Israel-Palestine: Obama Sends Kerry To Speak About ‘Threats And Enemies’
Israel-Palestine-US relations have changed, and U.S. President Barack Obama sent current Secretary of State John Kerry off to deliver an important speech on “threats and enemies” at the Department of State on Wednesday denying it, but it only seems to have further inflamed tensions with a long-time ally in the region.
After the Obama Administration’s surprising decision to abstain from a United Nation’s security council resolution condemning ally Israel, and Kerry’s speech given Wednesday, Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations is making himself very clear on the mess left smoldering.
Possibly still suffering symptoms from the recently placed metaphorical knife in his back and “distortions of reality,” Ambassador Danny Danon took to his Twitter account after the “threats and enemies” talking points in the Obama-Kerry speech.
The Obama Administration acted against Israel at the UN and any claim to the contrary is a distortion of reality
— Ambassador Danon (@dannydanon) December 28, 2016
The Israel-Palestine conflict highlights that the Middle East is in flames, it seems. Kerry had the unenviable task of defending President Obama’s very controversial decision to have his UN Ambassador abstain on the United Nations vote which condemns former ally Israel. The resolution language on land claimed by Palestinians was a problem and that Obama either did or did not anticipate the issue exploding in his face is just unbelievably brazen or unbelievably ignorant.
The next point made by Ambassador Danon indicates the differing viewpoint seen by Israel on the Obama-Kerry “anti-Israeli initiatives.”
To coordinate anti-Israeli initiatives with the Palestinians & to advance one-sided resolutions is the opposite of supporting Israel
— Ambassador Danon (@dannydanon) December 28, 2016
A video, pushing the new narrative by Secretary of State John Kerry, can be seen in this C-SPAN tweet.
Secretary @JohnKerry: “#Israel can either be Jewish or democratic. It cannot be both. And it won’t ever really be at peace.” pic.twitter.com/vLmnSWU63n
— CSPAN (@cspan) December 28, 2016
From the transcript posted on C-SPAN of the Kerry speech, Kerry brought up one very important point. “You may have heard that some criticize this resolution for calling East Jerusalem occupied territory.”
Yes, there was that criticism reported by Inquisitr previously from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Per the UN resolution text, it seems reasonable.
“The Security Council reaffirmed this afternoon that Israel’s establishment of settlements in Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem, had no legal validity, constituting a flagrant violation under international law and a major obstacle to the vision of two States living side-by-side in peace and security, within internationally recognized borders.”
The Israel-Palestine issue set ablaze by the Obama Administration may mean the incoming President Donald Trump will have his hands full internationally. It may steal attention on Trump’s domestic plans, of course, but laying this aside, the mess seems to be getting bigger overseas.
In his Wednesday speechifying, Kerry denied accusations that there was anything new at the UN regarding that. And further Obama, via Kerry, pulled into the foreign policy tempest two former U.S. Presidents during the speech.
“But to be clear, there was absolutely nothing new in last week’s resolution on that [East Jerusalem] issue. It was one of a long line of security council resolutions that included East Jerusalem as part of the territories occupied by Israel in 1967. That includes resolutions passed by the security council under President [Ronald] Reagan and President George H. W. Bush.”
Managing to irritate and confuse some folks, Kerry’s remark that Israel cannot be both “Jewish” and “democratic,” was a problem.
Secretary @JohnKerry: “#Israel can either be Jewish or democratic. It cannot be both. And it won’t ever really be at peace.” pic.twitter.com/vLmnSWU63n
— CSPAN (@cspan) December 28, 2016
The response tweet from Sami Flores asked if that applied to Muslims too.
@cspan @JohnKerry How about Muslims? Can they be both?
— Sami Flores (@3samiflores) December 28, 2016
Israeli-Palestine issues have simmered on for many decades and the US change in behavior and attitude regarding an ally such as Israel is not something easily ignored.
The new Israel-US-Palestine narrative viewpoint per the New York Times, is remarkable. “[Kerry] usually speaks in the careful words of diplomacy, being careful not to publicly name names, or put choices in the harshest terms. He dropped most of those niceties on Wednesday, especially about Mr. Netanyahu’s government,” per the article.
The report is also describing Kerry and the crucial moment as being done despite “the incoming administration of President-elect Donald J. Trump…”
That article also quotes Kerry from the speech and the Obama Administration’s argument that “… Israel, with a growing Arab population, could not survive as both a Jewish state and a democratic state unless it embraced the two-state approach that a succession of American presidents have advocated.”
“The status quo is leading toward one state, or perpetual occupation.”
As the Israel-Palestine issue simmers, some may wonder what was running through President Obama’s mind as he considers his last days in office and the advent of a Donald Trump presidency.
[Featured Image by Ronen Zvulun, Pool photo / AP Images]
