One brave MP Richard Burden challenged him in person.

PRESS RELEASE FROM RICHARD BURDEN MP
Labour MP for Birmingham Northfield
Chair, Britain-Palestine All-Party Parliamentary Group

Date: 30 September 2009

LABOUR CONFERENCE: MP CONFRONTS ISRAELI MINISTER OVER WAR CRIMES CHARGE

Richard Burden MP last night confronted Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Ehud Barak at the Labour Party Conference. Mr Burden called on him to respond to the findings of the recent UN report that Israel committed war crimes in Gaza during ‘Operation Cast Lead’.

Mr Burden, Chair of the Britain-Palestine All Party Parliamentary Group, also presented the Israeli Minister with a copy of the group’s report of a fact-finding visit to Gaza earlier this year. The report highlights the impact of Israel’s actions in deepening the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

Mr Barak’s appearance at Labour’s conference in Brighton had already attracted widespread protest. As Defence Minister in the current and previous Israeli Government, Ehud Barak was directly involved in planning and executing Israel’s attack on Gaza between December 2008 and January 2009. Mr Barak is named in the report by Judge Richard Goldstone which is being discussed this week at the UN’s Human Rights Council in Geneva.

Speaking from Brighton today, Mr Burden said:

“Israel chose not to cooperate with the UN investigation, even though it was conducted by someone as eminent as Judge Goldstone.

“Now Israel is trying to rubbish Goldstone’s conclusions before the ink in his report is barely dry. They even say the United Nations had no mandate to investigate allegations of war crimes in Gaza in the first place. That is just not good enough. If the United Nations has no mandate to uphold international law, then what does it have a mandate to do?

“Goldstone’s findings are serious and the international community cannot ignore them. If war crimes were committed in Gaza – by whatever side – they must be held accountable. It is not acceptable for Israel to demand the international community takes action against attacks on civilians by Palestinians but refuse to face up to its own responsibilities for the atrocities in Gaza last winter and for the continuing humanitarian crisis caused by the ongoing blockade.

“If Israel continues to refuse to face up to its own responsibility to investigate these things properly and to bring those responsible to justice, the UN Security Council must do so itself – by referring the issue to the International Criminal Court. The UK’s commitment to human rights means we should be at the forefront of making that happen.”

NOTES TO EDITORS: In February Mr Burden led the first UK Parliamentary delegation to Gaza to see first hand the results of the conflict there. A copy of the delegation’s report is available online here: http://www.richardburden.com/palestine-report-2009

U.N. group to present scathing report on Israel’s conduct during Gaza offensive
updated 7 minutes ago

(CNN) — A United Nations group will present a scathing report Tuesday on Israel’s conduct during its military offensive into Gaza that began late last year.

The U.N. Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict is headed by Richard Goldstone.

In the report, released earlier this month, the U.N. group accused Israel of committing “actions amounting to war crimes, possibly crimes against humanity” during its military incursion into Gaza from December 27 to January 18.

The group, called the U.N. Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict, is headed by South African judge Richard Goldstone.

Goldstone is scheduled to present the 400-plus page report to the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva Tuesday.

The U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights will present her own report after Goldstone.

Goldstone’s report also found that Palestinian militants committed war crimes, but the overwhelming majority of the report’s criticism targets Israel.

Israel did not cooperate in the investigation.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry issued a statement earlier saying Israel “did not feel able to cooperate with the Fact Finding Mission because its mandate was clearly one-sided and ignored the thousands of Hamas missiles attacks on civilians in southern Israel that made the Gaza Operation necessary.”

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Gaza acts amounted to war crimes, U.N. report says
Rights group: Israeli offensive killed mostly civilians

The report claims that the Israeli Defense Forces “failed to take feasible precautions required by international law to avoid or minimize loss of civilian life, injury to civilians and damage to civilian objects.”

The U.N. report also said Israel fired the chemical agent white phosphorous in civilian areas, intentionally fired upon hospitals using high-explosive artillery shells, and failed to provide effective warnings to civilians or U.N. workers before attacks. It also claims that Israel used Palestinian civilians as human shields and deliberately attacked Palestinian food supplies in Gaza.

The report recommends that the U.N. Security Council require the government of Israel to launch appropriate independent investigations into the findings of the report within three months. The findings also recommend that the alleged Israeli war crimes be explored by the International Criminal Court’s prosecutor.

The findings also call on the Palestinian leadership to investigate alleged war crimes, for militants to respect humanitarian law, and for the release of the Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit on humanitarian grounds.

