With Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu unveiling yet another massive settlement expansion in occupied East Jerusalem, US officials are openly expressing doubts about his commitment to the stalled peace process.
As well they ought to be. Netanyahu, opening the winter parliamentary session today, reiterated his opposition to making any concessions to the Palestinians, calling talk of peace “false hopes.”
Netanyahu went on to insist there was “broad consensus” on Israel keeping occupied East Jerusalem forever, and that since the Palestinians were never going to get it back, they shouldn’t complain about the settlements there.
Secretary of State John Kerry reportedly warned Netanyahu about the expansion over the weekend, as State Department officials say he made it clear that US opposition to any expansions had not changed.
EU officials also said the plans raise “serious questions” about whether Israel was even interested in negotiated peace. The Israeli government’s answer seems to be that they want to be officially “interested” in peace, so long as it doesn’t require them to do anything that might lead toward a peace deal, or to stop doing anything that might prevent such a pact.
Kerry "warned" Netanyahu? Wow, that's about feckless.
Is like asking the cat, what did you do with the meat, or asking a alcoholic, where is the whisky, or asking a proven lier to tell the truth, or a use car sales man, do you guarantee this car with your words or in writing. The USG should stop asking such stupid question from all the above, Israel.
It only took them how many years to realize that that terrorist isn't interested in peace?
There you have it. Zionist régime remains the biggest treath to peace in ME and World.
Not ISIS, but THIS ilegitimate, rasist apartheid on Palestine territory may bring horrors to us all….John
you are a real pervert
The contrived misspellings identify this post as a puerile attempt to equate opposition to Racist Zionism with ignorance. This typical of the many Israeli government paid student trolls that monitor America's news venues.
You are not fooling anyone with your 'cleverness', Anal Aperture John.
Actuality
In reality, our corporate rich are warning themselves, for they created Israel in 1948 to terrorize the Middle-East into buying their war materials, the corporate rich hire most politicians in both USA and Israel as paid actors and as they also own all of mainstream media, the propaganda is so slick, smooth and deceitful.
This is hilarious. After over 60 years of brutalization of the indigenous people and theft of their land and property U.S. officials only now doubt Israel's commitment to the peace process. This is all kabuki since the U.S. officials have never been serious about a peace process. Obama is commanded by his masters to appoint rabid zionists like Dennis Ross and Martin Indyk to be involved in the phoney negotiations and knows before the process starts that it will go nowhere. It's not coincidental that in his 2008 campaign he groomed, funded and zionists that called him "the First Jewish President".
What is new is that the American public is just now catching on. For many years, the Israelis have done the same thing regarding the Palestinians. They've never had a real interest in peace with the Palestinians. Never. It's been about saying the right things to keep the American supporters content enough to continue sending money and to keep the USG sending free stuff courtesy of the US Congress.
The problem is that with the recent escalation of settlements and the quite public display of cruelty and depravity during the last Israeli attacks on Gaza, the American public have been forced into a reality check. And the American people really, really don't like being made fools of by anyone. Granted, the American public have been generally guilty of self-denial regarding the Israelis but there are limits to the willful ignorance especially when the ugly truth of the Israeli hatred for the Palestinians is brutally thrust into their faces. Offhand comments by normally subservient MSM talking heads are also starting to bubble up to the surface.
But the actual verbal reprimands from the USG and its spokespeople are more direct and indicate a growing divide that "favored nation" standing can no longer abide. It's really hard to prop up a nation that thumbs its nose at all comments and reports of depravity.
IMO, the Israelis have bitten off more than they can afford. The USG (and generally the American people) are the last to blindly support Israel – and that seems to be quickly falling apart.
Good riddance.
Kerry warned?? Kerry is in a lot of trouble now. The American people won't stand for such hypocrisy! Unfortunately the world is a long way from ever really objecting to that evil apartheid regime. Sick.
Just another bout of fighting amongst thieves.
"Kerry is in a lot of trouble now. The American people won't stand for such hypocrisy!
This is sarcasm right?
They want Palestine, not peace.
What "broad consensus" on keeping East Jerusalem does he speak of, Israel and the US congress? Not very broad and not much of a consensus.
They sure took their sweet time in spouting the obvious…it would have happened long ago, were US dot gov not a wholly owned subsidiary of KKK Israelia, with Netanyahu the Grand Dragon.
They follow a WAR GOD ……it is well documented.
According to a landmark, comprehensive study of all of Israel’s wars, by Zeev Maoz, Professor of Political Science at the University of California, Davis, former head of the Graduate School of Government and Policy and of the Jaffee Center for Strategic Studies at Tel Aviv University, and former academic director of the M.A. Program at the Israeli Defense Forces’ National Defense College:
“. most of the wars in which Israel was involved were the result of deliberate Israeli aggressive design . None of these wars – with the possible exception of the 1948 War of independence – was what Israel refers to as Milhemet Ein Berah (war of necessity). They were all wars of choice . ” – Defending the Holy Land, pg. 35, (bold added)
“I review a number of peace-related opportunities ranging from the Zionist-Hashemite collusion in 1947 through the collapse of the Oslo Process in 2000. In all those cases I find that Israeli decision makers – who had been willing to embark upon bold and daring military adventures – were extremely reluctant to make even the smallest concessions for peace . I also find in many cases Israel was engaged in systematic violations of agreements and tacit understandings between itself and its neighbors.” – Defending the Holy Land, pg. 40
Israel has violated more UN resolutions than any other country. That includes Iraq under Hussein.
DeNile ain't just a river in Eretz Israel.
I swear you couldn't make this stuff up.