The BBC is reporting “Israel halts ‘dialogue’ with UK over war crimes law.”
This looks like another of Israel’s deliberate snubs, this time aimed at the UK rather than the US (over the curious incident of the announcement about settlements coinciding with Joe Biden’s visit.)
William Hague is being humiliated, so they say, but at least he doesn’t risk being arrested in Israel, as Israeli officials do if they are foolish enough to try to come to Blighty.
Apart from the choice of wording in the headline, and an inexplicable set of scare quotes round ‘dialogue,’ the BBC glosses over something that is explored more thoroughly in the Telegraph. There’s a bit more to this than meets the BBC’s eye.
“Hague risks clash with Israel in meeting activists’ reads an article on page 20.
“What activists?” a BBC web news-seeker might well wonder, as in the BBC article something decidedly mysterious is alluded to thus: “He will also be visiting the Occupied Palestinian Territories.”
The Telegraph reports:
“The foreign secretary will meet the leadership of the increasingly assertive Palestinian groups protesting against the occupation of the West Bank.”[…]
“Israel argues that the campaign is not as peaceful as the adherents claim, pointing to weekly demonstrations at the separation barrier where protesters have often thrown stones….”
Online, there’s this. “Hague on collision course with Israeli government.”
“William Hague’s decision to hold taboo-breaking talks with representatives of three groups at the forefront of the Palestinian civil disobedience movement has set him on collision course with Israel’s government.”
Given William Hague’s well known views on the separation barrier, and on Israel in general, it figures that visiting such groups could hardly look insignificant from the Israeli viewpoint.
If the foreign secretary succeeds in getting the UK excluded from strategic dialogue over defence and security issues, who’s the biggest loser? Not Israel.
But on the whole if William Hague really is being humiliated, I’m all for it.
What would the view of Her Majesty’s Government be if Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman insisted on meeting with Real IRA (RIRA) while on a state visit to Northern Ireland?
Using a bit of lateral thinking. Israel should arrest William Hague on charges of war crimes using the same universal jurisdiction law that is the cause of the problem. Methinks the UK would rescind the provisions in minutes to avoid this.
Have to love the Telegraph’s last paragraph.
At a meeting in Jerusalem last month, Mr Lieberman humiliated the two Europeans when he denounced them as meddlesome appeasers preparing to repeat with Israel the feckless betrayal of Czechoslovakia in 1938. The best Mr Hague can probably hope for is that the expected wigging is delivered behind closed doors.
Not diplomatic but the truth.
Personally, I’m hoping Israel will be forced to retaliate – by arresting Bliar for his war crimes against humanity!
As ever the BBC shuffles items around on its RSS feeds ensuring the most anti-Israel ones stay at or near the top.
The latest Hamas “work accident” is a more recent story but is placed well below the Haig story.
Particularly when they are only suspected militants. Palestinian officials said the man belonged to a militant group, the Army of Islam, which is believed to be responsible for firing rockets into Israel in recent years.
Since when does the BBC dispute the Palestinian statement of fact? Can we expect stealth scare quotes ‘militants’ to indicate doubt.
Who doesn’t accept they were firing rockets? Isn’t that what terrorists oops militants do?
http://elderofziyon.blogspot.com/2010/11/mysterious-explosion-kills-terrorist-in.html
Palestine Press Agency says that Hamas had arrested him a few days ago to stop his group from firing rockets into Israel. His car exploded as it was approaching Hamas police headquarters.
IDF, Shin Bet: Israel responsible for Gaza operation
The IDF and Shin Bet confirmed on Wednesday that the Gaza operation killed Army of Islam commander Muhammad Jamal al-Namnam. The Army of Islam is an extreme organization which is affiliated with Al Qaeda.
The man killed in a car explosion near local police headquarters, was previously involved in terror attacks on Israeli targets, and recently conspired with Hamas members to carry out terror attacks through Sinai, against American and Israeli targets. (Hanan Greenberg)
Question of the Day
Credit Jerry Lewis, the London correspondent for Israel Radio News in English, for finally asking the question I’ve wanted to ask political leaders who matter. He was talking to William Hague before the UK foreign secretary departed for a visit to Israel.
The million dollar question — about the nine-month settlement freeze — comes up at the 2:03 point of this interview.
The Palestinians have had nine months. What did they do in that nine months?
The key snippet from Hague’s answer:
Now I believe the important thing here is not what anybody has done in recent months but what they could do in the next few months . . .
The question remains.
If it emerges that Hague has deliberately or inadvertently given legitimacy to the Palestinian activists that he’s meeting, the BBC will have to resort to defending them, and no doubt giving them even more credibility.
According to the Telegraph, they are not paradoxical-sounding ‘passive activists’, but ‘peaceful’ activists, whose peacefulness entails destroying produce and throwing stones till their demands are met. Occasionaly someone gets hurt.
Like the activists who were acquitted by a barmy judge for wrecking property belonging to a Brighton factory they suspected of supplying Israel with components intended for warfare, these activists have decided all other avenues have been exhausted.
It seems that taking matters into ones own hands is justifiable, and the only option, if the cause fits the bill.
