Leverage U.S. Military Aid To Halt Israeli Settlements

[Purveyor]

The settlement of Ariel, which sits deep inside the Palestinian Territory of the West Bank, voted overwhelmingly for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Likud Party in the recent elections. The reasons are straightforward: Likud has vowed to protect and expand settlements, and its platform denies the existence of a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza.

These facts run contrary to stated U.S. policy toward the peace process, but the new government of Israel and the residents of Ariel and other settlements who voted for Likud do not seem to care.

Every American administration since Jimmy Carter's has taken a position against settlements in the West Bank. They are not only illegal under international law, but they also jeopardize Israel's long-term security, stability, and prospects for peace with its neighbors.

Settlements and the security structures that surround them debilitate the livelihoods of Palestinians, cut them off from each other, and make a viable Palestinian state unachievable. From 1994 to 2004, after the start of the Oslo peace process, which was based on the principle of two states, the settler population grew a striking 89 percent.

On a recent trip to the region, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton criticized settlement construction and the demolition of Palestinian homes in Jerusalem. Yet expansion plans continue to be developed by the Israeli Civil Administration.

MORE...

Philadelphia Inquirer: http://www.philly.coPhiladelphia Inquirer/inquirer/opinion/20090419_Leverage_U_S__military_aid_to_halt_Israeli_settlements.html

[IndianaGreen]

1. Using white phosphorus shells on populated areas is also against US export laws

but America remains silent in the face of the most law breaking country that has the gall to call itself a US ally. Meanwhile, settlements continue to be build, Palestinians continue to be thrown out of their homes, and people wonder "why do they hate us?"