Palestinian Authority Hypocrisy
By Stephen Lendman
May 10, 2015 "Information
Clearing House" -
On May 7, Netanyahu
announced the most lunatic fringe coalition regime in Israel’s history. It
includes racist hate-mongers, over-the-top fascists and religious fundamentalist
zealots – an incendiary combination threatening regional peace and stability.
Palestinian Authority (PA) chief negotiator Saeb Erekat said
“(t)he face of a new form of racist, discriminatory Israel has been revealed.”
Netanyahu is “leading the charge to bury the two-state
solution and impose a perpetual apartheid regime.”
He formed a new government “of war which will be against peace
and stability in our region.”
Abbas spokesman Nabil Abu Rudaineh said Netanyahu must choose
between peace and a two-state solution or a “policy of aggression and arbitrary
violations against our people.”
The PLO negotiations department issued a statement saying:
Netanyahu’s new “right-wing extremist government is not a
partner for peace when the leaders call for the annexation of Palestinian land
and the forcible transfer of the Palestinian population and the genocide against
our people.”
It’s long overdue for Israel to be held accountable for
“crimes and violations against our people.”
Fatah spokesman Osama Qawassmeh said the new government will
increase “settlement activities and the Judaization of the West Bank, while at
the same time isolating the Gaza Strip.”
He said Palestinians should respond through greater resistance
– “exposing Netanyahu’s racist policies before the international community.”
Straightaway, his regime approved 900 new illegal East
Jerusalem housing units on stolen Palestinian land – even before his new
government is officially sworn in on May 11. It’s the most anti-Palestinian,
pro-war, apartheid on steroids regime in Israel’s history.
Washington, other major Western nations and UN
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon pay lip service only against its horrific high
crimes and abuses.
They yawn and do nothing to stop them. America supports all
Israeli wars of aggression – longstanding rogue state partners in crime.
At the same time PA officials were denouncing Israel’s new
regime, it continues enforcing its ruthlessness – collaborating against their
own people for special benefits they enjoy.
On May 8, Human
Rights Watch (HRW) accused PA-controlled security forces of harassing,
persecuting, arresting, interrogating and mistreating West Bank Palestinian
students for political views they hold and express.
HRW’s Sarah Leah Whitson called it “deeply worrying that
students are being held by Palestinian forces for no apparent reason other than
their (alleged) connection to Hamas or their opinions.”
“Palestinians should be able to express critical political
opinions without being arrested or beaten.”
Following Birzeit and other university student council
elections, Addameer prisoner rights group director Sahar Francis told HRW 25
students were detained or summoned for interrogations.
In custody, they’re beaten and otherwise abused. It’s standard
PA security force practice serving Israeli interests – operating ruthlessly
against their own people.
Current abuses followed numerous previous ones. Views critical
of Israeli and/or PA policies aren’t tolerated.
PA security services West Bank spokesman Adnan Al-Dimiri lied
saying “(w)e never arrest people for their speech or for their political
affiliations.”
It happens all the time – including trumped up criminal
charges justifying the unjustifiable.
HRW said PA authorities presented no credible evidence
indicating arrested individuals committed any criminal activity – or advocated
any.
Jihad Salim is a Birzeit University Hamas-affiliated student
representative. He said around 6:00PM on April 25, PA security forces accosted
him, shoved him into a civilian car, took him to a Ramallah office, and
brutalized him during interrogation about earlier Palestinian elections.
Two interrogators were involved, he said. “They started
cursing my mother, cursing my sisters, slapping me around.”
“Then they punched me while asking questions about how Hamas
won the elections.”
He was forced to stand uncomfortably, arms and legs spread
apart, from11:00PM until 10:30AM the next day. Interrogation continued until
5:00PM. No food or water was supplied.
Numerous other cases follow the same pattern – lawless PA
security force arrests, followed by detentions, brutalizing interrogations,
beatings and other abuses, denial of all fundamental rights, and at times
concocted charges of nonexistent criminality.
HRW said it “previously documented abuses by Palestinian
security forces, including credible allegations of torture and arrests of people
identified as political opponents.”
US funding and training makes Washington complicit with false
arrests and detentions, torture, ill treatment, and other abuses against
Palestinians solely for political reasons.
PA officials critical of Israel’s new regime share guilt in
its crimes – serving as lawless apartheid enforcers.
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: 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. It airs three times weekly: live on Sundays at 1PM Central
time plus two prerecorded archived programs.