“Benjamin Netanyahu is a liar,” former French President Nicolas Sarkozy told US President Barack Obama, referring to the Israeli Prime Minister. “You dislike him, but I have to deal with him every day,” the American president replied. This conversations took place at the G 20 summit held in November 2011. This is a personal friendly conversation between the American and French presidents.
Benjamin Netanyahu is a liar…
The whole world knew it because of the sudden activation of the French President’s microphone. It was a time when the true nature of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was revealed to the world. Extremist Netanyahu, who is not ready for a peaceful solution to the Palestinian issue, is a nuisance to the world ! But the international community had to deal with him because he had the majority will of the Israeli people.
“Oslo Agreement” in which American intervention
America is Israel’s main supporter and protector. America has also been involved for decades in trying to reach some sort of peace agreement between Israel and Palestine. The “Oslo Accord” signed between the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and Israel in 1993 at the White House of America is one of the results of this intervention.
Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO leader Yasir Arafat signed this agreement under the observation of US President Bill Clinton. Through this agreement, Israel and the PLO officially recognized each other. In addition to that, the basis for the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict was created.
Israel assassinates prime minister for signing the treaty
But extremists on both sides objected to the “Oslo Agreement”. Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin had to pay with his life for the mistake of signing the agreement. On November 4, 1995, he was shot by an Israeli extremist while addressing a rally in support of the “Oslo Accords” in Tel Aviv. Yitzhak Rabin, an accomplished politician who represented the Labor Party, served as the Prime Minister of Israel during the years 1974-77.
By the year 2000, the Labor Party, which was dedicated to establishing a peaceful agreement with Palestine, social welfare, labor rights, and human rights, was able to wipe out from the Israeli political landscape by the racist, extremist anti-Palestinian political movement of the Netanyahu type.
Obama’s Opposition to Illegal Jewish Settlements
In 2008, Barack Obama became the President of America in this environment. He intervened in the peaceful resolution of the Palestinian conflict as promised in his election platform. In his first meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in 2009, Obama insisted that Netanyahu’s government must immediately stop the illegal Jewish settlement program being implemented in the Palestinian territories. President Obama clearly signaled that even though the government of George W. Bush supported Netanyahu’s racist program for the last eight years, it will no longer be supported.
A two-state solution based on pre 1967 ceasefire lines
In May 2011, he proposed that Israel should pursue a two-state solution based on the pre-1967 armistice lines. The Green Line, also known as the 1967 Armistice Line, is the demarcation line between Israel’s forces and its neighbors (Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria) following the 1948 Arab–Israeli war as outlined in the 1949 Armistice Agreements. It remained the border of the State of Israel until the 1967 “Six Day War”.
The 1948 war ended with Israeli forces occupying about 78 percent of historic Palestinian territory. The remaining territories came under the administration of Egypt and Jordan. In the “Six-Day War” of 1967, Israel captured all of historic Palestine, as well as additional territories from Egypt and Syria.
Netanyahu and the racists were furious at Obama’s proposal
President Obama’s proposal was that Israel should relinquish territory captured in the “Six Day War.” Israeli extremists, including Prime Minister Netanyahu, were furious about President Obama’s proposal. The American Republican Party also strongly criticized Obama’s anti Israel policy and insulted him as “Thambiya”s. Due to this proposal by President Obama, the Democratic Party lost a number of congress seats (with a significant number of Jewish voters) in the November 2011 elections. In the 2012 presidential election, Republican candidate Mitt Romney also accused President Obama of betraying Israel. But Barack Obama has not revised or withdrawn his proposal till date.
Trump stands with Netanyahu…
But Donald Trump, who became president in 2016, stood with Prime Minister Netanyahu’s anti-Palestinian racist program. He gave his maximum support. The American embassy was moved to Jerusalem for the first time. Netanyahu’s government rapidly advanced its illegal settlement and construction program. The homes of the Palestinian people were forcibly destroyed. The attacks were aimed at the Palestinian people.
3,500 Palestinians killed during Netanyahu’s tenure as Prime Minister
According to reports from B’Tselem, an Israeli human rights organization, more than 3,500 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli military attacks in the West Bank and Gaza since 2009, when Netanyahu was the prime minister. Among the Palestinians who lost their lives in Israeli attacks, 799 were children and 342 were women.
The new far-right government…
Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party, far-right Zionist factions and extremist Orthodox parties to form the most extremist government in Israel’s history on December 29 last year. This far-right, racist coalition government consists of six parties: Likud, United Torah Judaism, Shas, Religious Zionist Party, Otzma Yehudit and Noam. As a result Benjamin Netanyahu came to power as the Prime Minister of Israel for the sixth time.
“No Palestinian Nation” Israel’s New Finance Minister…
Bezalel Smotrich, the finance minister of the new Israeli government, in a speech in Paris last March, emphasized that there is no Palestinian people, saying that the concept of Palestine is an artificial construct. “There is no such thing as a Palestinian nation. There is no Palestinian history. There is no Palestinian language,” he said.
Bezalel Smotrich, leader of the extreme Religious Zionist Party, is Israel’s new finance minister and the authority responsible for governing the West Bank. Smotrich is a notorious anti-Semitism and homophobe. He is a strong supporter of building illegal Jewish settlements on Palestinian land.
The new ministers who were punished by the court
Aryeh Deri, leader of the ultra-orthodox Shaz party, is the interior and health minister. Deri received a suspended sentence last January for a massive tax fraud.
