Hundreds of additional Israeli troops entered the occupied West Bank today, and it was announced that the occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip are to be fully sealed through Monday. The Palestinian town of Yatta, near Hebron, has been totally surrounded and declared a “military zone,” with no one allowed in or out.
This was just the start of a harsh crackdown on all Palestinians that is being imposed in the wake of yesterday’s Tel Aviv shooting, which also saw the Ramadan travel permits of 83,000 Palestinians immediately and irreversibly revoked.
All Gaza residents who had permission to visit the al-Aqsa Mosque for Ramadan had that permission cancelled, and every Palestinian who had a permit to visit family in Israel lost it. Israeli officials have suggested Friday worshiping at al-Aqsa won’t be interrupted, though food deliveries for the Ramadan fast have been stopped.
With the two attackers already arrested at the scene of the shooting, Israel’s options for actually retaliating against the perpetrators seem limited, and with MPs already openly complaining that police arrested the two rather than summarily executing them on the spot, the far-right government’s thirst for revenge is far from sated.
The crackdowns seen today are probably not the “real” retaliation so much as the prelude to it, as a full closure of the West Bank and mass revocation of permits is likely to fuel public protests, which will immediately be re-branded as “Arab riots,” and then used as a pretext for a more bloody crackdown on dissent that can make everyone in the far-right government feel they’ve taken “strong measures.”
Maybe the Ayatollahs were right about Israel imploding within a decade or so. At this rate, Netanyahu and Lieberman will certainly hasten Israel being sucked up its own arse hole.
Now what?
There is no sympathy for the Palestinian people and as Gary Jones suggests, it’s seen as Israel protecting itself.
When Gary’s mind is changed then progress could begin to happen and the only thing that is going to change the minds of the Garys is a revenge attack on the US for it’s support of the Israeli apartheid regime.
In the meantime, the US paying to support evil perped by Israel is a good investment. The American people will tell their government when it becomes too costly and they will already know.
luv from Canada.
The Arabs are expansionist. The Arab League has over 5 million square miles of land while Israel has about 8,000. The Arabs have 99.9 % of the land & Israel has 0.1% of the land. The Arabs are not satisfied with 99.9% of the land. They have been attacking Israel from the day she was reborn because the Arabs want 100% of the land. For progress to begin to happen the Arabs would have to change. Do you think they will?
Apartheid? Where are the separate water fountains & bathrooms?
Why are there Arabs in the Israeli parliament & on the Israeli Supreme Court?
None of your arguments are rational and all have been refuted thousands of times by those who can be suckered into doing so. It’s below my dignity Gary.
A better argument would be to say that Israel is the promised land. There would be no question whatsoever that you would have a majority of Americans with you on that! And then it would make no bloody difference in the least what I thought about the issue.
How are my arguments irrational?
Canada is the second largest country on the face of the earth and is also the second most powerful nation in the world. It’s our nuclear weapons that make us so strong, even though we only have a population of 35 million people..
Canada has no nukes.
Is it so hard to figure out for Israelis? Occupy people with a cruel military force, control their supply of food, destroy their homes, and seize their land and they will rebel against you. This should be very clear given the celebration of your own rebellion under similar circumstances (i.e. the rebellious mood in the Warsaw ghettoes in WWII). You are either stupid or total hypocrites.
The occupation began because Israel was attacked.
Israel is just trying to defend itself.
So I’m just going to break into your home and move in, then shoot you amd claim self defense if you have any problems with it.
That’s what the Nazis said in Warsaw during the Uprising.
Relevance to Israel?
Different victims, different overlords, same scenario.
My neighbor’s dog barked at me – I guess I’ll take over his house and drive his car —-I’ve got a right to defend myself!
This shows the way for the Palestinians. Guns, not knives.
The Germans signed a peace treaty & have had 70 years of peace & prosperity.
The Japanese signed a peace treaty & have had 70 years of peace & prosperity.
The Palestinians have refused to sign a peace treaty & have had 70 years of war & poverty.
The Palestinians should sign a peace treaty.
That would require a peace treaty to sign, as well as recognition by the all signatories of the legitimacy of all the entities signing it.
Much is made of e.g. Hamas’s refusal to countenance the existence of Israel. Much less often mentioned is Israel’s demand that the “two-state solution” it claims to support never, ever, ever include more than one state.
Link?
The Americans haven’t ethnically cleansed the Germans or Japanese and stolen their land.
The Allies took 25% of Germany & gave it to Poland.
The Russians ethnically cleansed or killed the Germans in Central Europe, not the US.
…not 25%. A much smaller chunk.
No. But the Roman’s, Christians and the Muslims did. Today it’s the EU and the US government that are financing terrorist to do this and try to take Israel, Judea and Samaria away – again.
Then why did the US have the casualties in Iraq and not Israel – stop parroting AIPAC’s ridiculous talking points.
Israel advised the US not to attack Iraq.
lol – yeah right – before Iran, Netanyahu said Iraq was “_____ months from a nuke.”