Time For A Wide Political And Legal Action
Against The Crimes Of Israel
By Salim Nazzal
03 June, 2010
Countercurrents.org
Once again Israel gives more evidence that it is a state that stands above all laws. This time Israel did not only murder Palestinians, but also murdered those who came from the four corners of earth to aid Palestinians under siege with food and medice.
The question is, is there any new thing in the Israeli crime?
From a Palestinian point of view nothing is new; the Israeli war crimes have become too many to count. But the new thing is that the international opinion does not buy the Israeli stories any longer. In the past Israel invested the anti Semitism and the alike to legitimate its terror policy. But it is clear today that Israel face serious difficulties to market its policy as a brutal occupational power.
This explains why Israel failed to convince the public opinion that the attack on the flotilla is legitimate. Its argument convinced no body; including the US traditionally protect Israel to escape justice. Nobody in the world would be convinced that those men and woman who left their families and countries to aid Palestinians with food and medicine and construction materials are travelling thousands of kilometers to fight the well armed Israeli army with forks and knives and chairs which the Israeli spokesman said they used against the Israeli navy which acted in “self defense”.
Moreover, Israel attacked the boats in the international sea which is a mercenary act from the legal point of view. And the ridiculous thing that the solidarity persons taken by force from the international water to Israel were put in jail and considered illegal immigrants which is another act against the international law .According to the Arab keenest member Haneen zugbe who was on board, the Israeli soldiers landed from the helicopter while shooting at the ship. This obviously contradicts the Israeli story which sought to search for a form of excuse to the attack. Al Zugbe added that the soldiers left some of the wounded on board bleeding to death for about 12 hours, something which is very brutal and contradicts with the ethical norms of war so how it is when it is practiced against international humanitarian aiders.
The protest and the condemnation against Israel which took place all over the world are important but not enough. Each time Israel commits crimes the protest ends two days after the crime then Israel commits new crimes. The case of Palestine, under occupation and under siege must be taken seriously on the international agenda. There must be wide and continued political and juridical efforts to follow up the Israeli crimes. The victims and their relatives must sue the state of Israel in the international court to let it pay for its brutality. And the international society must put more pressure on Israel to ensure its respect to international laws.
Dr. Salim Nazzal is a Palestinian-Norwegian historian in the Middle East, who has written extensively on social and political issues in the region
