Israeli Attacks on Palestinians Must Stop

Does YouTube censorship policy prevent Israelis from seeing the truth?

This is what Israeli citizens condone when they stand up for their current government policies against Palestinians. Courtesy: fatherjoe.files.wordpress.com

(SALEM, Ore.) - People ask, why don't you carry the Israeli point of view?

Israeli soldier holds Palestinian boy in s headlock; Israel prosecutes these kids as young as 7, Jewish kids don't face criminal sanctions if under 18.

Israeli people in particular frequently write and pose this question. They also sometimes make ridiculous assertions; i.e. "You must be an anti-Semite". People don't even know what that means, and they are an insult to themselves by calling me that.

I am hard on white supremacists in my articles and I am engaged in a huge series on the racism an African-American man faced here in Oregon, the U.S. state I live in. So the notion that being critical of Israel equates to hating a particular religion or culture or race is a slanderous lie and I'm glad to make that point.

In fact the anti-Semite line is the first thing we writers are called when we talk about the Israeli government stealing land, demolishing Palestinian homes, tearing out historic farm fields, shooting protesters every Friday, killing many, and also attacking ships on the high seas in international waters. Every aspect of this behavior of Israel's is morally unconscionable and simply wrong.

Wrong, wrong wrong.

And there are no excuses for it, only the same old problem; religious extremism. Israelis by and large believe, along with Christians, that they are 'The Chosen People' and because these words appear in the Bible, Israel's behavior is tolerated. The Bible isn't part of any modern political law or doctrine, it is simply one group's guiding religious manual. And it is used to pillage people who lived on this land long before what we now call Israel; a nation that is 63 years old.

I have concluded for an absolute fact by interviewing these Israelis who write regularly to Salem-News.com, that the YouTube channel they see and the one we see in western countries, is not the same.

In other words, the shocking video we frequently receive from Palestine showing the brutal side of the Israeli Defense Forces, simply is banned and screened from Israeli viewership.

Israelis Destroy Water Supplies

I just published an article about Israel's destruction of a water cistern used by Palestinian people to water their crops. The Israeli police came in and destroyed their crops a little less than a week ago, and now they have intentionally destroyed the cistern.

Americans need to understand that Israel has been intentionally targeting farmers in Palestine. It is easy to dismiss, but people have to stop doing that.

You have to watch the video and read the stories and vote your conscience. One group recording the Israeli destruction of Palestinian crops and water sources is the Christian Peacemakers Teams, based in Palestine.

We also need to show Israel that we are not going to put up with this, and their ongoing elimination of the Palestinian people must end.

Borders must be restored to what they were before Israel's Six Day War which was a Pearl Harbor-like surprise attack on both Egypt, Lebanon and the United States. In six days all of Egypt's Air Force was in smoldering ruin on the ground, Lebanese military targets were ruthlessly struck, and the U.S.S. Liberty was nearly sunk after a several hour long attack by Israeli aircraft and naval boats and ships.

Israelis Raze Farmer's Crops

Earlier this week the respected Israeli writer Tal Haran sent a story to Salem-News.com that is tied to the destruction of the cistern.

"For many years, the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) has been trying to remove Palestinians from the Beqa Valley, east of Kiryat Arba and Givat Harsina. The army has demolished homes, destroyed farmers’ crops and their cisterns for collecting water.

"On Tuesday, 6th July 2010, personnel from the Civil Administration backed up by the Border Police, and accompanied by labourers, came to the area and began to uproot water drip irrigation pipelines belonging to Palestinian farmers in the Beqa Valley. The workmen also uprooted the protective covers of tomato crops. They similarly destroyed the irrigation system for approx. 35 dunams belonging to six families.

"Any Palestinian at the site, or who came to it, was violently forced to a distance – the IDF used blows and beatings, tear gas and stun grenades. Some Palestinians required medical treatment as a result, including a pregnant woman in her eighth month and a four year old child.

Israel's Deadly 1967 Attack in U.S. Ship

Regarding the U.S.S. Liberty, Debbie Menon wrote: "It is like Grace Halsell says it was, “what we did not know, and were shocked to learn….” But, finding out and telling about it, are horses of different colors, uphill battles, seldom won, which she describes as part of the problem and amongst those things we 'did not know.' It is interesting that she wrote these years ago, during the Clinton Administration. And, that she was once a speechwriter for Lyndon Johnson of USS Liberty infamy!

"A review of the USS Liberty story explains a lot of how and why we have arrived at the state and conditions in which we currently find America and its governance! The video on your left is part of a continuing series of YouTube posts that are very interesting and educational first-hand perspective reports.

"The obvious incident is the deliberate Israeli attack on the USS Liberty in 1967, in which out of 200 American sailors and Marines on board, 34 were killed and the rest wounded, and rescue attempts by carrier-based aircraft were halted by McNamara & Johnson personally. I’m not sure most Americans would know all the details of this incident. Listen to the chilling accounts of survivors in this video."

