Human Rights Glance
The only way to make sense of Israel's senseless war in Gaza is through understanding the historical context. Establishing the state of Israel in May 1948 involved a monumental injustice to the Palestinians. British officials bitterly resented American partisanship on behalf of the infant state. On 2 June 1948, Sir John Troutbeck wrote to the foreign secretary, Ernest Bevin, that the Americans were responsible for the creation of a gangster state headed by "an utterly unscrupulous set of leaders". I used to think that this judgment was too harsh but Israel's vicious assault on the people of Gaza, and the Bush administration's complicity in this assault, have reopened the question.
How Israel brought Gaza to the brink of humanitarian catastrophe
Official: Guantanamo Detainee Was Tortured
A Bush administration official responsible for reviewing practices at Guantanamo Bay says the U.S. military tortured a Saudi national who allegedly planned to participate in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, the Washington Post reported. We tortured [Mohammed al-]Qahtani," Susan J. Crawford told the Post. "His treatment met the legal definition of torture. And that's why I did not refer the case" for prosecution.
Crawford is the first senior Bush administration official who investigates Guantanamo dealings to publicly say a detainee was tortured.
TVNL Comment: Makes you proud, doesn't it? Just asking....
Israeli soldier jailed over mutiny
An Israeli reservist has been sentenced to jail after refusing to fight in Gaza because of the killing of Palestinian civilians by the army.
The soldier whose identity has not been revealed has been sentenced to 14 days imprisonment in a military center, the Israeli daily Haaretz reported on Monday.
He is the first soldier to be tried over mutiny against his superiors.
Michael Sfard, the legal advisor of Omets, an NGO for social justice, said eight reservists has sought his legal assistance over conscription since the start of the Gaza offensive on December 27.
How one Gaza drama played out in a Kansas home
The mother-to-be screamed in pain. Her brother-in-law yelled into a cell phone, begging for an ambulance. With Israeli missiles shattering the night, this was a bad time to be having a baby.
On the flip side of Earth, in the pin-drop quiet of his living room in this Kansas City suburb, Yaser Wishah could only wait. His first child, a baby boy of the Gaza Strip, could not.
Getting away with murder
You've got to hand it to the Israeli public relations flacks: only they could convince you that killing children was an act of self-defence.
In Australia, the ABC relies for "independent" comment on the smooth Mark Regev, an official spokesman for the Israeli Government, and Martin Indyk, a former official of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.
It's the oldest trick in the book: if they look and sound like us, we are more likely to be sympathetic towards them. Anyone putting an alternative view is immediately cast as anti-Semitic. Our media glibly accept the excuses of the Israeli public relations machine and ignore the horrific realities of Israel's barbaric behaviour in Gaza.
It seems that no matter what injustice Palestinians have suffered in the past 60 years, they should be grateful for the privilege of being able to live under the jackboot of Israeli occupation.
Bush says torture still necessary
"My view is the techniques were necessary and are necessary," Bush said.
TVNL Comment: A war criminal openly confesses to his crime with no consequence. Only in America....
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