Many congratulations to Palestine on being recognised as a non-member state at the United Nations. There is a distinct irony that, apart from the unreconstructed climate change deniers in the United States, Canada and the Czech Republic, the supporters of Palestinian genocide could only muster votes from the tiniest island states threatened by climate change. Where is the much vaunted American Empire now?
Both the United States and Israel are incapable of introspection; instead they have reacted by saying the rest of the world is mad.
There was also a chilling admission of the United States support for extreme zionist land claims, from Hillary Clinton, who called for negotiation “Between Jerusalem and Ramallah”. Not Tel Aviv; Jerusalem.
I argued a year ago that Palestine could join the International Criminal Court without waiting for this vote. But this vote certainly removes all doubt on that score.
I was absolutely disgusted by William Hague’s offer of support form Palestine if Palestine agreed not to join, or take cases to, the International Criminal Court. It is yet another example of that theme to which my writing constantly returns, the abandonment by neo-con UK governments of the principle of international law in favour of a might is right approach. It was always UK policy to encourage dispute resolution by international courts. Now we are discouraging it.
There is a very important practical point here. As I also wrote a year ago:
There is an extremely crucial point here: if Palestine accedes to the Statute of Rome, under Article 12 of the Statute of Rome, the International Criminal Court would have jurisdiction over Israelis committing war crimes on Palestinian soil. Other states parties – including the UK – would be obliged by law to hand over indicted Israeli war criminals to the court at the Hague. This would be a massive blow to the Israeli propaganda and lobbying machine.
This explains why Hague was so keen to avert Palestinian membership of the ICC. Not only can Palestine indict Israeli war criminals (and they should start immediately with those behind Operation Cast Lead and the attack on the Mavi Marmara) but Britain will be obliged – as will all other European Union countries – to hand them over to the court.
Given that this disgraceful government had specifically enacted legislation to block other avenues for the indictment of Israeli war criminals in the United Kingdom, this is infuriating for our zionist sponsored politicians.
It also raises an interesting point. We have seen the entire political establishment enthusiastically promoting the automaticity of European arrest warrants in the case of Julian Assange. How will those same politicians react to the automaticity of arrest warrants for Israeli war criminals? I suspect that they will suddenly discover there is a need for political intervention in such cases.
The so called peace process was stalled deliberately to allow all these ‘settlements’ to be built on stolen land. The so called ‘West Bank’ is now being called Judea and Samaria. The Israeli evil tricks department knows no bounds.
Palestinian authority entry permits now being stamped “Judea and Samaria”
“The image directly above is from the passport of Rima Merriman, a Palestinian-American university professor teaching American literature at Al Quds University. It shows the “Palestinian Authority only” stamp dated 24 August 2012. The image at the very top of the page, with her most recent entry on 26 November 2012, shows the new stamp with the words “Judea and Samaria only.”
“Judea and Samaria” is the Jewish nationalist name Israel gives to the occupied West Bank to reinforce its bogus claims to the territory and to give them a veneer of historical and religious legitimacy.
The explicitly racist and discriminatory nature of this Israeli entry regime can be seen in the fact that Jews of any nationality are not only granted entry whenever they wish, but are instantly granted Israeli citizenship, while Palestinians living or exiled abroad, even if born in Palestine, can only enter their own country as “visitors” on foreign passports and subject to the occupier’s whims.
Merriman explained to me that she has twice been denied re-entry at the Allenby Bridge crossing from Jordan into the occupied West Bank. Each time she was told “that I was entering to work with no work visa” even though “there is no way for an international academic working at a Palestinian university to get a work permit.” She was later able to re-enter “through coordination between the PA Civil Affairs Office” and the Israeli occupation authorities, but with considerable loss of time and cost.
Merriman also notes that Al Quds University is the only Palestinian university that Israel doesn’t recognize because it is the only one that has a presence in eastern occupied Jerusalem, which Israel has illegally annexed. Israel doesn’t recognize students’ diplomas, making it even more difficult for them to find work.
The latest change is further proof, if it were needed, that Israel is, without announcing it, implementing a racist one-state solution where there is no such thing as a Palestinian state and even the “Palestinian Authority” has been erased.”
http://electronicintifada.net/blogs/ali-abunimah/effective-annexation-israel-now-stamping-passports-west-bank-visitors-judea-and
Ex-Pat;
Please keep in mind that many of us wish to discuss matters of import with those of all rational inclination. In the spirit of that assumption, kindly speak in simple declarative sentences and address poster directly. It will help us to make common connections with yourself, and will, hopefully do the same for you. It’s easier for us to understand cryptic references, when we have some point of reference. Capiche?
