Israel Matzav

Saying you support Israel is no substitute for supporting Israel

The Obama Administration seems to believe that merely repeating endlessly that it supports Israel is a substitute for actually supporting Israel in real life.

To say that Israel and the Palestinians should talk might seem like “common sense.” But to repeatedly imply that the lack of talk is Israel’s fault is unfriendly to Israel. The Obama Administration never points out publicly that the absence of talks–and this can be thoroughly documented–is due entirely to the Palestinian Authority (PA). In addition, the Palestinian Authority is currently in partnership with Hamas which opposes a two-state solution, a factor that has affects both Israeli perceptions and PA but not apparently Obama Administration behavior.

Panetta’s “order” that the two sides better get to the “damn” table comes across as a demand for Israel to make more unilateral concessions to make this happen despite its having made so many unrequited and unappreciated such concessions during the last three years. That is precisely the correct interpretation of the administration’s stance.

To say that Israel should “mend fences” with Arab states and Turkey is put into a context that blames the breaking of those fences on Israel. Yet it is Egypt that has had a revolution which us clearly leading to an Islamist regime committed to Israel’s destruction, opposed to a two-state solution, and frequently speak in antisemitic and genocidal language. How is Israel going to mend fences with such a goverment?

As a result, Israel isn’t just mending the border fence with Egypt. It is rapidly building a stronger one, has created a new brigade to reinforce the border, and set up a new intelligence unit to monitor threats from the largest Arab state, where the Obama Administration seems to see no threat and no problem.

It is Turkey whose Islamist government has changed policy and is clearly on an anti-Israel vendetta including a demand that Israel end all–repeat all–sanctions against the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip. This same Turkish regime colluded and encouraged an international terrorist group, the IHH, to send a group of jihadists on a ship in order to attack Israeli forces and set off a crisis.

As for Lebanon, a new regime comprised of Hizballah and other Iranian-Syrian clients took power, committed to the destruction of Israel, being even more radical and aggressive than preceding governments. More radical regimes are also taking power in Tunisia and no doubt soon in Libya.

To ignore these events–which the Obama Administration has encouraged and helped make possible–is not to be a strong ally of Israel. To blame Israel for the deterioration of its security due in large part to U.S. policy is neither friendly nor supportive.

Labels: Barack Hussein Obama, US support for Israel

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 6:54 AM