Stephen Lendman: Israel Signals Hardline Policy Intentions

Observers thinking Palestinians gained from a Pillar of Cloud might think again. Nothing has changed. Hardline Netanyahu policies continue. Expect worse ahead. Palestinian peace, reconciliation and unity advocates are murdered and arrested. Qassem brigades leader Ahmed Jabari negotiated a truce agreement draft. Ways for establishing ceasefires in case of future flare ups were included. Jabari was working with Egypt to establish permanent peace. Israel murdered him to prevent it. Peace, stability, and Palestinian unity defeat its agenda. Conflict and violence are prioritized. Rogue states need enemies to justify policies. Israel's include crimes of war and against humanity. They rage against soft targets. Tougher ones require US intervention. Israel prefers riding shotgun. When enemies don't exist, they're invented. Hamas is a convenient one. So are Iran, Syria, and Hezbollah. Achieving regional hegemony depends on inventing enemies, destroying major ones, and eliminating rivals various ways. Balkanizing some into weak state-lets substitutes for full scale war. Israel's long standing strategy calls for dividing the entire region along ethnic and sectarian lines. It wants easily controlled satellites. In 1982, Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs senior adviser Oded Yinon published "A Strategy for Israel in the 1980s." Longtime Israeli academic, activist, analyst, and outspoken critic Israel Shahak (1933-2001) translated, edited, and retitled it "The Zionist Plan for the Middle East." Israel modeled it after the Ottoman Empire's Millet or nation system. It functioned by letting local authorities govern confessional communities with separate ethnic identities. Israel wants the region ruled this way. Peace and stability defeat its agenda. Great pains are made to prevent them. Jabari was murdered for that reason. Palestinian divisions and besieging Gaza serve the same purpose. On November 21, Israel arrested at least 55 Palestinians. Dozens of others followed. Many were Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and Popular Font for the Liberation of Palestine members. Victims committed no crimes.