In my view most commentators on Craig Murray’s website are shills. They post and post but always content with zero useful information.
You and/or the other apparent shills seem work to fill the channel with white noise. Rubbish in other words.
I work diametrically oppositely, to throw a very little useful information into the data stream.
Which is usually followed by one or more shills immediately throwing in more rubbish, in order to bury it. The more so if it is in anyway useful. Which process is a useful indicator of effectiveness, or not. If tiresome.
I’m not planning on changing my preference for useful information over white noise and/or shilling – official or voluntary – any time soon.
Thank you for your honesty. But your anger is inner-directed, and worthy of self-awareness,
Happy Trails….
Re: Assange book, piratebay.se has a torrent.
Media are saying that the UK is considering withdrawing their ambassador (Matthew Gould) from Israel due to E1 settler expansion. Crikey.
Petition to UNICEF
Tell UNICEF: No room for racism and war-mongering
The current chairwoman of the Israeli Fund for UNICEF (IFU) is Judy Shalom Nir-Mozes. During the latest Israeli attacks on Gaza, Shalom Nir-Mozes made several shockingly racist comments about Palestinians and Palestinian children.
https://www.mecaforpeace.org/tell-unicef-no-room-racism-and-war-mongering
PS She is married to MK Silvan Shalom, current Israeli senior Vice Prime Minister Of Israel.
{http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judy_Shalom_Nir-Mozes}
“Media are saying that the UK is considering withdrawing their ambassador (Matthew Gould) from Israel due to E1 settler expansion. Crikey.”
Yeah, but it’s still a little slap on the wrist.
The report below is from Maria del mar Ferndandez, one of the board members of Free Gaza. She will remain in Gaza until the end of the year and will make periodic reports to us. Contact her at 00 972 (0) 595 157 194
Gaza City, December 3, 2012: In the last 4 days, Israelis have arrested 31 fishermen, destroyed a boat, kept another one they say for three years, distroyed 4 motors of the boats. They say also that Israelis are not shooting any more water cannons but real fire, and when they arrest Palestinians, one of their main interests in interrogations is to get information about internationals.
Most of the fishermen in the fishermen’s union and another fishing association decided the day before yesterday not to go out to the sea, because they cannot bear that more fishermen are arrested and the boats badly damaged. There is still one fisherman kept in prison. The decision was also to wait for the next ten days so that conversations in Cairo about the ceasefire are completed in order to be sure of the 6 miles nautical miles. Most of the information is published by PCHR in Gaza.
/..
http://www.freegaza.org/en/home/56-news/1393-israel-is-dangerously-breaking-the-ceasefire-
Mary at 3 Dec, 8:39 am:
alexno at 3 Dec, 10:09 am wrote “Yeah, but it’s still a little slap on the wrist.”
Withdrawal of the UK ambassador from Israel would be a very important gesture, far more significant in the message it sends in international diplomacy than in its direct effects. But that isn’t necessarily what’s happening:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-20578684
The “speculation” that the UK ambassador to Israel could be withdrawn must have originated somewhere. It could be a deliberate “leak” by the Foreign Office, or maybe the Israeli-supportive media are trying to exaggerate the UK action against Israel.
SURVEILLANCE TEACH-IN
BLOW. YOUR. MIND.
With the recent ‘Downfall!’ of the head of the CIA, Petraeus, over the interception and leaking of his private emails by elements of the US fascist Empire surveillance security state, attention has been refocused on Julian Assange and his timely new book on the future of surveillance via the internet.
– ‘Downfall!’ – “I should have listened to Julian Assange” – ‘Cypherpunks’ ad video –
– http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMALsxxL6mI
Here’s some astounding background information on the US.
But if you watch it and suppose that something very similar must be going on in the UK to explain the very peculiar state of political affairs there at present, you might be ahead of the pack! ; )
SURVEILLANCE TEACH-IN
William Binney with Jacob Appelbaum.
@ 22.18 – “It’s the Weimar Republic.” “That’s not very nice. About the Weimar Republic!” ; )
@ 23.00 “Now we’re going to get dark.” “Europe. It’s not any better there.” (“In case you were thinking of moving pronto.” paraphrased.)
