How
can one write satire when the Obama Administration has created an
Atrocities Prevention Board to prevent mass murder and genocide at the
same time as it has been largely supporting the forces most likely to
commit mass murder and
genocide?
With
the exception of Libya—an issue I’m not going to debate in this
article--the Obama Administration has been distinguished by its
accommodation with those who have committed and are most likely to
commit atrocities.
For
example, Obama gave a speech in Afghanistan welcoming into political
life those members of the Taliban who would renounce violence and obey
Afghan law or, more accurately, those who would say such things for just
long enough for the Americans to leave the country. But the
administration has been negotiating with a Taliban that has done
neither. It has committed past atrocities, including complicity in the
September 11 attack which would presumably be pardoned. No matter what
it pretended, the Taliban would put Afghans under an oppressive regime
again if—or should I say as soon as—it has the chance. My June 2011
article on Obama's Afghanistan policy remains quite relevant.
Once
again in his speech, Obama made the deadly error of claiming that, in
effect, al-Qaida is America's only real enemy in the world. Even the
Taliban (whose name he cannot pronounce correctly) is redeemable, though
it answered him with a suicide attack in Kabul. As for Obama's other
claims (international consensus for stability in South Asia, etc) he
can't even get Pakistan to stop supporting the Taliban and concealing
al-Qaida leaders. And India has been treated by Obama in a manner
reminiscent of his policy toward Israel.
So is his administration working to prevent atrocities and is al-Qaida America's only enemy?
Let's
start with the terrorist group Hamas which governs the Gaza Strip and
has committed atrocities, keeps trying to do so, and openly advocates
genocide against both Israel and Jews. The Obama Administration has
opposed a serious effort to overthrow it, has accepted de facto its
coalition with the Palestinian Authority, and pressed Israel in the past
to reduce sanctions to a minimum.
Regarding
Lebanon, the Obama Administration has ignored a law precluding
interaction and aid to a government that includes a group—like
Hizballah—on the State Department terrorism list. It has not been phased
by investigations showing Hizballah involvement in assassinations in
Lebanon. The 2006 UN ceasefire, in which the United States played a
leading role, promises to keep Hizballah from building up a military
zone in the south and to help prevent its importing weapons from Syria.
Yet this has not prevented U.S. officials from dallying with Hizballah.
Among
others, General David Petraeus, Rear Admiral Gregory Smith, and
Ambassador Ryan Crocker have testified in detail about how Hizballah has
committed terrorist attacks against Americans in Iraq and elsewhere in
addition to training terrorists.
In
Syria, the Administration didn't just engage but actually rewarded the
Arabic-speaking world's worst
dictatorship. On one notable occasion, junior administration staffers
visiting Damascus sitting within screaming distance of the prisons known
for torture, tweeted away about what a good time they were having and
how great the coffee tasted. And what about the Muslim Brotherhood,
elected by the graduating class at Terrorism High School the group most
likely to succeed in committing really big atrocities? Every day its
leaders and publications pour out bloodthirsty hate and support for
violence. And every day the Western mass media tells us it is moderate
and has renounced violence.
--------------------------------
Barry Rubin, Israel: An Introduction (Yale
University Press) is the first comprehensive book providing a
well-rounded introduction to Israel, a definitive account of the
nation's past, its often controversial present, and much more. It
presents a clear and detailed view of the country’s land, people,
history, society, politics, economics, and culture. This book is written
for general readers and students who may have little knowledge but even
well-informed readers tell us they’ve learned new things.Please click
here to purchase your copy and get more information on the book. http://www.gloria-center.org/israel-an-introduction/
-------------------------------
I
could go on to recount the White House’s softness on Sudan, arguably
the most atrocity-generating government in the world. Obama has,
however, announced his profound opposition to the Lord’s Resistance
Army, an east African group that has not surfaced for years. It
apparently has two advantages: it isn’t revolutionary Islamist and it
probably doesn’t exist any more.
The
Board is to be headed by Samantha Powers whose pre-Libya ideas about
atrocities seemed to revolve largely around blaming Israel exclusively.
Meanwhile, the U.S. government
continues to participate and legitimize a UN human rights' council run
by and for atrocity-producing states. It has been largely silent on
Iran, late and ineffective on Syria, has worked to save the Hamas regime
in the Gaza Strip and empower the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, and was
on the wrong side in the Sudan and a number of other countries.
That
all of this was announced at the Holocaust Museum in Washington DC adds
to the bad taste and bad faith of the whole enterprise. And by the word
“enterprise” I’m not just referring to the Atrocity Prevention
Board.
Barry
Rubin is director of the Global Research in International Affairs
(GLORIA) Center and editor of the Middle East Review of International
Affairs (MERIA) Journal. His book, Israel: An Introduction, has just been published by Yale University Press. Other recent books include The
Israel-Arab Reader (seventh edition), The Long War for Freedom: The Arab Struggle for Democracy in the Middle East (Wiley), and The Truth About Syria (Palgrave-Macmillan). The website of the GLORIA Center and of his blog, Rubin Reports. His original articles are published at PJMedia.
A version of this article was published in the Jerusalem Post. I own the rights and ask you to read and link to the version here.
Professor Barry Rubin, Director, Global Research in International Affairs (GLORIA) Center http://www.gloria-center.org
The Rubin Report blog http://rubinreports.blogspot.com/
He is a featured columnist at PJM http://pajamasmedia.com/barryrubin/.
Editor, Middle East Review of International Affairs (MERIA) Journal http://www.gloria-center.org
Editor Turkish Studies,http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/title~db=all~content=t713636933%22
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