Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was invited by House Speaker John Boehner to address Congress on March 3. Rather than running it past the White House, which is the usual protocol, both Boehner and Netanyahu decided to bypass the president. In diplomatic circles, this is considered an insult and/or slap in the face.
The essence of Netanyahu’s presentation to Congress is Iran’s nuclear weapons program. Yet, no one has the chutzpah to introduce Israel’s extensive program that has already resulted in the development of such weapons. What is interesting is that none of the U.S. intelligence agencies has any reliable data that Iran has such a program to develop nuclear weapons. Even Mossad issued a report in 2013 denying that Iran had such a weapons development program. What is known is that Israel supplied the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) with phony documents to support its allegation that Iran was secretly developing weapons.
We can rest assured that if Mossad knows that there is no Iranian program, then the U.S. also knows. So what do we make of the so-called negotiations the U.S. is holding with Iran regarding their nuclear weapons? In fact, Iran is a signatory to the nonproliferation treaty and, as a result, is being monitored by the IAEA inspections.
On the other hand, Israel has not so secretly developed nuclear weapons and has refused to cooperate with other nations and has not signed the nonproliferation treaty.
The White House has currently ordered the declassification of a 1987 report which reveals the U.S. role and cooperation with Israel’s development of nuclear weapons. This report indicates that the U.S. was well aware of Israel’s nuclear program and that Dimona was a well established location for the storage and development of such weapons.
As the saying goes, “timing is everything in politics.” Is it merely coincidental that this report is declassified and made publicly available days before Netanyahu is scheduled to speak to Congress?
A US law (the Symington amendment of the 1961 Foreign Assistance Act) bars the US from giving aid to nations that engage in clandestine nuclear weapons proliferation. For many years, the US chose to ignore the law in how it was applied to Israel.
One might ask, if this was the law, why did all the presidents since 1961 decide to ignore it and continue to donate billions of dollars to Israel’s weapons and military efforts?
Who is Mordechai Vanunu? In 1986, Mr. Vanunu, an Israeli whistleblower, disclosed that the Dimona location was where Israel was developing weapons with nuclear capabilities. Vanunu was then kidnapped by Israeli agents and convicted of treason. He spent 18 years in prison, 11 of them in solitary confinement.
Like the U.S., Israel treats those who reveal crimes as criminals, while those who commit the crimes continue to live their lives as respected members of their communities.
The U.S. was very concerned about Iraq’s alleged weapons of mass destruction, enough so that the Bush team led us into a war that has lasted over 11 years. Currently, we are involved with Iran, negotiating with it to allow the U.S. to exert control of its nuclear program. After all, we don’t want there to be a widespread proliferation of these weapons unless those who develop nuclear capabilities pledge allegiance to the United States.
Since the Gulf War in 1991, much attention has been lavished on an alleged threat from Iraqi weapons of mass destruction, while the major culprit in the region, Israel, has been largely ignored.
What is never talked about or confronted is Israel’s possession of hundreds of thermonuclear weapons and its ranking as the 5th largest nuclear program in the world. While North Korea, Iraq, and Iran have been labeled as threats to peace, Israel has been not only ignored, but, in many cases, helped by the U.S. to develop nuclear capabilities.
While the U.S. and Israel, as well as members of NATO, continue to fuss about Iran’s threat to peace in the Middle East, both the U.S. and France were instrumental in helping Israel as far back as the 1950s, by providing the technical and scientific information to expedite Israel’s efforts. One cannot ignore Israel’s aggressive stance in that area of the world in light of their possession of WMDs including chemical and biological weapons.
The declassification of the 1987 report is lauded by many Obama fans as an important step in exerting some pressure and control of Israel’s warrior behavior. But, let’s be realistic. Every president for decades has been aware of Dimona, including Mr. Obama. No one has shown the willingness and/or courage to confront the existence of Israel’s arsenal. Declassifying this report does not indicate a change in the U.S. relationship with Israel. Will the U.S. put a stop to financing Israel’s war effort by withdrawing the $3.5 billion plus weapons annually? Will the U.S. insist that Israel stop their expansion of settlements into what is considered Palestinian territory? Will the U.S. recognize that the acceptance of Zionism ensures a continuation of racism and genocide?
Israel represents our proxy military force in the Middle East, undertaking tasks that the U.S. would rather not be seen connected to.
Netanyahu is losing his grip on power and is becoming a liability. His presentation to the U.S. Congress, talking about Iran’s nuclear weapons program is a sham. Even his own Mossad has denounced his proclamations.
What will eventually happen is that Netanyahu will be replaced by a gentler, kinder Zionist, whom the U.S. can continue to support, bent on displacing whatever remains of the Palestinian population.
What we are witnessing now is not a dramatic change on the part of Israel or the U.S. It is pure political theater.
When a doctor completes his course work, he takes the Hippocratic Oath and when a politician gets elected it appears that he takes a hypocritic oath.
Dave Alpert has masters degrees in social work, educational administration, and psychology. He spent his career working with troubled inner city adolescents.