A spokesperson from Chatham House, Yossi Mekelberg, ( a London based Israeli who is not exactly an apologist for Israel) was interviewed on BBC News24. He was muttering something about Hague’s meeting with activists, but the BBC lady wasn’t interested. All she wanted to know was why don’t these stupid Israelis realise that we’ve already promised to try and get the law changed about these war crime arrests. Are they never satisfied?
“He will also be visiting the Occupied Palestinian Territories.”
Here we go again. When will the BBC get it into their collective thick skulls – there is no such thing as “Occupied Palestinian Territory”. Just because the Palis, Hamas, Hizbullah, the BBC and the entire left-wing blogosphere repeatedly spout forth, doesn’t make it fact.
What we have here are Disputed Territories.
The bbc HYS on the subject, full of bile, venom, mohammeds and anti Israeli lies. I made 1 comment, (which has a life expectancy of about 2 hours before its pulled, cant have facts muddying the water now can we) made my excuses and left.
What a vile cess-pit of ignorance and hatred that place is!
What I find most offensive is the sheer invincible stupidity and lack of knowledge of the subject that seems to be the common consensus of the Israeli “reality” to the islamocommie posters.
However, I must say that a good 40% of the postings were sound as a pound in terms of knowledge and grasp of the real unbeeboid/SWP/STWC/islamist spun reality.
Doubtless they will all be gone by midnight, leaving only a nice smooth uninterrupted beeboid-approved hamas- friendly narrative.
Pass the sick bag Golda.
HYS reminds me of this:
Fifty years of unremitting comprehensive socialist dogma masquerading as “education” – what else could we ever expect?
It was Hague who condemned Israel for killing those activists who tried to kill the soldiers, before knowing any of the facts. This just serves him and Cameron right.
Follow-up to the ‘suspected’ militant. Israel admits killing suspected militant in Gaza.
He’s still only suspected of being a militant even though Palestinian officials in Gaza identified him as Mohammed Nimnim, who belonged to the Army of Islam. I wonder what evidence the BBC would require to confirm him?
The last sentence is, The Army of Islam has often been critical of Hamas, which controls Gaza, for being too moderate. I guess BBC thinks he isn’t accused of being an extremist!
They left out this part:
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/israel-hints-it-cleared-killing-of-gaza-islamist-with-washington-1.322766?localLinksEnabled=false
In 2006, Army of Islam militants cooperated with Hamas in a cross-border raid to capture Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. Last year it also kidnapped a British journalist, Alan Johnston. Johnston was released four months later but Shalit remains in Hamas captivity.
(I think “last year” should read “a year later”?)
It looks like the BBC’s reporting on this issue is purely mischievous misrepresentation and disinformation designed to stir up even more anti-Israel feeling.
Here’s the Israeli take:
‘Inability to protect officials halting UK-Israel dialogue’
Britain’s failure to change its laws regarding universal jurisdiction has effectively halted bilateral dialogue with Israel, officials in Jerusalem told visiting British Foreign Secretary Wiliam Hague on Wednesday.
As the situation stands, Israeli officials who land in the United Kingdom risk detention based on complaints of war crimes lodged by pro-Palestinian groups, Foreign Ministry officials told the visiting British delegation.
What this means in practice is that Israeli officials or ministers can not visit England, a Foreign Ministry official told The Jerusalem Post after the meeting.
Without such visits, it is impossible to conduct a bilateral relationship that includes holding the strategic dialogue necessary to combat terror, the official said. “Why would they go, if they can not return home safely?” he asked.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor said that Israel’s relationship with Britain was “very good” but the existing law “makes it impossible to conduct dialogue at the highest level.”
The fact that Hague landed in Israel Tuesday night, just one day after Deputy Prime Minister Dan Meridor had to cancel a trip to London, only served to underscore this point for Israeli officials. Earlier this year, opposition leader Tzipi Livni also pulled out of a trip to Britain.
“This issue of detention by Israeli officials is the top item on our agenda,” said Palmor.
So, it’s not Israel that has “halted dialogue”, which is how the BBC frames it, it’s the UK that has made dialogue impossible by not guaranteeing protection from “lawfare” to Israeli officials and ministers.
Go figure!
Elder of Ziyon has noticed that “Britain considers “Palestine” to be a nation already”
This piece in his link, from ‘the British Consulate-general, Jerusalem’ suggests the protest group that Mr. Hague was busy legitimising is all peaceful and cuddly.
“The Foreign Secretary met community leaders from villages affected by the barrier, including Ni’lin and Al Masara, on a hillside near Al Masyoun to view the barrier and hear from these leaders how they are galvanising their communities in peaceful protests against the barrier.”
As cuddly as a bunny named Assud?
You have to ask., what do they know? What does William Hague know?
If Britain is stupid enough to squander its vital information-sharing relationship with Israel in deference to the pro-Palestinian lobby, where does that leave our own defence and security?
More truth about the “Israel halts dialogue” libel from the left wing Ha’aretz:
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/arrest-fears-prompt-israel-to-relocate-strategic-forum-with-u-k-1.322946?localLinksEnabled=false
Try telling that to the HYS crowd!