Oh, it’s a barrel of laughs. ; )
– Laura Poitras: Surveillance Teach-In -, 20th April, 2012 – Whitney Biennial –
– http://whitney.org/WatchAndListen/Exhibitions?play_id=722
or via Praxis Films –
– http://www.praxisfilms.org/
‘Cypherpunks – Freedom and the Future of the Internet’ by Julian Assange and pals, – OR Books –
– http://www.orbooks.com/catalog/cypherpunks/
These recent developments are interesting. The UK abstained from the UN vote on Palestinian “observer state” status; it could have voted against, along with the US.
If anyone doubts there is a really high-level political push to get Assange extradited to the US via Sweden, well take a look at this:
Written by BBC journalist Martin Bentham (and God knows the BBC isn’t very happy with Assange after the embarrassment he’s caused them this week) and appearing in London’s Evening Standard and headlined “Top EU official tells Julian Assange: ‘Just go to Sweden and answer the charges’”:
http://www.standard.co.uk/news/uk/top-eu-official-tells-julian-assange-just-go-to-sweden-and-answer-the-charges-8375231.html
Swedish politician Cecilia Malmstrom claims to know very little about the Swedish sex crimes allegations – she simply can’t see why the US would extradite for sex crime allegations: “I don’t believe for a minute that’s why he would go to the US,”
Is she really trying to play that stupid? Nobody, but nobody, has ever thought that the US would attempt to extradite Assange for sex crimes.
But she’s not that dumb at all. This is both clever and nasty.
Here’s a Congressional C-Span video showing Cecilia Malmstrom sitting at the same table as US Attorney-General Eric Holder as he confirms they’ve had “informal talks about Wikileaks” and their supposed threat to “US National Security” at a 9 December 2010 US/EU conference about cyber-security and cyber-crime:
http://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/Cybercr
Details:
On 9 December 2010 US Attorney-General Eric Holder and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano met with their European counterparts Viviane Reding, Principal Vice-President of the European Union, EU Council Interior Minister Annemie Turtleboom and Justice Minister Steefan de Clerck, and Cecilia Malmstrom, a Swedish politician currently serving as European Commissioner for Home Affairs to discuss US-EU cyber-security and cyber-crime partnerships. Eric Holder stated:
“We had, I think, informal conversations about the WikiLeaks matter and the concerns that it has raised in the minds of all of us. The hope here in the United States is that the investigation that we are conducting will allow us to hold the people responsible accountable” and “I think that the release of this information has put at risk American National Security, and whatever is to come… will be consistent with the concerns that I have expressed.”
In fact, Cecilia Malmstrom and Eric Holder co-authored an article only yesterday. How chummy…
http://www.todayszaman.com/news-299892-the-borderless-crime-against-children-by-cecilia-malmstrom-eric-holder*.html
I doubt such close and friendly relations between an EU Interior Minister and the US Attorney-General only yesterday are entirely unrelated to the former’s insistence in today’s Evening Standard that Assange MUST go to Swedish to face the (non-existent) charges…
Following on from my previous post, and to further dispel any lingering doubt about Ms Malmstrom’s motives, the date of the conference at which her own “informal conversations” about Wikileaks with the US Attorney-General are confirmed – 9 December 2010 – is only one day after the Independent newspaper confirmed on 8 December 2010:
“Informal discussions have already taken place between US and Swedish officials over the possibility of the WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange being delivered into American custody, according to diplomatic sources”
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/assange-could-face-espionage-trial-in-us-2154107.html
Given her own involvement in similar US/EU talks only one day later and her position in Swedish politics, if Cecilia Malmstrom is now claiming to have no knowledge of high-level diplomatic discussions about “delivering Assange into US custody” – and that’s precisely what she is doing in the above Evening Standard piece – then she’s lying through her teeth.
Is there anything we can do to call her out on this? Open letter perhaps? Or anyone able to publicise Malmstrom’s duplicity in Swedish media or blogs?
@ Clark That message about the possibility of Gould being withdrawn was from the ‘breaking news’ banner on Sky News before 9am.
Later I heard that Hague had called Taub in. By mistake I put that on the Leveson thread.
~~~
Hope all is well Clark and I send my kind regards.
Sacerdoti attempts to remove all traces of his alter ego but was unable to pull the wool over Hilary Aked’s eyes. He was able to trick the BBC though. Shame on them and Helen Boaden. Is she back at work or is she still ‘standing aside’ and being paid presumably?.