Leader of the far-right party Otzma Yehudit and Itamar Ben-Gvir Netanyahu’s Minister of National Defense. He was previously convicted of inciting racism and supporting a terrorist organization in Israel.
Three bribery cases against Prime Minister Netanyahu
These are just a few of Netanyahu’s notorious cabinet members. The vast majority of his cabinet are such extremist, racist and religious fanatics. Like Netanyahu, the majority of his cabinet are those who have been sentenced by the courts and are currently facing trial before the courts. There are three bribery cases against Prime Minister Netanyahu are currently pending!
Destroying the Israeli Supreme Court
So repressing the Palestinians and destroying the Israeli judiciary has become the number one priority of Netanyahu’s new government. Netanyahu’s government proposed to introduce a new law to remove the powers of the Israeli Supreme Court to change anti-democratic decisions made by the Cabinet and the government.
The new government proposes sweeping changes aimed at limiting the powers of the judiciary, from limiting the Supreme Court’s ability to challenge parliamentary decisions to changing the way judges are selected.
Netanyahu and his minions point out that judges who are not elected by the people have no power to change the decisions made by the people’s representatives in the parliament.
Six months of protests against the destruction of judicial independence
The people of Israel have been protesting against these reforms for the last six months. Protesters generally see the reform as an attempt by Netanyahu and his associates, who are on trial on corruption charges, to bring the judiciary under their control as a strategy to protect their power.
The challenge of carrying checks and balances.
The judiciary plays a critical oversight role in maintaining checks and balances in Israel, which does not have a written constitution.The intervention of the Supreme Court is crucial. However, the public including the opposition are paying attention to the fact that the independence of the Supreme Court will be destroyed due to the new proposals of the Netanyahu government.
For the past six months, the people of Israel have taken to the streets to protest against these dictatorial proposals because of their appalling anti-democratic nature.
Opposition from military leaders
More than a hundred former and current military leaders, who represent a key role in Israeli society, requested the Netanyahu government not to implement proposals that would undermine the independence of the Supreme Court.
Diplomatic officers engaged in foreign service, leading professionals of the country, civil society and the Israeli entire society strongly requested that these proposals not be passed in the Parliament.
Netanyahu begins destroying the courts despite protests
But Netanyahu’s racist dictatorial government passed the first part of this proposal in the Israeli parliament last Monday (24) without limiting any of those demands. The opposition boycotted the poll protesting the proposal to destroy the independence of the judiciary.
Destroying Israeli democracy
“This is a sad day” opposition leader Yair Lapid said after the vote. This is not a victory for the Netanyahu government. It is destroying Israeli democracy” The total number of members of the Israeli parliament is 126 and the relevant resolution was passed by 64-0, that is, by a very simple majority vote.
After the voting, Justice Minister Yariv Levin, the plan’s creator, said parliament had taken “the first step in an important historicprocess” to reform the judiciary.
No one can predict the damage and social impact that will occur
But grassroots protest movements condemn the vote, pointing out that Netanyahu’s extremist government has demonstrated its determination to trap millions of Israeli citizens in their extremist ideology. They claim that no one can predict the damage and social impact after the relevant legislation is enacted.
America, which gave Netanyahu the upper hand
America, the main supporter of Israel, also expressed deep concern about this proposal. American President Joe Biden recently said that the most extremist government in the history of Israel has now been created. But America, which silently approved Netanyahu’s extremist racist actions for several decades, is also responsible for this destruction. America is still reluctant to publicly condemn Netanyahu’s extreme racist actions, despite some secret objections at the diplomatic level
(only President Obama did). Netanyahu, who knows that America will support him, taking into account the political factors in the Middle East, is not afraid to dance any madness.
“Save Israel from Netanyahu”
But the people’s struggle against the Netanyahu government’s attempt to destroy the independence of the judiciary is not over. People continue to come to the streets to fight to save Israel from Netanyahu. They are still struggling with slogans such as “We will not submit to a dictator”, “Democracy or struggle” and “Save Israel from Netanyahu”.
Netanyahu’s extremist, racist and religious dictatorial government will not stop at destroying the independence of the judiciary. They are also ready to destroy the LGBT rights, women’s rights, press freedom and human rights. They are already talking about it.
The devil comes home
The devil is now at home looking for the people of Israel who blew the whistle on Israeli extremists and racists, including Netanyahu, for oppressing the Palestinian people, destroying their human rights, destroying their homes, and all kinds of repression against the Palestinian people.
“He who is not interested in the freedom of others will also bury his own freedom” – Kuttamani a Tamil freedom fighter.
Let’s end this article with a statement from Selvaraja Yogendran alias Kuttamani, who was brutally tortured and killed four decades ago in Welikada prison Sri Lanka
“We Tamils are not racist, we will not take away the rights of the Sinhalese people. We will remember them with love in our fight and show our support in their just fight.
Similarly, the Sinhalese people should support our liberation struggle. He who is not interested in the freedom of others will also undermine his own freedom.
Sinhalese people will also suffer the same fate as we have in the future. On that day, the Elephantpass torture camp will be moved to Hambantota. Gurunagar concentration camp will be moved to Kurunegala”.
As Kuttamani said, he who is not interested in the freedom of others will also bury his own freedom. It is an eternal truth.
Azgar Nuhman