No one likes to be called a racist and every KKK punter hates it as much as any Zionist… but not liking the notion of “White Supremacy” certainly doesn’t mean US Americans are not racist; By design and result, for most of them they most certainly are.

Again, if you’d like to make the argument that certain families have controlled everything (including innocent racism) in the America’s since Europeans first starting killing, raping and enslaving the “New World”, go for it and I’m open to it like I’m open to it like anything else. But without that, no way does any of your “Zionism is the root of all evil in the Good ‘ole USA argument hold (Please don’t run away by again misusing strawman).

(on a side note: I thought it was bizarre how you used caps, multiple exclamations and ad hominem while poorly describing your understanding of “reactionary”)

It seems to me that world plutos appear united like never before not only to obtain the planet, but also to eradicate all basic human rights; includes also the rights to live, ROR, to be informed, schooled, etc.
And thus establish permamently their millennial quest for master-serf/slave structure of society.

Thus, zionism, a theft of land on small scale by christo-talmudic gangsters, melts away into the grander cabal.
Thus to confront small and large theft of land with murder we need onside world armies, spy agencies, clergy, educators, media, clergy, artists, et al.
In short, the very planetists intent on murder, etc.
tnx

Both.

And the failure of the Left to avoid challenging Zionism has stunted any challenge to White Supremacy as well. Left-wing Zionist have put the facade of appearing to speak out against White Supremacy because they do have an interest against White Supremacy because traditionally White Supremacist are also anti-Semitic. But the fear that Left-wing Zionist have is that a struggle against White Supremacy will extend into a struggle against Zionism (which is a racist ideology). This is why you have academics icons like Noam Chomky, Norman Finkelstein, Juan Cole, etc refusing to equate Zionism=Racism.

I’m not sure what your angling at Hue but thanks for giving me the opportunity to link how the failure to confront Zionism in the U.S. also contributes to the weakening of the struggle in the U.S. against White Supremacy.

US Americans have a problem with white supremacy or just the label, “white supremacy”?

I don’t believe that Americans are Zionist. Like Juan Cole says where really talking about “2% of the population” who we be categorically Zionist. The problem is that Zionism (the ideology) has been allowed to flourish unchallenged and if Zionism was referred to truthfully as a racist ideology like white supremacy then I think the attitudes of American towards Israel would be much different. It is preventing the framing of Zionism as a racist ideology is what the Left-wing academics prevent which in turn circumvents a real challenge and confrontation.

Lacking any real confrontation and stymied by the “anti-Semetism” label, Zionism has been permitted to flourish especially in the United States. These academics, IMO are even more complicit than the hardcore Zionist. At least you know where the hardcore stand. The academics unfortunately use pretense to win trust but only in the end corrupts the discourse.

It’s exactly what is important. Difference in rhetoric is the difference between “the one state solution is the endgame and so it is inevitable and desirable”, versus, “there is something that needs to be done, and it can be done, and it starts with confronting zionism (christian and jewish) head on.”

This is very different. One is simply a group of people talking about the future, and the other is people taking a stance on the values they want to be the basis of the future. It seems, lichen, that you would value land theft.

“But good luck with your far-right friends and their solutions for israel.”

If you consider me “far-right” you’re delusional. In fact you’re whole sense of the spectrum is a big delusion. if you’re a “leftist” you support big government with centralized power…. this is basically what the world is moving towards: one world governance… it should be a wet dream for you, because eventually everyone will be equally unable to create change: equality for all to be indoctrinated to believe that there is no difference between pedantic highly rhetorical discussion and confrontation.

cheers

The Palestine Solidarity Campaign are asking for e-mails to go to David Miliband to support the recommendations of the Goldstone report.

‘The PSC encourages you to respond to the call by Amnesty International to email David Miliband in the run up to the UN Human Rights Council who will debate the report next Tuesday (29 September), when a vote will be taken on how the recommendations in the Goldstone report should be acted upon.

Amnesty understand that the UK Government (a member of the council) is NOT planning to support key recommendations. Instead, they appear to be taking a lead from the US Government in dismissing the findings.

Visit the Amnesty website to send an email to David Miliband now.

Justice in Gaza – Article by Richard Goldstone on his report

And Richard Falk’s comment on the report

Live links on
http://www.palestinecampaign.org/Index7b.asp?m_id=1&l1_id=2&l2_id=14&Content_ID=849

Leading representatives of Israeli academia are rallying to the
Government campaign to deny the charges in Justice Goldstone’s report on war crimes in Gaza.

