US gives 'full backing' to Israel while urging de-escalation of Gaza violence

Israeli ambassador Michael Oren says US supports its 'self-defence' as Palestinian delegation accuses Washington of bias

guardian.co.uk, Chris McGreal, Friday 16 November 2012

Israeli Ambassador to the US Michael Oren. Photograph: Nicholas
Kamm/AFP/Getty Images

The Israeli ambassador to Washington, Michael Oren, says the US has given his government a free hand in its assault on Gaza as the Israeli cabinet ordered a large call up of military reserves, prompting fears of a ground invasion.

The Palestinian delegation to Washington condemned the US response to the crisis as "biased and weak", and called on the White House to stop Israel using American-made weapons against civilians. It also described as "shameful" what it called the justification of the murder of Palestinians by countries supporting Israeli actions, including Britain.

Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, called the Israeli and Egyptian foreign ministers, Avigdor Lieberman and Mohamed Kamel Amr, on Friday to urge a de-escalation of a "very, very dangerous situation" in Gaza, according the State Department.

Oren spoke during a visit to Capitol Hill on Friday after both houses of Congress overwhelmingly voted for resolutions in support of Israel's "inherent right to act in self-defence".

"The United States has given us the full backing to take whatever measures are necessary to defend our citizens from Hamas terror," he said. "Israel has received unequivocal and outstanding support from the United States and all branches of government. From the White House, from Congress, in both parties, completely bipartisan support."

Among the few voices of criticism raised was from congressman Keith Ellison, who said he visited Gaza after the last major Israeli attack four years ago.

"It's a devastated area already. It's only going to be made worse by this. Innocent people are dying. We need a ceasefire," he said.

The Israeli ambassador has been leading a PR drive in Washington to cast Israel as the innocent victim of indiscriminate terror attacks, a claim strongly challenged by Palestinians who accuse Binyamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, of engineering the conflict as a political strategy in the run-up to January's general election.

Oren has likened the situation to 1948, during Israel's war to establish its independence, and 1967, when a strike against Arab armies resulted in a swift victory that led to the occupation of Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem. He said Hamas has been "emboldened" by the Arab spring and that it is being armed with weapons from Libya, Sudan and groups in the Sinai.

Oren called the news that a rocket fired from Gaza landed within a few miles of Jerusalem an "escalation" in the crisis.

"We are prepared to take any and all measures to defend our citizens, including measures in the air and on the ground … Israeli ground forces have been moved to the border. There has been no crossing of the border to date, but those forces are deployed and ready to act, be there a need," he said.

That position was unequivocally backed by the congressional resolutions without the call made by the Obama administration for Israel to show restraint and avoid civilian casualties.

The two houses of Congress expressed "unwavering commitment to the security of the state of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state with secure borders, and recognises and strongly supports its inherent right to act in self-defence to protect its citizens against acts of terrorism".

The influential pro-Israel lobby group, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (Aipac) said the resolutions "demonstrate that America continues to firmly stand with Israel and her right to defend herself".

The Palestinian delegation to the US accused Washington of taking Israel's side.

"The United States response is at best biased and weak because it completely ignored the fact that Israel started the escalation. The US has a moral obligation to ask Israel not to deploy its US-made weapons to kill and injure civilians. The US is also expected to tell Israel that there is no military solution to the conflict. The only way to achieve peace is to uproot the cause of its absence: Israel's military occupation of Palestine," it said. "It is shameful that certain countries are justifying the murder of Palestinian civilians. It is time for all to understand that Palestinian lives are as precious as any others in the region and around the world. The political complicity must end and Israel must be held accountable."

Part of Oren's push has been to win US public support with numerous television and radio interviews in which he has said that Israelis cowering from rockets fired from Gaza is equivalent to 40 million Americans having to hide in bunkers. Israeli diplomats have also compared Hamas rocket attacks from Gaza to Miami being shelled from Cuba. Critics pointed out that Cuba is not occupied by the US.

Oren also pushed a frequently heard line that civilian casualties during Israeli attacks are the fault of Hamas, which uses them for PR purposes.

"We are acutely aware that Hamas and other terrorist organisations embed their missiles, embed their troops and other military assets deep within the civilian populations and they're doing their best to hid behind the civilian populations, using them as human shields," he said. "We are making superhuman efforts to avoid civilian casualties."

Palestinian officials have noted that Israel maintains its military headquarters in the heart of Tel Aviv.

