What lies behind Obama’s Jerusalem sycophancy?
Abdel Bari Atwan, Editor in Chief of Alquds Alarabi Newspaper
Never in my life have I seen a US President beg for the approval of the
Israelis while demeaning himself in the process quite like Barack Obama
has done during his current trip. This is all the more remarkable given
his immense historical significance as the first non-white candidate to
win the American presidency.
People expected this president to be different from his predecessors,
precisely because he belonged to a group of people who have suffered
persecution over the centuries. Obama used to speak about the
humiliating racial segregation his grandparents and other relatives
faced in Chicago when they were banned from sitting with white people on
buses.
We thought he’d understand the Palestinians’ suffering under Israeli
occupation, their humiliation at checkpoints and the whole racist
infrastructure of the Zionist state.
But we were wrong. He has broken our trust and dashed our hopes,
reminding us instead of Uncle Tom (from Harriet Beecher Stowe’s 1852
novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin) – the black servant whose subservience to his
white master overcame his humanity.
Barack Hussein Obama surprised us with his speech in Jerusalem when he
demanded the Palestinians recognise Israel as a Jewish state and urged
the Arab states to recognize Israel. People who deny Israel’s right to
exit, Obama reasoned, are like people who deny the Earth and the sky.
The Israelis will never be alone as long as the United States exists, he
concluded.
I don’t quite understand Obama’s reasons for such a speech, in the face
of the threats posed by Israel to the Palestinians and the Muslims in
general. The Hebrew state possesses 300 nuclear warheads that could wipe
the whole region off the map.
How can an American president of African origin demand this of us, after
his grandparents’ generation stood up to racial discrimination and
sacrificed martyrs to this noble cause: putting an end to slavery and
racism?
Obama wants us to recognise Israel as a Jewish state, what about the 25
percent of its population who are not Jewish, in particular the 1.5
million Arabs living inside Israel?
America’s long line of caucasian presidents never stooped this low; most
of them pressured Israel to some degree to recognise the rights of the
Palestinian people. Why is Obama be so keen to fawn at Netanyahu’s feet
begging for forgiveness? Netanyahu who insulted him so grievously by
overtly backing Republican Mitt Romney in November’s presidential race.
Obama did not come to the region as a man of peace but as a war monger.
He came to light the fuse of devastation, giving Israel the go-ahead to
attack Iran, pledging that Tehran will never possess a nuclear weapon
and declaring that Hezbollah belongs on the list of international
terrorists.
And when he turned his attention to the Palestinians, even more bitter
disappointments were in store. Obama now urged Palestinian Authority
(PA) President Mahmoud Abbas to return to the negotiating table with no
concessions from the Israeli side, not even a freeze on illegal
settlement building. What ever happened to the bold demands he made of
the Hebrew state in his “seminal” Cairo University speech in 2009?
Obama’s revised approach suggests that the Arabs and Muslims are in for
four years of misery during Obama’s second term as president. By
contrast, they’ll be good times for Israelis and their extremist
government.
Palestinians who demonstrated in Ramallah were intercepted by PA
security forces and prevented from getting near the Authority’s
headquarters, where Obama’s helicopter landed; they were not permitted
to represent the Palestinian people’s true feelings towards this US
President who has turned his back on injustice and sided with the
oppressor.
The PA shares responsibility for this shift in the US president’s
attitude. As soon as his visit was announced, the PA ceased its
reconciliation talks with Hamas, banned demonstrations and supressed the
burgeoning third intifada which was rising from the streets following
the death by torture in an Israel jail of the martyr Arafat Jaradat. The
PA has not even insisted on an investigation into the circumstances of
Jaradat’s murder.
The PA is still pining for fruitful negotiations with the Israelis,
believing, despite all the disappointments, that something good can come
of them.
Now that Obama’s intentions are clear, and we see that he is prone at
Netanyahu’s feet, we should change our approach.We should prepare for
intifada and civil disobedience. We should use the humanitarian
resources available to us – the International Criminal Court, where
Israel could be tried for war crimes, and the Human Rights Council. We
must exert all our effort to confront the Israeli occupation.
Finally, we hope that the $500m cheque Obama brought and brandished in
front of the PA will not tame the Palestinians and confirm his
impression that they are a begging people waiting for crumbs of
financial aid from donor countries in exchange for relinquishing all
their legitimate rights and all forms of resistance.
Obama has given the Israelis billions in military aid, he brought them
the iron dome and modern aircraft and has pledged eternal support for
their security and existence…and he gives the Palestinians a little heap
of hush money. It is the epitome of tragedy.
So why does he call on the Arabs to normalize with Israel? Should they
reward it for Judaizing occupied Jerusalem, settling 600,000 settlers in
the West Bank, storming Al-Aqsa Mosque and demolishing its foundations,
and spitting on their every peaceful initiative? This is the age of
American hypocrisy and Arab humiliation.
@ Ted Belman:
I agree with you Ted,but don’t telll Yamit82 or he will be angry with me.