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Obama strikes back at Netanyahu by declassifying 1987 nuclear weapons report
Posted on February 27, 2015 by Dave Alpert
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was invited by House Speaker John Boehner to address Congress on March 3. Rather than running it past the White House, which is the usual protocol, both Boehner and Netanyahu decided to bypass the president. In diplomatic circles, this is considered an insult and/or slap in the face.
The essence of Netanyahu’s presentation to Congress is Iran’s nuclear weapons program. Yet, no one has the chutzpah to introduce Israel’s extensive program that has already resulted in the development of such weapons. What is interesting is that none of the U.S. intelligence agencies has any reliable data that Iran has such a program to develop nuclear weapons. Even Mossad issued a report in 2013 denying that Iran had such a weapons development program. What is known is that Israel supplied the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) with phony documents to support its allegation that Iran was secretly developing weapons.
We can rest assured that if Mossad knows that there is no Iranian program, then the U.S. also knows. So what do we make of the so-called negotiations the U.S. is holding with Iran regarding their nuclear weapons? In fact, Iran is a signatory to the nonproliferation treaty and, as a result, is being monitored by the IAEA inspections.
On the other hand, Israel has not so secretly developed nuclear weapons and has refused to cooperate with other nations and has not signed the nonproliferation treaty.
The White House has currently ordered the declassification of a 1987 report which reveals the U.S. role and cooperation with Israel’s development of nuclear weapons. This report indicates that the U.S. was well aware of Israel’s nuclear program and that Dimona was a well established location for the storage and development of such weapons.
As the saying goes, “timing is everything in politics.” Is it merely coincidental that this report is declassified and made publicly available days before Netanyahu is scheduled to speak to Congress?
A US law (the Symington amendment of the 1961 Foreign Assistance Act) bars the US from giving aid to nations that engage in clandestine nuclear weapons proliferation. For many years, the US chose to ignore the law in how it was applied to Israel.
One might ask, if this was the law, why did all the presidents since 1961 decide to ignore it and continue to donate billions of dollars to Israel’s weapons and military efforts?
Who is Mordechai Vanunu? In 1986, Mr. Vanunu, an Israeli whistleblower, disclosed that the Dimona location was where Israel was developing weapons with nuclear capabilities. Vanunu was then kidnapped by Israeli agents and convicted of treason. He spent 18 years in prison, 11 of them in solitary confinement.
Like the U.S., Israel treats those who reveal crimes as criminals, while those who commit the crimes continue to live their lives as respected members of their communities.
The U.S. was very concerned about Iraq’s alleged weapons of mass destruction, enough so that the Bush team led us into a war that has lasted over 11 years. Currently, we are involved with Iran, negotiating with it to allow the U.S. to exert control of its nuclear program. After all, we don’t want there to be a widespread proliferation of these weapons unless those who develop nuclear capabilities pledge allegiance to the United States.
Since the Gulf War in 1991, much attention has been lavished on an alleged threat from Iraqi weapons of mass destruction, while the major culprit in the region, Israel, has been largely ignored.
What is never talked about or confronted is Israel’s possession of hundreds of thermonuclear weapons and its ranking as the 5th largest nuclear program in the world. While North Korea, Iraq, and Iran have been labeled as threats to peace, Israel has been not only ignored, but, in many cases, helped by the U.S. to develop nuclear capabilities.
While the U.S. and Israel, as well as members of NATO, continue to fuss about Iran’s threat to peace in the Middle East, both the U.S. and France were instrumental in helping Israel as far back as the 1950s, by providing the technical and scientific information to expedite Israel’s efforts. One cannot ignore Israel’s aggressive stance in that area of the world in light of their possession of WMDs including chemical and biological weapons.
The declassification of the 1987 report is lauded by many Obama fans as an important step in exerting some pressure and control of Israel’s warrior behavior. But, let’s be realistic. Every president for decades has been aware of Dimona, including Mr. Obama. No one has shown the willingness and/or courage to confront the existence of Israel’s arsenal. Declassifying this report does not indicate a change in the U.S. relationship with Israel. Will the U.S. put a stop to financing Israel’s war effort by withdrawing the $3.5 billion plus weapons annually? Will the U.S. insist that Israel stop their expansion of settlements into what is considered Palestinian territory? Will the U.S. recognize that the acceptance of Zionism ensures a continuation of racism and genocide?
Israel represents our proxy military force in the Middle East, undertaking tasks that the U.S. would rather not be seen connected to.
Netanyahu is losing his grip on power and is becoming a liability. His presentation to the U.S. Congress, talking about Iran’s nuclear weapons program is a sham. Even his own Mossad has denounced his proclamations.
What will eventually happen is that Netanyahu will be replaced by a gentler, kinder Zionist, whom the U.S. can continue to support, bent on displacing whatever remains of the Palestinian population.
What we are witnessing now is not a dramatic change on the part of Israel or the U.S. It is pure political theater.
When a doctor completes his course work, he takes the Hippocratic Oath and when a politician gets elected it appears that he takes a hypocritic oath.
Dave Alpert has masters degrees in social work, educational administration, and psychology. He spent his career working with troubled inner city adolescents.