Related Article:

"THE BRIDGE OF SWORDS"– Sep  29, 2012 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Caroll) - (Text version)

“… Let us talk about the swords: When you hear the word sword, the first thing that occurs to you is battle. The Bridge of Swords is a battle and we told you that as well. Swords are metaphoric and they mean many things, so let us describe the things we mean them to say to you.

Number one: They are indeed a weapon in a battle. There is a battle coming. "Kryon, does that mean there's going to be a war?" Potentially, yes. Right now we will tell you that the Middle East cooks itself. You've noticed, haven't you? What do you know about the Middle East, dear one? Let's start examining things for a moment. What energy did you grow up in? What was the energy of the Middle East? In the '40s, what was the energy? With the establishment of the state of Israel, you built a wall of hate, both sides. The wall was so thick that the children of both sides were taught to hate one another as soon as they were able to understand the language. They were told who their enemies were. Now, where were you then?

Some of you weren't here yet. By the time you arrived, in your youth, were you aware of the Middle East? Not particularly. "What's the hatred about?" you might ask. What if I told you it's about a family feud? Two sons of a Jewish master are involved. One founded the Arabs and one remained a Jew. They don't want to hear this, but they are all Jews. (Don't tell them this.)

If you look at the lineage, it's pretty obvious and yet it's a complete and total set-up for either solution or war. The set-up would have this world ending in a conflagration that would have been brought about by this hatred. That's in the prophecy of Nostradamus and your scripture, but it is no longer the prophecy of the planet. Yet the hatred still exists. The hatred is as great today as it was then, but where was all the terrorism 40 years ago? It was isolated.

Those in Israel and Palestine and surrounding areas took the brunt of it, but now it's seemingly everywhere - and you're worried. Why would this be? The answer is that the old energy was happy to have this hatred contained, for it would keep it going and never involve outsiders. Outsiders tend to bring unwanted light to the party. Suddenly, the whole earth is involved and can see the entire scenario before them. The old guard wants war, just like all the eons before them. The ones on the bridge are holding the light and showing the earth how to cross. Even many younger ones in Israel and Palestine and Iran are holding light! It's all around the old guard and they are furious, for they are losing the "battle of hatred."

Will there be a war? What is going on? You can feel it cooking, can't you? Some of you don't want to look at the news, for you're afraid of what tomorrow will bring. It's not even the end of the year yet! Will there be a battle?

Let me tell you, dear ones, right now as we speak to you there is the potential of a small war in the Middle East. You have been told that if there is any war at all in the Middle East, the whole world will join in, and you will not make it. I will tell you that that is an old paradigm, for if and when it happens, watch carefully who decides not to come to the war party. For there's a new consciousness brewing on this planet and I will tell you this: In all fairness, as we see the potentials before you in your future, it's not going to matter one way or another to the bridge if there is a battle or not.

What's eventually going to happen in Iran is going to be the same no matter what, and I will tell you why - because there is nobody to take the place of the old guard. They're not growing any, young ones! It's all the ancient ones with the hatred who are moving the chess pieces as though they are representing the whole of the nation, but they are not. There will come a time, perhaps one that is actually exacerbated by a war, that will create the revolution in that country. Overwhelmingly, they don't want war.

Ask an Israeli if they want still another war. They will say no, but they are afraid that their enemies will bring one to them. Who are their enemies and what is changing, dear ones? You think you know what's going on in Syria and Egypt and Libya? You think you do? Let me tell you there's a recalibration going on there of what they believe and who their enemies are. It's about what they want from their government. Let me tell you what all of them want eventually, and you may not see it for 20 years, but they want schools and hospitals. They want what you have in your stores, and they want the freedom to worship their prophet without a small group telling them the rules of how they should. They want to honor Muhammad in their own way and see the love of God in him as was designed by him. That's what's going on. That's the battle. The problem is that the old energy will fight this, for it will lose control if they get what they want.

There's a paradigm shift at hand and you're going to see it over there first, and it may not be pretty, so I want you to hang tight. Don't pull out what Nostradamus said at the last minute and say, "He was right." Nothing he said has manifested since 1987. Don't suddenly grasp the scriptures of Revelations and draw out all of those words that haven't been true for 30 years. Nothing has happened as they said it would. The only thing that rings true there is that there are still problems in the Middle East.

All of those prophecy quatrains have fallen on the floor and didn't come true. The timing is not right for them to happen now. Take a look. Oh, there are still those who say, "It's happening, it's happening, it's happening!" For they are invested in fear and control. Some of them actually want it to happen, and they believe the culmination will be in the rapture of going home to God. I want to tell you, dear ones, you're all going home! But home is across the bridge to an earth without war. That's the bridge. Old energy dies hard.…”

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