Israel lobby in the United States https://en.m.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Israel_lobby_in_the_United_States&wprov=rarw1 .........Voting power According to Bard, "Jews have devoted themselves to politics with almost religious fervor." He cites that "Jews have the highest percentage voter turnout of any ethnic group" and that of the American Jewish population "roughly 94 percent live in thirteen key electoral college states" which alone "are worth enough electoral votes to elect the president. If you add the non-Jews shown by opinion polls to be as pro-Israel as Jews, it is clear Israel has the support of one of the largest veto groups in the country." Bard goes on to say that for United States congressmen "there are no benefits to candidates taking an openly anti-Israel stance and considerable costs in both loss of campaign contributions and votes from Jews and non-Jews alike." "Most important fact about the Jewish vote in America", according to Jeffrey S. Helmreich of the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, "lies in the fact that it is a uniquely swayable bloc. ... The issue of support for Israel [by a candidate] has proven capable of spurring a sizable portion of Jews to switch parties—in large enough numbers to tip the scales in national or statewide elections. Moreover, the "Israel swing vote" is especially open to political courtship because, unlike the interests of other minority groups, support for Israel has long been compatible with traditional Republican and Democratic agendas. ... On the other hand, being distinctively unsupportive of Israel can significantly hurt a candidate's chances."[47][48] According to Mitchell Bard, Israel lobbyists also educate politicians by: taking them to Israel on study missions. Once officials have direct exposure to the country, its leaders, geography, and security dilemmas, they typically return more sympathetic to Israel. Politicians also sometimes travel to Israel specifically to demonstrate to the lobby their interest in Israel. Thus, for example, George W. Bush made his one and only trip to Israel before deciding to run for President in what was widely viewed as an effort to win pro-Israel voters' support.
According to The Telegraph, Israel now decides whether or not free speech matters in Britain. The disgrace of proscribing a non-violent group will eventually be reversed, though the stain will remain. My uncle’s second wife, whom I met only a few times, was deeply involved in Palestine solidarity groups. A devout Catholic, she walked the Camino de Santiago and other pilgrimage routes over thirty times. At her funeral, we were all offered Free Palestine badges to wear if we wished. Most did. But of course, being Irish, and educated in how such things work, there was a quiet sense among some of us: was that flag doing more harm than good? Perhaps a different symbol would have served better. Something universal. Something that precedes flags. Something like a... well not a national emblem, but a symbol of protest and shared humanity. Unfair, perhaps. Most others gained their independence under their flag. I still feel the same reservation about that flag, but I wonder if it's because I still don't know enough or were my instincts well founded? "Origins: The Arab Revolt Flag (1916) The design of the Palestinian flag is based on the flag of the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire during World War I. That flag was created in 1916 by Arab nationalists with British support and consisted of three horizontal stripes (black, green, and white) and a red triangle at the hoist. Each color symbolized a historic Arab dynasty: Black – The Abbasid Caliphate White – The Umayyad Caliphate Green – The Fatimid Caliphate Red Triangle – The Hashemites, who led the revolt These colors became known as the Pan-Arab colors and were used in many post-colonial Arab flags (e.g., Jordan, Syria, Sudan, the UAE)."
I was just chatting with the Israeli who has been helping with the case of my daughter's friend's relatives who were massacred. Like many thoughtful Israelis who are not captured by right-wing propoganda and collective sin blocking their minds, he was laughing at the idea anyone believes the calls for disarmament in Gaza are sincere. "Only look at what's happening to the PLO & Fatah after Oslo. In the West Bank, they disarmed and were sidelined, robbed of their land or killed off, disarmament only turning their young to the Islamist groups".
Food aid in Gaza is pure chaos. UN reveals 86% of aid sent to Gaza is stolen before it can reach those most in need The majority of the intercepted supplies for Gaza, more than 27,000 tons since mid-May, is food https://www.themirror.com/news/world-news/un-reveals-86-aid-sent-1310208 Data from the United Nations shows that a staggering percentage of aid supplies intended to reach the besieged Gaza Strip is intercepted before it can reach its destination. According to the U.N. Office for Project Services, only about 5,000 of the more than 33,000 pallets of aid supplies sent by multiple agencies to Gaza arrived at their intended destination, or roughly 15%. The other 85% of pallets were looted by "either peacefully by hungry people or forcefully by armed actors during transit," according to the data. The Mirror has contacted the U.N. for additional information on the data. Since Israel lifted its 11-week blockade on Gaza in May, allowing humanitarian aid operations to resume deliveries, the U.N. has complained about Israel imposing lengthy delays on convoys to depart crossing points, according to Reuters. Israel requires that the aid groups offload their aid supplies and send trucks to collect and transport them, which Ross Smith of the World Food Program (WFP) said can sometimes take up to 20 hours. The UNOPS data, which is available for public viewing on its Monitoring and Tracking Dashboard, shows that more than 2,300 trucks of aid have been intercepted since mid-May. The total weight of stolen supplies is over 31,1000 tons, the vast majority of it marked as food from the WFP. The data also reveals that the amount of stolen goods has increased as the months have passed. The weight of intercepted supplies more than tripled between May and June, from about 3,800 tons in May to more than 13,500 tons in June. On Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly relayed a decision for the full occupation of the Gaza Strip, including areas where Israeli hostages are located, to the leader of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF). The order comes as the Palestinian death toll in Gaza surpasses 60,000 since late 2023, and during an escalating hunger crisis imposed on its residents that UNICEF stated is killing an average of 28 children each day. Humanitarian organizations say that if sufficient aid is not allowed into the enclave, growing numbers of Palestinians will die from hunger. Aid is delivered to Gaza in three ways: the U.N. and other agencies' "humanitarian corridors" installed by the Israeli military last week, airdrops, and by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which the U.S. and Israel back. The GHF has been criticized for the hundreds of Palestinians who are killed, mainly by IDF soldiers, near its aid sites as it distributes supplies. The conflict in Gaza — deemed by leading human rights agencies and the United Nations to be a genocide — began on October 7, 2023, when Palestinian militants Hamas killed 1,200 people in southern Israel. Since then, Israel's military has killed more than 60,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health authorities. In November 2024, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant, Israel's former minister of defense, for crimes against humanity and the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare.