Former Zionist Federation Official On the Run
by Hilary Aked
Yesterday, we documented that BBC News repeatedly invited Jonathan Sacerdoti, former director of public affairs at the Zionist Federation, to offer unchallenged analysis of Israel’s continuing attacks on Gaza (‘Operation Pillar of Cloud’). Moreover BBC News presented Sacerdoti as a neutral Middle East expert, rather than a professional partisan for Israel.
Following the publication of that article, Sacerdoti has attempted to scrub the evidence on which it was based from the internet.
/..
http://www.newleftproject.org/index.php/site/article_comments/former_zionist_federation_official_on_the_run
Warsaw Ghetto – the remake 2012,
IDF threaten to shoot Harry Fear inside Gaza then actually fire shots after he identifies himself as a journalist and British Citizen – on film at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XfLQopBb5Q0
The UK is highly dependent upon both imported oil, which is overwhelmingly traded in US dollars, and gas, which increasingly flows from Russia’s state owned Gazprom, via Europe to the UK. The latest moves of the UK government could indicate an attempt to position itself between these two dependencies, trying not to offend either.
Libya holds some 4% of proven world oil reserves. The UK support(++) for the NATO action in Libya could also fit with the above scenario if the UK government now feels somewhat independent of US dominated oil supply. I can’t remember the details, but wasn’t a senior figure in BP also senior in MI6, and involved in events in Libya?
France’s gas situation is presumably similar to the UK’s, and the UK is increasingly dependent upon French nuclear generated electricity. Convergence of French and UK foreign policy might be expected, and this appears to have already occurred regarding Libya and Syria.
Mary, thanks. Sorry to say that I’m not really doing well. Ongoing depression and loneliness seem to degrade my ability to think. Best wishes to you.
Heretic,
If I was a heretic I’d actually wonder if Mordechai Vanunu isn’t actually one of the greatest Mossad double agents of all time. Way back in the mists of time the Sunday Times thought he was an Israeli agent and held off on publishing. Only after he was “kidnapped” by Mossad did they run with the story.
Clark,
Very little Gazprom gas currently makes its way into the UK gas network. However if Gazprom supplies to Euorpe are cut or reduced then simple commercial pricing pressures ensure that the UK “interconnector” pipeline is flowing at full speed in the export from UK direction, pretty much regardless of how precarious the UK’s own stocks are.
Sheldon Adelson got his clock cleaned. His return on investment?
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/03/sheldon-adelson-2012-election_n_2223589.html
Correspondence between a complainant and the BBC about a wholly misleading report on arsenal comparisons.
http://members5.boardhost.com/medialens/msg/1354555088.html
This is the original complaint.
From: [email protected]
Sent: 15 November 2012 15:03
To: NewsOnline Complaints
Subject: Complaint
{Title:} Mr
{First Name:} Chris
{Last Name:} Newman
{Complaint title:} Extreme bias and bias by omission in an article
{Complaint:} The article proposes to be about both the arsenals but it doesn’t mention really mention anything about the billions of dollars of Israeli tanks, artillery, fighter planes, drones etc. It also doesn’t mention the immense military funding from the US. Critically it doesn’t mention cluster bombs, chemical weapons e.g. phosphate bombs, or nuclear weapons. The article pretends to be about comparing both weapons capabilities but is clearly about the Palestinian home made weapons and then a bit about the Israeli defensive weapons. Quite disgusting in its bias.
{URL:} http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-20343180
Anon, the following article is by Craig. It was originally published by the Daily Mail / Mail on Sunday, but they seem to have removed it from their site:
http://europe.bg/en/htmls/page.php?id=8686&category=223
As you say, the UK isn’t burning much Russian gas, but remains dependent anyway.
Shutting down the innertubes is a precursor to……?
“Engineers working for the Assad regime in Syria have begun combining the two chemical precursors needed to weaponize sarin gas, an American official with knowledge of the situation tells Danger Room. International observers are now more worried than they’ve even been that the Damascus government could use its nerve agent stockpile to slaughter its own people.”
http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2012/12/syria-chemical-weapons-3/?ww
“What the anonymous American official claims is not happening in Syria. If the Wired writers Noah Shachtman and Spencer Ackerman, (an avid defender of Israel firsters some might note), had even some basic knowledge about ammunition engineering they would not fall for such a stupid claim some anonymous official makes.”
http://www.moonofalabama.org/2012/12/the-wired-syria-wmd-claim-is-false.html
Scratch another source…….
