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Bush and Sharon send a message

It is the end of the beginning
By D. LINDLEY YOUNG
 The Modern Tribune - April 14, 2004

WASHINGTON, D.C. (4/14) - In what is being  characterized as a "big policy shift," President Bush praised Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's new plan in  the Palestinian/Israel conflict. In a globally televised show on unity and backing for Sharon at the White House, Bush took sides and departed from his much heralded "Road Map." On two of the main issues in the conflict, the right of return and settlements,  Bush endorsed Sharon's plan to retain part of the West Bank and essentially ruled out Palestinian refugees ever returning to Israel. UK's Guardian called the Bush announcement "a costly blow .. to America's credibility as an honest broker for a Middle East peace."

In what many believe to be a crucial to the war on terror (fairly settling the Israeli/Palestinian conflict), Bush and Sharon have drawn lines that will do nothing but signal a greater Sharon/Bush alliance, enhance the perception that the US is not a fair broker and fuel the belief by many that it is the intention of the US and Israel to dominant the Middle East by military force. Some Palestinian leaders consider today's actions  by Bush “the complete end of the peace process." Others see it as the "end of the beginning."

Fueling the fire

It's almost like Bush is throwing gas on the fire in order to worsen the terror threat and create ostensible justifications for broadening the wars.  The US vetoes UN efforts to condemn the assignation of  the Hamas spiritual leader Yassin. Bush sides with Sharon on two of the sticking points in the Middle East peace process when many have argued that the US is not a fair broker in the peace process.

To make the perception worse the US seems to mimic the strategies of Sharon for dealing with terrorism and the Iraqi resistance to US occupation.

The US uses Apache helicopters to shot into neighborhoods. It detains tens of thousands of suspects and imprisoning the relatives of suspected guerrillas, in hopes of pressing the insurgents to turn themselves in  - often without charge or trial.

In selective cases, American soldiers are demolishing buildings thought to be used by Iraqi attackers. US forces have destroyed the homes of members of suspected Iraqi resistance (800 homes destroyed in a 4-day-long continuous bulldozer offensive last week), crushing residents including young children to death.

There are lock downs and curfews, everyone is given an ID card, barbed wire to separate certain areas, blocking exits and entrances to certain areas  and otherwise using overwhelming military force to solve political problems.

An Iraqi man named Tariq muttered in anger "I see no difference between us and the Palestinians," he said. "We didn't expect anything like this after Saddam fell."

The practice of destroying buildings where Iraqi insurgents are suspected of planning or mounting attacks has been used for decades by Israeli soldiers in Gaza and the West Bank. The Israeli Army has also imprisoned the relatives of suspected terrorists, in the hopes of pressing the suspects to surrender.

Both Bush and Sharon  are using the same tactics, seem to see military solutions and certain tactics and the answer to every political problem. Destroy them. If that does not work destroy their supporters wherever they be.

Who's next

US has just completed the worst week of the war in Iraq with the death of 63 US soldiers and as many as 600 Iraqi deaths. It appears that Iraq nationalism is creating greater resolve and that there is a greater Sunni Shia alliance against US occupation. Because of this other countries are blame for inciting, financing and helping the Iraqis.

George Bush has issued stern warnings to Iran and Syria, accusing them of harboring terrorists. "This behavior is completely unacceptable," he said, "And states that [if they] continue to harbor terrorists [they] will be held completely accountable."

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon recently said that Iran, and Syria should be stripped of weapons of mass destruction after Iraq. "These are irresponsible states, which must be disarmed of weapons mass destruction, and a successful American move in Iraq as a model will make that easier to achieve"

This has been the thinking for some time. In 2002 The Times of London interviewed Sharon.  The Times of London wrote that according to Sharon, “Iran is the center of ‘world terror,’ and as soon as an Iraq conflict is concluded, [Sharon] will push for Iran to be at the top of the ‘to do list’ . . . He sees Iran as ‘behind terror all around the world’ and a direct threat to Israel.”

In a meeting with U.S. Undersecretary of State John Bolton, Sharon said that Israel was concerned about the security threat posed by Iran, and stressed that it was important to deal with Iran even while American attention was focused on Iraq.

Last year a senior Israeli intelligence officer in Tel Aviv said, “We will not stand by and allow the Iranians to use the same cat-and-mouse games over their nuclear plants that Saddam used over many years.” See "Israel And US Prepare To Attack Iran"

John Bolton, the Undersecretary of State influence the direction we go in the purported wars on terrorism. While in Israel in February 2003, Bolton stated that he had "no doubt America will attack Iraq and that it will be necessary to deal with threats from Syria, Iran and North Korea afterward"

In a 2002 article in The Jerusalem Post, Netanyahu wrote: “ The United States must now act .... against the other terror regimes–Iran, Iraq, Arafat's dictatorship, Syria, and a few others. Some of these regimes will have to be toppled, some of them punished and deterred.” 

Sharon and Bush have set the stage for their broader war on terror that includes democratization of the Middle East and confronting new enemies. 

In the press conference Bush announced to the world his new and stronger alliance with Sharon and placed a special accent on the war on terror. In the short press conference Bush and Sharon mentioned "terror" or "terrorism" fifteen times.

Bush said, "The heart of this vision is the responsibility of all parties ...- to fight terror, to embrace democracy and reform, and to take the necessary steps for peace." Bush went on,  "I reiterate our steadfast commitment to Israel's security and to preserving and strengthening Israel's self-defense capability, including its right to defend itself against terror."

Sharon said, "I, myself, have been fighting terror for many years, and understand the threats and cost from terrorism. In all these years, I have never met a leader as committed as you are, Mr. President, to the struggle for freedom and the need to confront terrorism wherever it exists. I want to express my appreciation to you for your courageous leadership in the war against global terror and your commitment and vision to bring peace to the Middle East."

Conclusion

The greater support by Bush for Sharon and by each for the other and their common goals the greater the "realty" that the potential, if not inevitability, for more wars with Iran and Syria is growing closer. Iran and Syria are already clearly in the sites. It will be argued that the tougher it becomes to stabilize Iraq and prevent terrorism, the greater the need to go into Iran, Syria, etc. Bush and Sharon are determined and relentless. The are determined to strengthen their axis of dominance and to dominant the entire Middle East region. The so called war on terrorism is the excuse for doing it.

In Bush's April 13th press conference Bush repeated  his theme five times in various ways. Bush said, “We're changing the world”... We're "making history." In Bush's May 1, 2003 speech on the USS Abraham Lincoln, Bush said Afghanistan and Iraq were mere "battles," and signaled a much bigger mission, stating that "it is the end of the beginning." The message by Sharon and Bush to the Middle East: we are coming to get you.

NOTE: While the U.S. is pressing Iran over its alleged nuclear arsenal, Israel's nuclear arsenal has grown from an estimated 13 nuclear bombs in 1967 to 400 nuclear and thermonuclear weapons, according to a report published by The Los Angles Times last October.

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