Israel court halts gov’t firing of attorney general investigating Netanyahu Baharav-Miara at loggerheads with PM Netanyahu over corruption charges, his ‘judicial coup’, and sacking of Shin Bet chief. Israel's Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara cannot be stripped of her authority after a court bars the government's dismissal of her [File: Gil Cohen-Magen/Pool via Reuters] Published On 4 Aug 20254 Aug 2025 The High Court of Israel has issued a temporary order freezing an attempt by the government to dismiss Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, in the latest instance of the far-right coalition closing ranks. The court’s decision on Monday came immediately after the Israeli cabinet voted unanimously to fire Baharav-Miara, the country’s most senior legal official, who has been leading the prosecution of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during his corruption trial. Justice Minister Yariv Levin announced the cabinet’s decision and addressed a letter to Baharav-Miara saying she “should not try to impose herself on a government that has no trust in her and cannot work with her effectively”. However, immediately after the decision, opposition party Yesh Atid and activist groups filed urgent petitions to Israel’s High Court seeking to halt the dismissal. The Movement for Quality Government in Israel, a prominent watchdog group, cited the conflict of interest over Netanyahu’s corruption trial and said the dismissal effectively turned the role of attorney general into a “political appointment”. In response, the court issued an injunction suspending the decision, clarifying that the government could not strip Baharav-Miara of her authority or name a replacement until further review, with a court hearing set to take place within 30 days. Immediately after the court ruling, hardline Israeli Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi vowed on X not to obey the court order, declaring it “invalid”. “A replacement for her must be appointed immediately!” he said. “We obey the law! We say to the High Court – no!” Baharav-Miara said the government’s move to dismiss her was illegal, adding that “political pressures and actions contrary to law will not deter us from continuing to perform our duties with statesmanship, professionalism and integrity”. Escalating tensions Baharav-Miara has been at loggerheads with the government since it took office, with tensions escalating over the government’s divisive judicial reform package, which was first unveiled in 2023, sparking major street protests. Back in March, the Israeli cabinet had passed a vote of no confidence against Baharav-Miara. Netanyahu’s office accused the legal official of “inappropriate behaviour”, claiming that her “ongoing substantial differences of opinion” with the government prevented “effective collaboration”. The attorney general had refuted the claims and said the vote of no confidence was aimed at gaining “limitless power, as part of a wider move to weaken the judicial branch” and to “promote loyalty to the government”. Days later, the Israeli parliament passed a key component of the plans, which critics have branded as a “judicial coup”, effectively giving politicians more power over the appointments of judges, including Supreme Court justices. Baharav-Miara had also challenged the legality of Netanyahu’s attempt to fire Ronen Bar, the head of the Shin Bet security agency, which the Supreme Court declared “unlawful”. Bar, who stepped down from his role when his term ended in June, had been conducting a probe into alleged ties between the prime minister’s close aides and Qatar, a case known in the Israeli press as “Qatargate”. The former Shin Bet head had also refused to sign off on a security request aimed at relieving Netanyahu from testifying at his ongoing corruption trial. Serious charges of bribery, fraud and breach of public trust – including for allegedly taking lavish gifts from businessmen in return for political favours and striking policy and regulatory deals for more favourable news coverage – mean he could be facing up to 10 years in prison. Netanyahu has been accused of dragging out and even exacerbating the Gaza war to stay in power and avoid the trial, which began in 2020. US President Donald Trump, however, has come to Netanyahu’s defence, urging Israel to pardon him and calling the prosecutors targeting him “out of control”. Trump has even suggested the US could leverage its aid to Israel to protect Netanyahu.
No Proof Hamas Routinely Stole U.N. Aid, Israeli Military Officials Say Israel has long restricted aid to Gaza on the argument that Hamas steals it to use as a weapon of control over the population. On Saturday, the Israeli military announced new airdrops of aid. Palestinians with food handouts northwest of Gaza City last month.Credit...Saher Alghorra for The New York Times By Natan Odenheimer Reporting from Jerusalem July 26, 2025 https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/26/world/middleeast/hamas-un-aid-theft.html For nearly two years, Israel has accused Hamas of stealing aid provided by the United Nations and other international organizations. The government has used that claim as its main rationale for restricting food from entering Gaza. But the Israeli military never found proof that the Palestinian militant group had systematically stolen aid from the United Nations, the biggest supplier of emergency assistance to Gaza for most of the war, according to two senior Israeli military officials and two other Israelis involved in the matter. In fact, the Israeli military officials said, the U.N. aid delivery system, which Israel derided and undermined, was largely effective in providing food to Gaza’s desperate and hungry population........