US
invigorates policy at Gaza's
expense By Ramzy Baroud
United States Secretary of State Hillary
Clinton has made a series of stern and fiery
statements recently, giving the impression that
war is somehow on us once again. Oddly, Clinton's
sudden reappearance on the Middle East diplomacy
scene was triggered by the brave attempts of peace
activists to break the siege on Gaza.
In
recent months, as Arab nations settled old scores
with their insufferable dictators, US foreign
policy started taking a backseat. Attempts at
swaying Arab revolts teetered between bashful
diplomatic efforts to sustain US interests - as
was the case with Yemen - and military
intervention, as in Libya, which is still being
marketed to the US public as a
humanitarian intervention, as opposed to the war
it actually is.
The indecisiveness and
double-standards on display are hardly new.
The US's stance during the Tunisian
popular revolution ranged between complete lack of
interest (when the protests began brewing in
December 2010), to sudden enthusiasm for freedom
and democracy (when the revolts led to the ousting
of longtime president Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali on
January 14).
The same foreign policy
pendulum repeatedly swung both ways during the
Egyptian revolution. The US political definitions
of Hosni Mubarak shifted from that of a friendly
leader to that of a loathsome dictator who had to
go for the sake of Egyptian democracy.
It
took Tunisians 28 days to overthrow their leader,
and Egyptians 18 days to outset Mubarak. During
these periods, US foreign policy in the two
countries - and the Middle East as a whole -
seemed impossible to delineate in any concrete
statements. Clinton was an emblematic figure in
this diplomatic discrepancy.
Now Clinton
is back, speaking in a lucid language which leaves
no room for misinterpretation. When it comes to
the security and interests of Israel - as opposed
to those of the entire Middle East region and all
its nations - Clinton, like other top American
officials, leaves no room for error. Israel will
always come first.
Clinton's forceful
language was triggered by the decision of
humanitarian activists from over 20 countries to
travel to Gaza in a symbolic gesture to challenge
the Israeli blockade of one of the poorest regions
on earth. The 500 peace activists on board 10
boats will include musicians, writers, Nobel
Laureates, Holocaust survivors and members of
parliament.
"We think that it's not
helpful for there to be flotillas that try to
provoke action by entering into Israeli waters and
creating a situation in which the Israelis have
the right to defend themselves," Clinton told
reporters on June 23. The foreboding language
offers another blank check to Israel, giving it
permission to do as it pleases.
If Israel
repeated the same scenario it used to intercept
and punish activists abroad the first flotilla on
May 31, 2010 - killing nine activists in the
Mavi Marmara - then it would constitute
another act of "self-defense", according to
Clinton's avant-garde rationale.
Responding to Clinton's comments, Irish
member of parliament Paul Murphy told the Irish
Examiner on June 24: "It is not true that we will
be entering Israeli waters. We will be sailing
through Gaza waters." He added, "Clinton's
comments are disgraceful. She has essentially
given the green light to Israeli Defense Forces to
use violence against participants in the
flotilla."
Indeed, Israeli diplomats will
be utilizing Clinton's advanced verbal and
political support for the Israeli action in every
platform available to them.
According to
Clinton, the entire business with the flotillas is
unnecessary. "We don't think it's useful or
helpful or productive to the people of Gaza," she
told reporters in Washington, adding that, "a far
better approach is to support the work that's
being done through the United Nations".
The UN had already declared the Gaza siege
illegal. Various top UN officials have stated this
fact repeatedly, and the international body had
called on Israel to end the siege. Notable among
the many statements was a 34-page report by UN
human-rights chief Navi Pillay.
Published
on August 14, 2009, the report "accused Israel of
violating the rules of warfare with its blockade
stopping people and goods from moving in or out of
the Gaza Strip", according to the Associated
Press.
"The Gaza blockade," Pillay stated,
"amounts to collective punishment of civilians,
which is prohibited under the Geneva Conventions
on the conduct of warfare and occupation". Before
the 34 pages could be thoroughly examined, both
the US and Israel dismissed the findings. Now
Clinton is suddenly urging all interested parties
to work through the same institution that her
department has repeatedly undermined.
Pillay's report was issued nearly two
years ago. Since then, little has been done to
remedy the situation and to bring to an end the
protracted Palestinian tragedy in Gaza. In fact,
The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine
Refugees has recently put Gaza's unemployment at
45.2%, allegedly among the worst in the world.
The UN report, released on June 14,
claimed that unemployment in the first half of
2011 had increased by 3%. Monthly wages were also
shown to have declined significantly. It seems the
humanitarian crisis in Gaza is not only bad, it is
progressively worsening.
This time,
Clinton is speaking from a power position. As
diplomatic pressure from Israel finally dissuaded
Turkey from allowing the Humanitarian Relief
Foundation (IHH) from joining the flotilla, it
seems the Mavi Marmara won't be setting
sail back to Gaza anytime soon. As if to confirm
that the IHH decision was motivated by political
pressure, Clinton "spoke to her Turkish
counterpart, [Foreign Minister] Ahmet Davutoglu to
express her happiness at the announcement"
(according to Turkey's Hurriyet Daily News, June
21).
With political victory in mind, the
State Department travel warning of June 22 read
like a legal disclaimer issued by the Israeli
foreign ministry. It warned US citizens to avoid
any attempt to reach Gaza by sea. Those who
participate in a flotilla risk arrest,
prosecution, deportation and a possible 10-year
travel ban by Israel.
In a region that is
rife with opportunities for political stances - or
at least a measurable shift in policy - the US
State Department and its chief diplomat have
offered nothing but inconsistency and
contradiction. Now, thanks to a group of peaceful
civil society activists, including many pacifists
and elders, the State Department is getting its
decisive voice back. And the voice is as atrocious
and unprincipled as ever.
Ramzy
Baroud (www.ramzybaroud.net) is an
internationally-syndicated columnist and the
editor of PalestineChronicle.com. His latest book
is My Father Was a Freedom Fighter: Gaza's
Untold Story (Pluto Press, London), available
on Amazon.com.
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