by Stephen Lendman

US officials, other Western ones, Israelis, Jordan, Ban Ki-moon and longtime Judas Mahmoud Abbas pretend wanting to resolve ongoing violence responsibly.

On the one hand, they ignore its root cause - longstanding occupation harshness, collectively punishing an entire population, including lawlessly blockading Gaza for political, not security reasons, waging three premeditated wars of aggression on entrapped people since December 2008.

On the other, only violence affecting Israelis matter, Palestinians maliciously called terrorists. They’re blamed for their own victimization.

Since Israel unleashed conflict on October 1, Abbas did nothing to help his beleaguered people - remaining largely silent, his few comments either meaningless, duplicitous or hugely offensive.

His Wednesday address to the UN Human Rights Council asked for international help - what he refuses to provide himself, collaborating with Israel against his own people, targeting them with PA security forces.

He ludicrously warned about things changing from a political conflict to a religious one. It’s always been the former - Israel advancing its imperial agenda, Palestinians struggling for liberation against a ruthless occupier.

Abbas is part of the problem, not the solution, collaborating with Israel throughout his sordid career - an illegitimate president, benefitting hugely by partnering with evil against justice, why he’s widely despised.

New Zealand drafted an offensive Security Council resolution, ignoring the root cause of conflict, calling on both sides “to take the necessary measures to rebuild confidence and prepare for the resumption of negotiations” - dead-on-arrival no-peace-peace-talks every time.

The resolution asks for Quartet members US, Russia, UN and EU to help prepare for another round of worthless talks, listing steps both sides must take in advance.

Israel must cease settlement construction, demolition of Palestinian homes, and al-Haram al Sarif/Temple Mount provocations - never as New Zealand knows no matter what Israelis agree to in principle.

Palestinians must stop seeking International Criminal Court justice and agree to absolve Israel of mass murder, a hugely offensive demand, whitewashing high crimes too grave to go unpunished.

The resolution perpetuates the myth about peace only possible through Israeli/Palestinian direct talks - how when Israel demands unconditional surrender. It’s all take, no give.

Its sordid history shows it says one thing, does another every time, assuring its interests alone are served. Palestinians never had a legitimate peace partner - for sure not with brutal fascists running Israel today.

Their only chance for liberation is longstanding resistance, despite the enormous cost in lost lives, pain and suffering.

The alternative is accepting status quo enslavement. A new generation of Palestinian youths courageously shows they’d rather die than accept the unacceptable.

Hopefully Russia and China will veto New Zealand’s resolution if it comes to a vote. Passage would be another blow to Palestine’s longstanding liberation struggle.

A Final Comment

Amnesty International condemned Israeli high crimes many times before, again in a statement by its Middle East and North Africa director Philip Luther, saying:

“There is mounting evidence that, as tensions have risen dramatically, in some cases Israeli forces appear to have ripped up the rulebook and resorted to extreme and unlawful measures.”

“Intentional lethal force should only be used when absolutely necessary to protect life. Instead we are increasingly seeing Israeli forces recklessly flouting international standards by shooting to kill in situations where it is completely unjustified.”

There’s more than “mounting evidence.” There’s boundless amounts, incontrovertible examples covering decades of Israeli high crimes against peace.

Virtually always, Israel “rip(s) up the rulebook,” committing mass murder and other forms of brutality with impunity.

Justice without accountability is impossible. A beleaguered people are on their own like always, with no international community support - one-sidedly backing Israel, abandoning long-abused Palestinians again in their time of need, offering them lip service alone, talk but no action with teeth, the only kind that counts.

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Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago and can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.

His new book as editor and contributor is titled "Flashpoint in Ukraine: How the US Drive for Hegemony Risks World War III".

http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanIII.html

Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com.

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