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Trump Offends Palestinians |
By
Stephen Lendman |
| It wasn’t the first time, for sure not the last. Earlier he threatened
punitive action against Palestine if it sues Israel in an international
tribunal. On Friday, his UN envoy Nikki Haley blocked the appointment of former Palestinian prime minister Salam Fayyad as UN mission to Libya head, outrageously saying “(f)or too long, the UN has been unfairly biased in favor of the Palestinian Authority to the detriment of our allies in Israel,” adding: Palestine isn’t a member of the world body. Its self-determination is recognized by over two-thirds of its member states. It has UN non-member observer status. Haley’s comments provide more proof of Trump’s one-sided support for Israel. Palestinians never had friends in Washington, apparently a harsher adversary in Trump. Not a good thing at all. Haley wasn’t encouraging, adding “(g)oing forward, the United States will act, not just talk, in support of our allies.” They’re largely rogue states, including NATO, Israel, despotic Middle East monarchies, along with fascist dictatorships in Ukraine and elsewhere. Not a pretty picture. Not much hope for long-suffering Palestinians or abused people wherever America shows up belligerently. Extremist Israeli UN envoy Danny Danon praised Washington’s move against Fayyad, citing “the beginning of new era where the US stands firmly behind Israel against any and all attempts to harm the Jewish state.” Separately in remarks published Friday in response to continued Israeli theft of Palestinian land for settlements and exclusive Jewish development, Trump said: “…I don’t want to condemn Israel. (It’s) had a long history of condemnation and difficulty. And I don’t want to be condemning Israel.” “I understand Israel very well, and I respect Israel a lot, and they have been through a lot.” “(Settlements) don’t help the process. I can say that.” “There is so much land left. And every time you take land for settlements, there is less land left. But we are looking at that, and we are looking at some other options we'll see. But no, I am not somebody that believes that going forward with these settlements is a good thing for peace.” Trump’s comments stepped back somewhat from fully supporting illegal settlement construction, but not enough to matter. Indicating no US restraint on Israeli policy affirmed its right to continue building as many settlement units on stolen Palestinian land as it wishes. Washington has its back, Palestinian rights ignored like always - peace prospects under Trump as dismal as ever. Endless conflict continues with virtually no hope for resolution as far ahead as anyone dares imagine. Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago. He can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net. His new book as editor and contributor is titled "Flashpoint in Ukraine: How the US Drive for Hegemony Risks WW III." http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanIII.html Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com. Listen to cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on the Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network. |