Professor Asa Kasher author IDF’s ethical code defends the ‘most moral army in the world’ and Dr. David Altman, Senior Vice-President, Netanya Academic College accuses Goldstone of being like a collaborator with the Nazis.

Read in full
http://www.bricup.org.uk/news/AcademicsVsGoldstone.htm

I’m not interested in an academic, ideological, and deeply paranoid/finger-pointing discussion of zionism.

Such an attitude and lack of concern is exactly racism continues. When people like lichen are confronted and have to face their contradiction …

With ab. 98+% of fiercely zionistic people in US, roughly 600-700K true leftists cannot even reach shamuel let alone change his mind.
Every ‘jew’ is a ‘zionist’. One cannot but be a ‘zionist’ [read please land robber -murderer] if s/he deems self a “jew”.
“Jew” does not symbolize nationality nor ethnicity; it symbolizes solely a belonging to a cult. tnx

Lichen you avoid the real issue with your bait and switch of Max Shields position. Max Shields support of the one-state solution is totally irrelevant when at the same time you are excusing and failing to confront United States Zionism.

I see lichen you have no comments to both Shabnam’s post regarding Norman Finkelstein and Suthiano’s post about Juan Cole. Both men whose opinions are referred to an sought out by the Left. Unfortunately both of these men represent the dominant role of diverting the Left from any anti-racist confrontation of Zionism and would prefer to make excuses that conceals up Zionism.

Apparently lichen it seem you have the same DOMINANT preference of making excuses for Zionism rather than confront the issue. It really shameful lichen that you take such a horrible stance.

As Suthiano writes …

Dr. Juan Cole is a farce and yet another example of how the academic “left” is an obstruction to progress. No one should take his opinion seriously because he is a hack academic who doesn’t do any real research and doesn’t understand how power works (or more likely, just doesn’t wish to challenge it).

The academic Left has been a major source of obstruction progress for decades by construction narratives that has prevent any real confrontation of racism in the U.S. What has happen is that politics has been ceded to the reactionary forces because the Left has been made ineffective via bogus and pedantic analysis.

The following is very interesting about the relations between Bahai and the state of Israel:

“I prefer that the youngest religion i.e. Bahai Faith grows and expands in the most newly country in the world i.e. Israel. we belong to this place and have attachment to each other and in fact it must be said that the future of us and Israel is like the rings of one chain connected to each other.”

Aparently, the Jewish backgrund Bahai CAN NOT TEACH THEIR RELIGION IN ISRAEL AND NO PUBLICITY ABOUT IT. The zionist Bahai, like Payam Akhavan, go only after Iran. Shame on liars.

http://bahaifact.wordpress.com/2009/01/18/bahaism-and-israel/

could it be more than a coincidence that in Toronto the Baha’i church is a stone’s throw from Miles Nadal Jewish Community Centre, and even closer to other predominant Jewish organizations such as the Zukerman Family Foundation (http://zukermanfamily.com/profiles.htm) and the University of Toronto?

Juan Cole like other Zionists, including Noam Chomsky and Payam Akhavan, a liar, have used Chatham House’s analysis of Iranian election to present the election AS FRAUD and stood behind the ‘velvet revolution’ like Payam Akhavan against Iranian people.
Recently, an independent new survey from “world public Opinion” exposed the lie of Bahia and their ally, Zionism, to tell the world that more than 81% of Iranian people support re-election of Ahmadinejad and they are confidence that his re-election was legitimate.

Bahia’s are STRONG ALLY OF ZIONISM AND THE STATE OF ISRAEL. The following is a short history of Baha’ism in the Middle East.

Baha’i faith was originated in Iran (Persia) and has strong connection with the great powers to expand the influence of Baha’ism. Majority of Baha’i in Iran were JEWS and majority of Baha’is are supporter of state of Israel and Zionism and their ‘prophet’ is located in Hiafa, Israel where is like Mecca to Muslims.

The Bahia leaders have received supports and awards from their masters, British and other powers, for their services, like Zionist Jews, and have given their strong supports to creation of state of Israel on land of Palestine. They have STRONG CONNECTION WITH ZIONISM AND ISRAEL. They use the victimization card, like Zionist liars, to expand their influence around the world. They have strong program to bring more converts to their house, house of justice, where no justice can be found. I was, personally, approached by Baha’i many times when I was a high school student to convert to
Baha’ism which I refused.