Ted Belman Said:
I agree that it wise even helpful to read what the Arabs are saying and thinking BUT, Atwan does not speak for all Arabs and you have to dig a bit to know what he really thinks because you won’t find it when he writes or speaks in English. You should also give your readers, as intelligent as they are and well read on our conflict, some indication of who Atwan is and just a bit of his background. I know him as a regular on CNN panels re: Middle East many years ago. I remember that even when he was trying to come off as somewhat rational and moderate he was to the extreme right of Arafat and George Habash whom he criticized as being too moderate with Israel.
yamit82 Said:
I thought it important to post an article which gives the Arab perspective on Obama’s talk.
Abdel Bari Atwan most likely is well aware of the truth, but chooses to write one whopper after another for the benefit of his gullible readers.
Probably so he can collect his “little pile of hush money”…..
Don’t know why Ted posted an article by a supporter of Islamic radicals and Islamic and Pali terror and terrorists?Atwan
Political opinions
September 11 attacks
On the fifth anniversary of the New York 9/11 attack Atwan opined: “The events of 11 September will be remembered as the end of the US empire. This is because all empires collapse when they pursue the arrogance of power.”
Al-Qaeda
Atwan has repeatedly expressed his view that the war on terror is the root cause for the creation of numerous regional Al Qaeda offshoots. At the second Dubai Debates on 31 May 2011, he stated: “We used to have one address for Al Qaeda. […] Tora Bora, Tora Bora main square, Tora Bora highroad, the third cave on the left. […] Now we have Al Qaeda in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, Iraq, Somalia and in the Islamic Maghreb.”
US invasion of Iraq
He expressed sympathy with Saddam Hussein’s resistance to the US invasion of Iraq, commenting on the former president’s execution that he “will go to the gallows with his head held high, because he built a strong united Iraq without sectarianism.”
Israel
Speaking about Iran’s nuclear capability in an interview on Lebanese television in June 2007, Atwan stated, “If the Iranian missiles strike Israel, by Allah, I will go to Trafalgar Square and dance with delight.” He further stated in the case of war, Iran would retaliate against its Arab neighbors, American bases in the Gulf and “Allah willing, it will attack Israel, as well.”
In March 2008, Atwan said that the Mercaz HaRav shooting, in which a Palestinian gunmen killed eight students (aged 15 to 26), “was justified.” He added that the Mercaz HaRav yeshiva is responsible for “hatching Israeli extremists and fundamentalists” and that the celebrations in Gaza following the attack symbolized “the courage of the Palestinian nation.”
A highly vocal critic of what he describes as Israel’s “racist” and “apartheid” treatment of his fellow Gazans, Atwan is nevertheless an advocate of a peaceful, non-violent settlement to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. In his memoir, A Country of Words, Atwan says, “We have to learn to live together in peace and co-operation in a multi-cultural society in one democratic secular state for two people. One state for both peoples governed by a representative democracy and on an equal footing. We manage it here in London, it is working in South Africa, and there is enough room for everyone in Palestine. I respect the Jewish people and their religion. I do not want to destroy Israel but I do want to end racism and the current Apartheid system.”
According to his personal website, Atwan has been banned by Israeli authorities from visiting the Palestinian territories since 2000. As a result, he was neither able to visit his sick mother nor attend her funeral after she died in 2003.
Atwan described the attacks on Israelis in Eilat as correcting “the course of the Arab revolutions and refocused them on the most dangerous disease, namely the Israeli tyranny. This disease is the cause of all the defects that have afflicted the region for the past 65 years.”
2011 Libyan civil war
On 17 April 2011, speaking on BBC News Channel’s Dateline London, Atwan claimed that “We know that Eastern area of Libya is almost a hotbed of extremist al-Qaeda people. I know that personally.” Atwan’s early analysis that a significant part of the rebel leadership is from the Libyan Fighting group, an al-Qaeda affiliate, has since been born out and is a source of great concern to the West.
On 4 September 2011, Mustafa Abdul Jalil, chair of the NTC, the interim free Libyan government, in an attempt to damage Atwan’s reputation as a commentator, alleged that documentary proof had emerged that Atwan was on the payroll of Gaddafi. Atwan reiterated that there is no truth in this baseless allegation and is currently suing Mustafa Abdul Jalil for defamation in the UK courts.
Brisbane visa affair
In a scheduled visit to the Brisbane Writers Festival in September 2007, Atwan’s visa was reported as being blocked by the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO). Subsequently, this turned out to be over-enthusiastic reporting. According to ASIO, Atwan had only been delayed by the Australian Intelligence for less than four weeks. ASIO is reported to have said “It is false to suggest it’s anything to do with the media campaign or conspiracy theories, We had to seek some additional information. Dr Atwan’s application was treated like everybody else’s.”
