and wrote on X: “Given the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, including the spread and worsening of hunger, the United States should stop sending a dime to Netanyahu’s war machine.”


Israel is one of the most prominent importers of Canadian weapons, as it received military equipment worth 21 million Canadian dollars in 2022, according to Radio-Canada, and this was preceded by shipments worth 26 million dollars in 2021.


This puts Israel in the top 10 recipients of Canadian arms exports. But a Canadian government official explained that his country has not sent any exports to Israel since the beginning of this year.


This month, a group of Canadian lawyers and activists of Palestinian origin filed a lawsuit against the Canadian government demanding the suspension of arms exports to Israel, considering that Ottawa, with these exports, violates domestic and international law.

Friday, March 22, 2024

UN Security Council rejects US draft resolution on War in Gaza

    Friday, March 22, 2024   No comments

 Algeria, the country that proposed an earlier UNSC resolution to stop the war on Gaza, rejected the US-drafted resolution. It was joined by both China and Russia, whose vetoes sunk the US resolution.

Amar Bendjama, Algeria’s ambassador to the UN, said the text was inadequate and failed to address the immense suffering endured by the Palestinians. “Those who believe that the Israeli occupying power will choose to uphold its international legal obligations are mistaken,” he told the council. “They must abandon this fiction.”


Last February, it objected to the use of the term “immediate” in the draft resolution submitted by Algeria.

Since blocking the Algerian draft resolution, which calls for an "immediate humanitarian ceasefire" in Gaza at the end of last February, US officials have been negotiating an alternative text that focuses on supporting diplomatic efforts on the ground for a six-week truce in exchange for the release of the hostages.

The Secretary-General of the United Nations, AntĂłnio Guterres, said that children, women and men are “living an endless nightmare,” stressing that there is no effective way to distribute aid without a ceasefire.

US rejection of three previous UNSC resolutions made some members skeptical and worried that US intentions have been thus far about shielding Israel and not about stopping the bloodshed. They want to see a clean resolution that orders an immediate cease fire and the unhindered delivery of food, water, medicine, and shelter to end the starvation of civilians in Gaza. Other issues can be addressed in separate resolutions.

China insists on an immediate and unconditional ceasefire not linked to the release of the captives

China's Permanent Representative to the Security Council, Zhang Jun, said: "We voted against the American draft resolution because it does not request an immediate ceasefire, even though the Secretary-General used Article 99 of the Charter for that purpose," adding that "the Council wasted a long time and did not request a ceasefire." Fire after."

The Chinese delegate believed that “the American draft resolution is ambiguous and does not meet the aspirations of the international community,” and that it is “unbalanced because it does not explicitly oppose the attack on Rafah,” and “it does not warn of the dire consequences that could result from such an attack.”

He continued: "The Council now has before it a clear draft resolution requesting an immediate ceasefire, and China supports it," expressing his hope "that it will gain the support of member states," because it "requests an end to the conflict and the immediate release of the hostages."

The Chinese delegate also indicated that “China rejects the accusations of America and Britain” related to its positions, considering that “if the United States is serious about a ceasefire, it should support this draft resolution.”

Zhang Jun, China's permanent representative to the UN, offered further explanation about China's voting position and relevant considerations after the vote.

Zhang said that more than 160 days have passed since the outbreak of the Gaza conflict. In the face of this human tragedy in which more than 32,000 innocent civilians have lost their lives and has left millions suffering from famine, the most urgent action to be taken by the Council is to promote an immediate, unconditional, and sustained ceasefire, which is the universal call of the international community. But the Council has dragged its feet and wasted too much time in this regard, Zhang said.

The envoy added that the US has always evaded and dodged the most essential issue, which is a ceasefire. The final text remains ambiguous and does not call for an immediate ceasefire, nor does it even provide an answer to the question of realizing a ceasefire in the short term. This is a clear deviation from the consensus of the Council members and falls far short of the expectations of the international community. 

"An immediate ceasefire is a fundamental prerequisite for saving lives, expanding humanitarian access, and preventing further conflict. The US draft, on the contrary, sets up preconditions for a ceasefire, which is no different from giving a green light to continued killings, and thus unacceptable," Zhang noted.

Moscow said that the American draft resolution does not call for a ceasefire in Gaza.. Talk about that is a hoax

The Russian Deputy Representative to the United Nations, Dmitry Polyansky, confirmed that the American draft resolution on the situation in the Gaza Strip does not include any call for a ceasefire.

Polyansky stated that the draft resolution "does not include any call for a ceasefire, as previous drafts did not include. Rather, only a philosophical statement appeared there about its importance, while linking it to the release of prisoners."

 The Russian diplomat believed that talk about the United States including a ceasefire in Gaza in the draft resolution for the first time is “just an American trick.”

In addition, “there is practically a green light for an Israeli military operation in Rafah, while attention should be focused mainly on praising the United States’ own efforts on the ground,” according to Polyansky.

He added, "This is not what humanitarian agencies need," stressing that "no philosophy will be useful in the absence of a direct demand for a ceasefire."

Polyansky pointed out, "We should not give in to Washington's attempts to present the hope as if it were a real thing, as the United States is still not interested in a real ceasefire, and is doing everything in its power not to prevent its closest ally in the Middle East from abusing the Palestinians."

History of the American veto to protect Israel

The United States’ position on UN Security Council resolutions on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is consistent with its historical use of the veto to prevent any resolutions criticizing Israel, or calling for the establishment of a Palestinian state.

The United States, Israel's main backer, had previously used its veto power in the Security Council to prevent the international body from calling for an immediate ceasefire in the Palestinian territories.

Since 1945, one of the five permanent members of the Council - the United States, Russia, China, Britain and France - has used its veto to stop 36 draft Security Council resolutions related to Israel and Palestine before. Of these decisions, the United States objected to 34 decisions, while Russia and China objected to two of them.

Security Council resolutions after October 7

The US veto blocked the resolution issued on October 18, 2023, which had demanded a “humanitarian truce” and Israel’s cancellation of its evacuation order in northern Gaza.

The US representative to the United Nations said, “Resolutions are important... but the actions we take must be based on facts on the ground and support direct diplomacy that can save lives,” according to what Reuters reported.

On February 20, the United States used its veto power again to stop another draft resolution in the Security Council, blocking a demand for an immediate ceasefire on humanitarian grounds.

13 members of the Council voted in favor of the text drafted by Algeria, while Britain abstained from voting.

This is the third American veto against a draft resolution since the start of the fighting in Gaza.

The draft resolution drafted by Algeria and objected to by the United States did not link the ceasefire to the release of the hostages, but rather demanded this separately.

Washington has opposed the use of the word ceasefire in any UN action on the war between Israel and Hamas, but the American text uses language that President Joe Biden said he used last week in a phone conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

This is the second time since October 7 that Washington has proposed issuing a Security Council resolution on Gaza. Russia and China had used their veto power to stop its first attempt.

In December, more than three-quarters of the 193-member UN General Assembly voted to demand an immediate ceasefire on humanitarian grounds. General Assembly resolutions are not binding, but they reflect a global consensus on critical matters—More than 150 countries thinking that the war in Gaza should be stopped immediately to address the starvation and killing of civilians leave the US position quite exposed. Only 10 countries voted against this UNGA resolution. The global consensus, if it continues to be opposed by the US alone, will eventually degrade US standing in the world.







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