Clark,
You probably know this but…
In the event of UK gas shortages the very last thing they will do is physically cut off domestic customers (us). We will be managed by rotating electrical power cuts which save gas used for generation but also shuts off consumer gas fired central heating as there is no power to operate the electronics or pump.
However most modern small/medium home gas central heating systems can run off cheap modified sine wave inverters (electronics/fan/pump). The Maplin 300W inverter currently at £25 with a car battery or two connected can cover these periods and can be recharged in time for the next outage. Plus you can keep your lights on as well.
You can also use a pure sine wave inverter (or generator) but these are much more expensive and rarely actually needed except for specialist equipment.
£25 quid isn’t a lot to spend to have the possibility of getting 240V from a car battery if you ever need it.
Further, the NYT seems anxious to propel this story, just as they did the War in Iraq.
” The Syrian military’s movement of chemical weapons in recent days has prompted the United States and several allies to repeat their warning to President Bashar al-Assad that he would be “held accountable” if his forces used the weapons against the rebels fighting his government.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/03/world/middleeast/syria-moves-its-chemical-weapons-and-gets-another-warning.html?hp&_r=1&
http://english.farsnews.com/newstext.php?nn=9107124058
Iran Haunts US ScanEagle Drone over Persian Gulf
TEHRAN (FNA)- Commander of the Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy Rear Admiral Ali Fadavi announced that his forces hunted a US Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) over the Persian Gulf after the drone violated the country’s airspace.
The UAV which had conducted several reconnaissance flights over the Persian Gulf general zone in the past few days was caught and brought under control by air defense units and control systems of the IRGC Navy.
The IRGC navy commander announced that the haunted UAV was a ScanEagle drone, adding that “such drones are usually sent to mission from large warships.”
~~~~~
I like the mix up between ‘hunted’ and ‘haunted’. Haunted by that witch Shillary probably? How much more provocation is she going to apply on Iran before she pushes off into the netherworld?
In steps John Simpson to regurgitate the Halabja stuff. No mention made of those who supplied the weaponry used in Iraq by the coalition incl DU that killed and maimed millions.
Simpson is hust a stooge. Pilger said recently at a London media conference that ‘he has time for him’. Wake up John Pilger. Just because Simpson has a fruity voice, a reputation for war ‘reporting’ and an establishment background, does not make him a truth teller.
Halabja chemical weapons: A chance to find the men who armed Saddam
By John Simpson World Affairs Editor, BBC News http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-20553826
“Russia, with its large chemical warfare capability, seems to have given Saddam Hussein the materials he asked for.” OH YES?
“West Germany’s chemical industry was exempted at the time by the Bonn government from the international agreements forbidding the sale of chemical weapons.” OF COURSE – GERMANY
“Other countries may have been involved.” TRY US, UK, FRANCE.
“A lot of the evidence was taken by the CIA from the 10,000 page files sent by Hussein to the UN, but which were hijacked and ‘redacted’ to 4000.” Have we everh lived through more evil times?
This looks like pure prop to me – stimulated by US/UK/Israel and coincides nicely with the propaganda against Assad and his suggested use of chemical weapons.
I suppose that white phosphorus used by the Israelis in Gaza and DU weaponry used in Iraq do not qualify as ‘chemical weapons’ in the minds of the warmongers.
More of the BBC s**t. Adams must be MI something or other.
From Ed on medialens.
~~~~
BBC…”Syria chemical weapons fears mount – US”
“The BBC’s Paul Adams” believes the concerns of Washington are genuine, no need for scepticism or challenge when you have “unnamed US officials” saying it is true! That US “concerns mount” is stated as fact, just as they were when the US was trying to deceive the world into believing Saddam had WMD.
Maybe the “unnamed Official” is Colin Powell!
quote:
“The BBC’s Paul Adams in Washington says it is not the first time US officials have voiced concern over chemical weapons in Syria, but as the situation deteriorates, so those concerns mount.
No-one has said what the latest indications are but one unnamed US official spoke to the New York Times of “potential chemical weapon preparation”…
…Syria is believed to hold chemical weapons – including mustard gas and sarin, a highly toxic nerve agent – at dozens of sites around the country.
The CIA has said those weapons “can be delivered by aircraft, ballistic missile, and artillery rockets”.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-20583966
~~~