Criticism
Following an October 2003 article in which Atwan claimed that the U.S. is to blame for the Arab world’s hatred of it, a Yemenite journalist and columnist for the London Arabic-language daily Al-Sharq Al-Awsat, Munir Al-Mawari, stated: “The Abd Al Bari Atwan [appearing] on CNN is completely different from the Abdel Bari Atwan on the Al Jazeera network or in his Al Quds Al Arabi daily. On CNN, Atwan speaks solemnly and with total composure, presenting rational and balanced views. This is in complete contrast with his fuming appearances on Al Jazeera and in Al Quds Al Arabi, in which he whips up the emotions of multitudes of viewers and readers.”
In response to Atwan’s legitimization of the Mercaz HaRav shooting in March 2008, Lior Ben-Dor, a spokesman at the Israeli Embassy in London, said: “The problem is that when addressing the British public, he tends to hide his true opinions and ideology – his support for terror and the murder of civilians. This article reveals Atwan’s real colors, a supporter of fundamentalism and terror, and hence he should be treated accordingly.”
What the Arabs always want from USA Presidents is to make Israel do what they have not been able to do, which is make Israel give up the land.
If not they say the option is violence.
This article by Abdel Bari Atwan, Editor in Chief of Alquds Alarabi Newspaper again reflects why believers in the Two State Solution must surely believe Alice in Wonderland is a true story.
@ rongrand:
Better to tell him to “kiss a pig”
@ Laura:
see
rongrand says:
March 25, 2013 at 1:47 pm
Excuse me, his mother was white like her parents, his father is from Kenya and his parents did not suffer discrimination in America.
What is he talking about?
He should find another gig.
@ Laura:
” Stupid is as Stupid Does”, Have a Good Passover”!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I want to write,but your comment are much better then mine.
Peaceful initiatives like rockets and suicide bombers? Like I said, this article is hilarious.
Judaizing Jerusalem? I guess this would be the equivalent of Catholicizing Rome. This article is comical.
The group of people who have suffered persecution over the centuries are the Jews.
Obama’s black grandparents were born in Africa and have never been to Chicago or America at all. Obama himself didn’t even grow up in Chicage, he grew up in Hawaii and Indonesia.
@ Bernard Ross:
Yes I did and I sqrewed up ,royally. I did try, but do send the song to Mr.Q, I shall kidnap my teenage neighbor and have him help me again. I can do it with strict supervision,but not on my own. Would it my case if I told you I am left handed.
@ Honey Bee:did you see that i left instructions on how to highlight and create the quote blocks. It was on the same forum where you said you did not know how to do it?
@ Bernard Ross:
French brie,no doubt.
Of course since the Pals have no problem sending children into Israel wearing bombs to kill Israelis, the writer would prefer the Israelis put an Easy Pass system to wiz by the checkpoints.
Excuse me, his mother was white like her parents, his father is from Kenya and his parents did not suffer discrimination in America.
What is he talking about?
He should find another gig.
ABA is so totally ignorant of facts that I have to assume he is still a puppy wet behind his ears
The Iron Dome is Israels creation BUT with financial assistance frokm USA
So are most of the aeronauticall improvements
Even Abdels telephone is created by Israel
Where is the racist infrastructure in Israel Abdel?
Obama saw that it dos not exist
There is only religious segregation in Israel and that is for the Jews to sort out
Arabs ,blacks , whites whatever travel freely in Israel because they choose to stay in Israel under Israeli parliamentary rule
The rest , on the other side of the PROTECTIVE fence, are just late generation invaders themselves of the land they occupy
Dont like it – leave
You want to stay – then convince your so called leaders that they must start behaving like adults and not peevish children.
Let your leaders start telling you the truth so that you do not have to lie in your reports
Finally to quote you “We should prepare for intifada and civil disobedience.”
Abdel – remember these words when, as a result of the above , your family is attacked, erased,etc Your call will only lead to a greater loss by you & your countrymen and a distancing of a ‘stste ‘ for your brethren. Another opportunity missed! Great.
PS I know I am preaching to the converted
Really?
His paternal grandparents lived their entire lives in Kenya, and never visited Chicago or anywhere in America for that matter.
His maternal grandparents were whiter-than-white, so it’s not clear why they would be banned from sitting with other white people on Chicago buses – especially since they were fairly wealthy and likely never took a bus in their lives, and also likely never visited Chicago either.
Not a single one of Obama’s relatives, including Obama himself, ever faced “humiliating racial segregation,” except perhaps his distant paternal ancestors who probably were enslaved and forced to convert to Islam by Arab Muslim slave-traders in Mombasa.
Obama lived a privileged life going to expensive private schools in Hawaii and California. His father’s family were upper-class bureaucrats and politicians in Kenya. His mother’s family were rich intellectuals in Seattle. The only thing he’s ever read about “oppression” was in the Marxist textbooks he was assigned in college.
No stand-up comedian could have written a better sketch than this “reporter.”
Bernard Ross Said:
The Arabs feel betrayed by Obama? His treachery towards every one has come full circle at last. Welcome to the club!
How about some cheese with that whine? Four years later and, oops, back to square one(perhaps)