Following the sufferings of the Iraqi Muslims at the hands of the rebellious Baha’is, the Ottoman government upon a request by the Iranian ambassador in Istanbul Mirza Hussein Qazvini, who later became the chancellor, exiled the Babis to the remotest areas of the Ottoman territory. They were later sent to Adrianopole where the Babis refer to as the… secret land. It was in Adrianopole where Bahaollah laid claim to Bab’s mantle as the Awaited One and rejected his brother Mirza Yahya Sobh-e Azal. When the seditious role of the Babis was revealed to all foreign governments, the French decided to take advantage as well. To this end, the deputy consul of the French embassy secretly met Bahaollah and held talks with him. It was in this meeting that the French official, according to Kavakeb-ud Dorriyeh, asked Bahaollah to apply for French citizenship so that they could support him. It is obvious that the objective of the British and French governments by offering citizenship to Bahaollah was to dispatch him to areas such as India on behalf of the British and to Algeria on behalf of the French governments in order to promote schism in Muslim land.
After the Azalis and Bahais split, Mirza Hussein Ali was sent into exile to Akka(Palestine) where he stayed until he died in 1892 and was replaced by his son Abbas Affendi.
During the leadership of Abbas Affendi, the Ottomans were embroiled in military hostilities with the British, and since Abbas Affendi was an advocate of the British government, he would collect military information in Akka and Haifa. He would also provide the English forces with the required foodstuff.
After the Ottomans found out that Abbas Affandi and his followers were spying for the British government in Palestine and that he was a British mercenary, as Shoqi Afandi has asserted in his book Qarn-e Badi the commander-in-chief of the Ottoman government Jamal Pasha decided to execute Abbas Afandi for his espionage acts. But Britain in an open support for Abbas Affandi, commissioned the then Foreign Minister Lord Balfour to send a cable to the commander of the British corps in Palestine General Lord Allenby, stressing protection for Master Abdol Baha (Abbas Affandi), his family and his friends.
The possible arrest and execution of Abbas Affendi was reported to Lord Cruiseden by Jamal Pasha but General Allenby in a pre-emptive action, seized Haifa and cabled to London: “Palestine was seized today. Inform the world that Abdol Baha is alive.”
The British commander who seized Haifa in 1918 had been commissioned by the British Empire to meet Master Abdol Baha upon his arrival in Haifa and the British king DECORATEDE him with Knighthood.
The British Empire DOES NOT DECORATE A PERSON FOR NO REASON. BAHA WAS THEIR A G E N T as many claim.
Shoghi Effendi, was appointed head of the Bahá’í Faith after Abbas Affendi, from 1921 until his death in 1957. He was born in `Akká (Palestine), since the British allowed the Bahai to settle in Palestine against the will of the indigenous population, in March 1897. Shoghi Effendi was related to the Báb through his father, Mírzá Hádí Shírází, and to Bahá’u’lláh through his mother, Ḍíyá’íyyih Khánum, the eldest daughter of `Abdu’l-Bahá. From the early years of his life, Shoghi Effendi was greatly influenced by `Abdu’l-Bahá, who provided much of his initial training.
The Baha’is, through Shoghi, played their role in establishment of Israel in the heart of ARAB LAND where no one voted for the partition of Palestine and establishment of a Jewish state, not even non Arabs such as Turks, Greeks, or Iranians.
On July 9, 1947, Shoghi Effendi received a letter from the chairman of the United Nations Special Committee on Palestine requesting a statement on the relationship, which the Baha’i¬ Faith has to Palestine and the Baha’i¬ attitude toward any future changes in the status of the country.
Effendi gave the following response:
“The position of the Baha’is in this country is in a certain measure unique: Whereas Jerusalem is the spiritual center of Christendom it is not the administrative center of either the Church of Rome or any other Christian denomination. Likewise although it is regarded as the second most sacred shrine of Islam, the most Holy site of the Muhammadan Faith, and the center of its pilgrimages, are to be found in Arabia, not in Palestine. The Jews alone offer somewhat of a parallel to the attachment which the Baha’is have for this country, inasmuch as Jerusalem holds the remains of their Holy Temple and was the seat of both the religious and political institutions associated with their past history. But even their case differs in one respect from that of the Baha’is for it is in the soil of Palestine that the three central Figures of our Religion are buried and it is not only the center of Baha’i¬’ pilgrimages from all over the world but also the permanent seat of our Administrative Order, of which I have the honor to be the Head.”

I went to see a lecture on the “Israeli-Palestine conflict” at Ryerson University on wednesday. Dr. Juan Cole (Engaging the Muslim World) was the guest speaker.