Israeli Snipers Shoot Farmers

I wrote in May about how farmers who try to harvest crops on land their family has owned for generations are often shot by the Israeli military, sometimes fatally. 20-year-old Mohammad al-Breem was shot in the right leg as the farmers worked together with the international Human Rights Activists. There were more shots as they attempted to leave the area having worked on their land for 2 hours in full view of the Israeli forces situated along the Green Line.

There was no surprise, no provocation; the IDF let them think they could work their own land, and then after a while they opened fire. Farmers of every persuasion, from every corner of the globe, should condemn this ongoing genocide of the Palestinians by Israel's unaccountable government forces.

In case you were curious, the farmers' crime, that Israel deemed open season over, was the loading of parsley and spinach from the agricultural lands. The shots were fired from Israeli forces on the border. Mohammad was shot in the right leg and evacuated, while still under fire, to a hospital. International Human Rights Activists have repeatedly witnessed Palestinian farmers being shot at by Israeli forces as they attempt to work on agricultural land situated within 700m of the Green Line.

Israeli Attack on Family Beach Picnic

In April I wrote a story about the Israeli navy attacking a Palestinian family; men, women and children, while they had a picnic on the beach in Gaza.

PBC News reported at the time: "This evening seven citizens were martyred and 30 others were severely wounded, including dozens of women and in a new Israeli massacre, when Israeli war speed boats, shot at beachgoers on the coast at the Gaza beach in the Sundanea area Northwest of Gaza City. Most were the children of Ali Ghalia, his wife Rye Ghalia who was 26. Sabrina 8, Haitham 1, Zebren 8, Anadia 2, Ilham 7, and Halia 15.

The newscaster whose Arabic words are translated to English, concludes the story by saying, "Glory and eternity to our glorious martyrs."

This happens every time Israel kills another Palestinian; a tremendous loss revered as a martyr, but still the Palestinians remain non-violent, and still they are slaughtered. This is not a defense of Islamic militarism; it is about families being slaughtered by trigger-happy Israeli sailors during a day at the beach. Western people, Americans more than any others, would never put up with it if they really knew how heartless Israel is toward the Palestinian people on a daily basis.

Two Palestinian Brothers

If American military forces subjected Iraqi or Afghan people to the type of brutality that Israelis use against native Palestinian people, it would be front page headlines. If an Iranian woman is facing a death sentence, the world is in an uproar, but Israel has over 3,000 Palestinians in captivity constantly. They arrest and severely prosecute small children for throwing rocks at soldiers who shoot bullets at the children.

It is utter and total madness, and to say this is not to endorse terrorism; another accusation frequently leveled at writers like me. It is horrific that these acts are allowed to take place, and every Israeli should be deeply ashamed for being part of a system that at times exhibits no human qualities whatsoever. The only answer is for people to become more politically involved and know that clinging to beliefs that justify this treatment of the Palestinians is an abomination of anything God ever had in mind for the Jews.

I was told that I am wrong for suggesting that "The Chosen People" aspect is used as an excuse for murder. After watching these videos how can anyone disagree?

This video and the one above possibly illustrate the problem taking place in Israel more clearly than any others. The video shows a 27-year old Palestinian protester named Ashraf Abu Rahma, with his arms tied behind his back, lined up and shot by Israeli occupational forces.

It came to our attention because a Palestinian girl who was near the scene recorded the incident on camera. As it turns out, Abu Rahma was also gagged as he was shot. He said the soldiers told him afterward, "You deserve this and even more." The soldiers were from the IDF's 71st Battalion. We learned that the young Palestinian girl was sought by Israeli soldiers, who later kidnapped the girl's father as a punishment for exposing the crime.

Young Palestinian boy taken from his parents by the IDF; reports indicate these kids are routinely physically and sexually abused in Israeli custody, hundreds are held.

Ashraf was detained by Israeli soldiers during a nonviolent protest in July of 2008, in the nearby village of Ni'lin, and after he was cuffed and blindfolded, a soldier standing next to him pointed his gun at his leg and shot him with a rubber-coated bullet.

Then a few months ago, his brother Phil was shot by an Israeli soldier while attending a peace rally, with a tear gas canister, and died on the spot.

So those who criticize me because I write harsh assessments of Israel's more than heavy-handed behavior, need to understand that primarily through the Internet, we are constantly assaulted with the knowledge of what is taking place in Palestine and Israel. There is no excuse for treating people this way. It is not acceptable. Humanity-you are with us, or you are against us, there is no middle ground.

If you are in Israel, I need to know if you can see these videos; help us figure out what the censorship policies of Israel really are. Don't bother posting comments that are insulting, just engage the conversation. Also, if you are seeing this in a country other than the U.S., please let us know if the multiple YouTube videos are showing, thanks.