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.
Thanks for your info Ex Pat. It looks like the best security in future is a piece of sticky tape over the back of a letter.
Encryption of emails will keep this new generation of rubber neckers busy. The more people encrypt their invitation to coffee mornings the better. I have tried one of Jacobs recommendations in the 1980’s, i.e not talking to the arresting officers, not a single word… they did send five different officers into my cell and they all tried different languages, it was quiet funny.
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.
Yup. But the real threat (to us) is not Assad using CW against the opposition in Syria. It’s the opposition, much of which is drawn from the black hat side as far as the USUK is concerned…imagine what they could do with a couple of Sarin shells. Here.
Strange, though, that while Saddam’s imaginary CBW stocks were for years the subject of scrutiny before we offed him, no-one’s said a dicky bird about Assad’s until rather recently.
On the to-do list:
Forge document purporting to show sales of yellowcake to A. Calculate range of A’s IRBMs, multiply by 20 and demonstrate threat to UK within 3/4 hour. Reveal that components clandestinely ordered by Homs Washing Machines plc, are not, as claimed, for spin drier but for enrichment centrifuges and rocket motors…etc.
Anyway.
Royal foetus, check.
Economic disaster, check.
The omens suggest yet another pointless intervention in the ME, I think.
Ben,
Accoding to Komodo, debka.com is not a reliable source. See further back in this thread.
Absolutely, Dreoilin. Nor am I the only one to think so:
http://www.ehackingnews.com/2012/11/anonymous-hacks-debkafile.html
Another one to step around for fear of soiling your shoes is MEMRI, also active on behalf of Israel (and its Christian Right shills):
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2002/aug/12/worlddispatch.brianwhitaker
Mary,
If you read John Simpson’s books I suspect you get a reasonably accurate picture of the cosy relationship between the BBC and the security services. His books are much more honest than he is allowed to be with his on-screen reporting.
When he started at the BBC stories TPTB didn’t want were literally placed on the rejected spike. There’s no physical spike involved now of course but the system remains.
Simpson is surprisingly critical of a lot of things in his books.
I think my question mark left the proper impression, komodo.
Spotted in the latest ‘Cogitation’ at the amazing Medialens.
‘The Special One’ – Celebrity, Comedy And Spiritual Egotism
Did anybody see any report in our press of this event?
Talking of the end of the war on terror not violent enough for our MSM
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/americas/2012/12/20121210645962539.html
“Thursday marked the first time a senior US official publicly raised the possibility of an end to the so-called “war on terror,””
Some rays of hope lately distinguishable through the squalls of the bullshit blizzard, yet troubles continue to mount.
Weasel words from UNICEF. So that’s alright then.
On Medialens
the reply I received from UNICEF and which I suspect many others will receive as well.
Posted by emersberger on December 5, 2012, 4:23 am
Dear Sir or Madam,
Thank you for your inquiry.
The views of Judy Shalom-Nir-Mozes do not reflect the views of UNICEF. Ms. Shalom-Nir-Mozes has recently been appointed by the Board of the Israeli Fund for UNICEF (IFU) as the ‘Honorary Chair of the Annual General Meeting.’ This is a voluntary function and as such, Ms. Shalom-Nir-Mozes is not an employee of the IFU. The IFU is an independent non-governmental organization, which helps mobilize funds to support UNICEF programs around the world. The Chairman of the IFU is Moriel Matalon. UNICEF is a non-partisan organization which aims, in everything it does, the most disadvantaged children and the countries in greatest need have priority.
We hope that helps to shed more light on the matter and we thank you for your interest in and support of UNICEF.
Sincerely,
UNICEF
Web: {www.unicef.org}
United Nations Children’s Fund
3 UN Plaza, New York, NY, USA, 10017
~~~
Joe Emersberger is a Canadian activist and trades unionist.
This is the original petition:
https://www.mecaforpeace.org/tell-unicef-no-room-racism-and-war-mongering
Ms Shalom-Nir-Mozes is married to an Israel MK who has some position in the Netanyahu government.
From UNICEF’s website. Where We Work. Occupied Palestinian Territories.
Note it is a ‘conflict’.
Palestinians in the West Bank, including east Jerusalem, have lived under Israeli occupation since 1967. Israel evacuated settlers and troops from the Gaza Strip in 2005. However, it has since imposed an economic blockade of the strip.
2009 opened to the largest Israeli military operations in Gaza since 1967. The brief war killed over 1,400 Palestinians – including at least 350 children. Some 280 schools were damaged or destroyed, along with critical water and sanitation infrastructure and almost half of all health facilities.
Throughout the Occupied Palestinian Territories, almost 12,000 children under five die from preventable causes each year. The school system has also suffered, with plummeting education levels across the region.
The decades-long conflict with Israel, along with intra-Palestinian division, has caused unprecedented hardship for families across the area. Caregivers report acute signs of distress among children and parents say they are increasingly unable to fulfill their children’s basic needs, including protection from the escalating violence and poverty. Amid this volatility and misery, children say they have little to hope for and much to fear.
UNICEF works with the Palestinian Authority, the Israeli government, and a broad range of partners to protect children from the impact of violence, and to prevent further deterioration in their conditions and well-being. Our programmes target the most vulnerable children and women, focusing on health and nutrition, water and sanitation, education, and child protection.
http://www.unicef.org.uk/UNICEFs-Work/where-we-work/Occupied-Palestinian-Territories/
@Ex Pat
You seem to have you fingers on the pulse, cause Glen Greenwald has picked up on the issue of laptop seizure and electronic chicanery.
I suppose this issue will run for some while, until..eheme, it is cut off.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/dec/04/us-constitution-and-civil-liberties
This from Germany, German regional Governments do not trust the BND, (German equivalent of the NSA)with their information any more.
This is a rough translation of what’s going on there.
https://netzpolitik.org/2012/elektronische-uberwachung-bundesregierung-verweigert-auskunft-zu-deutschen-geheimdiensten/
“The size of the electronic supervision through the German secret services is supposed probably much more largely than until now. It is guaranteed becomes moreover unclearly how, ‘permitted’ be restricted that the secret services actually to the supervision one quota of 20 percent of the digital communication: For the four providers are obligated vis-à-vis the federal intelligence service to the complete delivery of all data.
Nominally the electronic Schnüffelei (snoopery) had contributed’ ‘substantially to the clarification or defense of heavy criminal offenses. The Federal Government itself contributes however nothing to the illumination of this large-scale attack on the informational self-determination: Essential aspects are deposited in the secret protection place of the Bundestag and are withdrawn therewith the public discussion. Delegated may not value let the secretly held information through network activists, Bürgerrechtler (citizensrights) or lawyers.”
“Instead become like of authoritarian regime applications of the German firms Utimaco, Ipoque or Trovicor used in order to penetrate if possible deeply into the private digital communication. I assume that the foreign secret service spies out also foreign computers with Trojans.”
Ben: Capisco. But Debka is a complete crock of shit whose function is to spread rumours, alarm and despondency in the region. Better pointedly ignored. More fantasy per pixel than Harry Potter.
Would you prefer the formal (capisce?) or the informal (capisci?)?