As human rights groups continue to call out war crimes committed by the Israeli military, we speak to the only U.S. diplomat to publicly resign from the Biden administration over its policy on Israel.
We first spoke to Hala Rharrit when she resigned from the State Department in April, citing the illegal and deceptive nature of U.S. policy in the Middle East. “We continue to willfully violate laws so that we surge U.S. military assistance to Israel,” she says after more than a year of Israel’s war on Gaza.
Rharrit says she found the Biden administration unmovable in its “counterproductive policy,” which she believes has gravely harmed U.S. interests in the Middle East. “We are going to feel the repercussions of that for years, decades, generations.”
So to counter basically your whole point: You know how Reagan stopped the Israeli bombing of Beirut in 20 minutes with a phone call in 1982? That’s how someone who actually wants Israel to stop does it. Biden isn’t stopping them because he doesn’t want to, not because his administration is “diplomatically the US is continually trying different tactics to stem the violent efforts of a nation…”.
Don’t defend genocide support, it’s not a good look.
I don’t think you can defend inaction regarding genocide as “diplomatically the US is continually trying different tactics to stem the violent efforts of a nation”.
The difference in circumstances is that, unlike 1940s, or any other period until 2010s, it was visible within months by historians and other civilians, without a doubt that what was happening was genocide. Because of the internet, photo equipment and general speed of communication, inability to delete communications. None of this “One year is not much time internationally or diplomatically. it’s not much time for intelligence agencies to determine what is happening”, they knew very well.
Israel has been running a mega propaganda machine especially since the start of october events, ordering news sources how they should cover the situation. If there weren’t enough red flags, that is a big one.
I think the conclusion should be that the relevant parts of US gov are either weak and careless, either exceptionally naive and old, or! there is something malicious that has been happening (and this seems most likely, considering the amount of propaganda).
But I guess going back a bit and throwing away all ideas of discussion, you sure like to ad-hominem the other commenter.
All i follow on youtube are archaeological channels, and i was surprised by the sudden influx of videos on israel the very week israel started attacking. I noticed one channel that was hosting an israeli co-host stopped collaborating very soon, and months later posted a very nuanced, very politely angry video. But the number of videos establishing the legitimacy of israel all at once at that time cannot be anything but planned. Even National Geographic had a video out on the origins of Israel, at a timing that is so very suspect.
I did notice this “we need Israel strategic location” as a way to justify the support to Israel.
This fails quickly with any checking of what is happening, and if anything it shine a light on the hypocrisy of the government.
The truth is, most of the US politicians have “AIPAC” guy and getting paid to make sure nothing happens including the prisedent.
“I don’t think you can defend inaction regarding genocide”
have you stopped paying taxes that are funding Israel?
what is your defense regarding your inaction by rejecting your complicit funding of genocide?
“…within months by historians and other civilians, without a doubt that what was happening was genocide”
close, what happened was people started paying attention because the executions and bombings were happening more frequently than usual.
anyone who was aware of and understood the history of Israel’s colonization of Palestine for the past 50 years and they’re complete Power disparity agrees it was and is “without a doubt” a genocide years before 2023.
it’s just that most people only recently started paying attention.
“they knew very well.”
Yes, this is what I said. it invalidates your next few assumptions:
“I think the conclusion should be that the relevant parts of US gov are either weak and careless, either exceptionally naive and old, or! there is something malicious that has been happening”
these are the simplest and most comfortable conclusions for someone unversed in politics to imagine.
blame it on simple, fundamental tragic and all-encompassing character flaws that you importantly don’t imagine apply to yourself, storybook infirmities that simply need to be remedied and then all of history and politics can be swept aside for a beautiful future, in which every world leader clasps the hands of every other.
something that you can point out and say “well that isn’t me, that isn’t a problem that we’ve all contributed to, this is the out of touch portions of my government”
but this isn’t a unique situation, this isn’t the only genocide currently happening, genocides don’t occur are allowed to continue because of carelessness.
this is another terrible situation among countless others, all of which are important and complex, that is not happening because the US government has some fundamental climactic “weak”, “careless”, “old” or “naive” flaw.
not least importantly because the US government does not have the power. you imagine it to have over other sovereign Nations.
as for your hopeful reasonings:
If they were careless, they would have believed the initial assessment and fabrications of Israel, sent US soldiers in and destroyed the rest of Palestine.
If they were weak or naive, they would have buckled under the first campus protest and stopped providing all aid to Israel.
if they were old… well, the government official you are likely most familiar with is old, but experience is not something to be discarded or sneered at.
these are fanciful single remedies that are irrelevant to the the complicated historical reality currently unfolding.
“there is something malicious that has been happening”
yes…Israel is concluding a genocide.
nefarious? not anymore so than it has been for the past 50 years.
Israel’s military superiority and support of US interests is valuable. despite their most recent actions, it is still valuable.
that assessment is not made carelessly or naively, and support for and departures from normal US policy regarding Israel and Palestine are not being made by weak people.
“throwing away all ideas of discussion”
you sure scribble down a lot of ideas for someone throwing away all ideas of discussion.
“you sure like to ad-hominem the other commenter”
their comments and ideas, not the “commenter”.
I don’t fault people for their ability or level of reasoning, but I do fault their presentation of unconsidered whimsical invective, baseless personal attacks and lack of respect for context, sources, facts and discussion.
particularly if they forget or ignore what the point they are supposedly responding to is, or respond to facts with demonstrably false assumptions or attacks they don’t bother to even briefly support with evidence or logic.
I agree that I could be more gracious in the likely event that their inconsiderate attacks or ignorance or disregard of the facts can be tied directly to their fundamental personal abilities.
I have been thinking about this recently.
This is not the most popular opinion on Lemmy these days, but it’s still an immense stretch to want to call the war in Gaza a genocide.
If Israel wanted to kill off the Gazans, they would just have to start carpet bombing certain areas. At this rate, it would take them 50 years to do it, which would be immensely stupid.
What Israel has done is turn up the dial with regards to acceptable collateral damage - just like the US did themselves to break costly sieges like Fallujah, Mosul and Raqqa.
No-one who is appaled at the civilian casualties has actually ever come up with a valid alternative method to eradicate IS or in this case Hamas or Hezbollah without causing any or even less civilian casualties. The US government knows and accepts this, so in public they’ll play the pacifist while in reality they’re accepting the ‘necessary’ violence.
My answer is vague because: 1-I wasn’t answering the OP, I was replying to you. 2-I don’t like to engage with the “they’re trying but it’s so so complicated” sort of genocide apologia much because it’s a pain in the ass.
I’ll just say: Appeal to authority is a logical fallacy and the easiest way to falsify a statement is counterexample, so I got you a counterexample. Now can you state exactly what different between the 1980s and today generates rhe difference we see today? If anything Israel was more important to US interests back then due to their role in the cold war. Also, state department employees, who are presumably well versed in international relations, are resigning. Your framing that only ignorant layman are angry with the Biden administration is patently false.
Edit: I forgot to mention: Drop the ad hominem. Reported.