With security guards standing at the doors, Dr. Cole presented an 1:20 minute powerpoint presentation on how “statelessness” was the key issue in the “mid-east crisis”. According to him “statelessness” trumps “refugees” and “terrorism” as the major catalyst for the “conflict” (he couldn’t see how all three were caused by zionism). He drew some important premises and provided a decent background history for the time allotted.

He diligently avoided discussing: hamas, nakba, right of return, israel lobby… he showed no images or videos of israeli terrorism… he referred to “Cast lead” as a “the war last winter”… He claimed, without any evidence, that Ahmedinejad had rigged the election… he constantly talked about a “two state solution”.

In the question period we were told to raise our hands. The questions asked were not biting and the responses provided were long and pedantic.

One quiestion was asked bout “AIPAC”, to which Dr. Cole responded “I don’t see how 2% of the U.S. population could be that influential.” and “the christian evengelicals are a much larger group”.

He did not mention that the biggest christian zionist group “Christians United for Israel” (CUFI) is run by the likes of:

Gary Bauer (on executive board of CUFI): was a PNAC (project for new american century) signatory, and has hosted a show with former Jerusalem Post CEO and President Tom Rose.

John Hagee (head of CUFI): who also owns Global Evangelism Television has been given awards for his work by the likes of B’nai B’rith and the Zionist Organization of America.

David Brog (executive director of CUFI): an American Jew who served as chief of staff to Arlen Specter, and staff director of the Senate Judiciary Committee, after having been an executive for America Online, and practicing law in both Israel and the U.S.

My hand was raised for the whole question period, but I was never selected. my friend sitting two seats over was also ignored.

THe last question was awarded to a 65 year old Jewish man who began his question “you seem to have painted the Palestinians as good and the Israelis as bad, but you don’t talk about little boys with bomb belts…”

Not only did Dr. Cole take this as a serious question, he promised before he even started his answer that he would allow for a rebuttal. NO ONE ELSE HAD BEEN GIVEN A REBUTTAL, AND THERE WAS ONLY SUPPOSED TO BE TIME FOR ONE MORE QUESTION!

I objected to that by letting Cole know that there were others with far more serious questions who were waiting, and yet he was allowing a rebuttal to this bullshit diversion.

Dr. Cole told me I was out of line.

Dr. Juan Cole ended the lecture by turning to the zionist section of the crowd and bargaining “but just think about a seperate palestinian state, they would be your natural market! you could make so much money off of them!”.

Dr. Juan Cole is a farce and yet another example of how the academic “left” is an obstruction to progress. No one should take his opinion seriously because he is a hack academic who doesn’t do any real research and doesn’t understand how power works (or more likely, just doesn’t wish to challenge it).

Palestinian agree with this assessment according to the following:

Dr. Norman Finkelstein spoke on Friday September 26, 2008 to a predominantly Muslim audience at the Islamic House of Wisdom in Dearborn, Michigan. I’d liked a few things I’d read by and about him. His style was engaging and he had generally good things to say – that is, until he started giving the audience practical tips. He said that while his PhD dissertation was about Zionism, we should not get into “ideological conversations about who is a Zionist.” What mattered was focusing on stances on torture and house demolitions. He also advised that Palestinians be “reasonable” and consider compensation instead of their full rights.

I challenged him on this point during Q&A in that opposing occupation without condemning Zionism is like opposing slavery without condemning white supremacy, and that we American taxpayers and participants in the genocide of Palestinians (whether intentionally or not) should have more humility than tell Arabs whether or not to discuss the ideology behind their dispossession. Otherwise, we would look like gatekeepers on the discourse.

Finkelstein became angry insisted that we not engage in “Starbucks discussions” about Zionism! He referred to Chomsky as an example of someone who should not be considered an enemy in spite of their Zionism. Then he deferred to the Palestinian academic sitting next to him who said he agreed with Finkelstein; that Arab nationalism was no longer useful; and that he even supported a Kurdish state! It was unclear why he supported Kurdish nationalism, the existing mode of which divides a war-torn Iraq and serves imperialism, but not Arab nationalism.

With all due credit to his bravery as an academic who lost his career to stand up for (some of) Palestinians’ rights, Finkelstein is not the primary victim of Zionism. Palestinians are, and for them discussion of Zionism is not an armchair philosopher’s debate. To suggest to Arabs not to discuss Zionism is disturbing (while nobody tells Jews and Roma not to discuss Nazism, or African-Americans not to discuss white supremacy). This is what happens when Arab leaders who unequivocally oppose Zionism are either martyred, imprisoned, defeated or sold out.

http://palestinethinktank.com/2009/09/07/2-views-on-norman-finkelsteins-putting-zionism-off-limits-in-the-debate/