Overruling Democracy
By Marjorie Cohn

George W. Bush claims he wants to bring democracy to the Middle East.  But the evidence indicates that Bush only likes democracy when the elections go his way.

Since Israel began its assaults in Gaza and Lebanon, Bush has cheered Israel on.

The Palestinians, subjected to a ruthless occupation by Israel for nearly four decades, held a democratic election in January.  Much to Bush's dismay, they elected Hamas to lead their parliament.

Likewise, voters in Lebanon democratically elected representatives of Hezbollah to parliament.

Yet Bush and his minions are doing everything they can to undo those election results. 

After Hamas's election, Israel and the United States spearheaded the imposition of severe economic sanctions against the Palestinians that have virtually crippled their infrastructure.  Israel, which continues to control Gaza's economy, withholds about $50 million of Palestinian monthly tax revenues.

When Palestinians in Gaza captured an Israeli soldier and members of Hezbollah in Lebanon captured two Israeli soldiers, Israel unleashed massive armed attacks against the people of Gaza and Lebanon. 

Although justified as necessary to free the captured soldiers, Israel really hopes to destroy Hamas and Hezbollah in the process.

The Israeli military demolished hospitals, airports, highways, power stations, fuel depots, and entire buildings with their inhabitants in Lebanon and Gaza. Hundreds of innocents have been killed and thousands injured. Israel kidnapped dozens of Hamas leaders.

Since Israel began its assaults in Gaza and Lebanon, Bush has cheered Israel on.

The United States supplies Israel with the sophisticated weapons it employs to slaughter Palestinian and Lebanese civilians, in violation of the US Arms Export Control Act.  That law requires military items transferred to foreign governments by the US be used solely for internal security and legitimate self-defense.

"In my judgment, the best way to stop the violence is to understand why the violence occurred in the first place," Bush sensibly observed.  But then he continued, "And that's because Hezbollah has been launching rocket attacks out of Lebanon into Israel, and because Hezbollah captured two Israeli soldiers.  That's why we have violence."

Wrong

The United States supplies Israel with the sophisticated weapons it employs to slaughter Palestinian and Lebanese civilians, in violation of the US Arms Export Control Act.  That law requires military items transferred to foreign governments by the US be used solely for internal security and legitimate self-defense.

"Israel's actions in no way can be seen as a legitimate response to the small-scale attacks from Hamas and Hezbollah," Robert Dreyfuss wrote Monday on TomPaine.  "Instead, what Israel has done has used the pretext of those pin-prick attacks - a couple of border raids and a handful of errant rockets - to launch a strategic attack whose goals are to crush Hamas and the remaining institutions of Palestinian self-rule and decapitate and destroy Hezbollah politically and militarily in Lebanon."

When Hamas and Hezbollah captured the Israeli soldiers, they intended to use them to negotiate the release of hundreds of prisoners, including women and children, who have languished in Israeli jails for years in barbaric conditions with no charges against them.

But Israel, with the blessing of the US government, reacted with overwhelming military force, killing hundreds of people and crippling the infrastructure in Gaza and Lebanon. 

This is not self-defense.  It is a war of aggression that violates the United Nations Charter.  Israel is engaging in collective punishment in violation of the Geneva Conventions.

The United States was the only country to veto a Security Council resolution that would have accused Israel of a "disproportionate use of force" in Gaza.  This sends a clear message that Israel can do whatever it wants and Washington will support it.

US Ambassador John Bolton echoed this sentiment when he said there was no "moral equivalence" between the civilian casualties from the Israeli attacks on Lebanon and those killed in Israel from "malicious terrorist attacks."  In other words, an Israeli life is worth more than a Lebanese life, in the eyes of our ambassador to the United Nations.

Both houses of the US Congress are poised to express their support for Israel and condemn Hezbollah, Iran and Syria.  Bush claims that Iran and Syria are pulling the strings in Gaza and Lebanon.  Although some of the arms Hezbollah is using are made in Iran, many analysts doubt that Iran or Syria is calling the shots.