TIME FOR ACTION ON U.S. AID TO ISRAEL
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TIME FOR ACTION ON U.S. AID TO ISRAEL |
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TIME FOR ACTION ON U.S. AID TO ISRAEL by Joseph E. Mulligan, S.J. The Bush administration’s response to the atrocities of Sept. 11, 2001 included serious abridgements of Americans’ civil liberties and two military incursions. The invasion of Afghanistan, initially backed by the American people and the international community, has taken an inordinate toll among civilians, thus fueling anti-American sentiment not only in Afghanistan but throughout the Middle East, while the Taliban continue and even grow as a powerful native force inflicting an unexpected level of harm on the invading troops. The later invasion of Iraq, based on deliberately concocted lies (weapons of mass destruction, ties between Saddam Hussein and Al-Qaeda) to justify a previously desired military action and featuring various methods of torture which the administration attempted to justify, has also enraged the native population and many of its neighbors against “the West.” The Obama administration has taken one important step toward disengaging from Iraq: removing our troops from the cities. Let us hope that we keep to the timetable for complete withdrawal. On the other hand, Pres. Obama has escalated our involvement in Afghanistan, which continues to result in civilian carnage and threatens to become the current president’s Vietnam. Is the U.S. safer now than we were in 2001? The record seems to indicate this, and yet much remains to be done in our efforts to remove the underlying causes of terrorism. There is a present danger, and it needs to be dealt with on various fronts mainly by moving from encouraging words to concrete actions. In addition to the issues mentioned above, U.S. involvement in the festering Israeli-Palestinian conflict continues to make us the Western aggressor and to provoke a logical outrage in the Middle East. The Obama administration should heed the voices for peace not only of Palestinians but also of many Jewish groups, both in Israel and in the U.S., who oppose the occupation of Palestine and denounce Israeli human-rights violations. Thus far Obama has been speaking out more forcefully than previous presidents against Israeli violations, especially the continuation of settlements on Palestinian soil, and he has called for an end to the Israeli occupation of Palestine. In his August 21 message to the Muslim world marking the beginning of Ramadan, Obama continued his strong language: “we are unyielding in our support for a two-state solution that recognizes the rights of Israelis and Palestinians to live in peace and security.” However, he has yet to wield a twig, much less a big stick, in support of his words, seemingly intent on persuading the right-wing Israeli government to agree to put the brakes on the settlements. That has been a laudable and understandable effort so far, but it has failed to get results. Now it is time for the U.S. government to act in defense of the national security of the American people. Whether the Israeli government is persuaded or not to make the changes required for a genuine peace (and those changes include more than just stopping settlement expansion), the U.S. must take serious strides toward ending its complicity with the crimes Israel is committing against the Palestinians. It is not in the interests of the Israeli or American public to continue our unconditional subservience to the extremists who control the powerful and well-financed pro-Israel lobby. Nor does such subservience help to defuse the anti-American sentiment in the Middle East. Regardless of whether the present Israeli administration understands that the long-term security of its people is tied to a policy of justice toward the Palestinians, our government must act upon the facts of political life which show that our security and our status in the world community depend at least in part on separating ourselves from Israel’s violations of human rights and of international law. It is time for the Obama administration to take decisive action toward that end – e.g., making significant cuts in American military aid to Israel (currently about $3 billion a year), which helps the occupying power to maintain its violent repression of the Palestinians. This does not mean abandoning Israel, but rather acting on the conviction that the true security of Israel and the U.S. will indeed be enhanced by an American refusal to continue its participation in the settlements and in the occupation itself. Without alarmism, we must recognize a danger: that rhetoric without deeds may soon result in an escalation of hostility toward us. In his Ramadan message Obama stated: “We have heard you. And like you, we are focused on pursuing concrete actions that will make a difference over time....” It is time for such action. “We cannot change things over night, but we can honestly resolve to do what must be done,” the president concluded. **********************
The author, a Jesuit priest from Detroit, works with Christian Base Communities in Nicaragua. In December 2007 and January 2008 he served as a member of Michigan Peace Team in Palestine. He is the author of The Nicaraguan Church and the Revolution (Sheed & Ward, 1991) and The Jesuit Martyrs of El Salvador–Celebrating the Anniversaries (Fortkamp, 1994). |
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