Even though, as I pointed out, US President Barack Obama’s speech was very problematic for Israel, Hamas are not happy campers.
"I'm smiling only on the outside."
President Barack Obama’s Mideast policy speech Thursday was a “total failure,” Hamas said Thursday evening.
“The (Arab) nation does not need a lesson on democracy from Obama,” said Hamas spokesman in the Gaza Strip, Sami Abu-Zuhri. “Rather, Obama is the one who needs the lesson given his absolute endorsement of Israel’s crimes and his refusal to condemn Israel’s occupation.”
“We will not recognize the Israeli occupation under any circumstances,” the Hamas spokesman said, while adding: “We object to intervention in our internal affairs.”
Abu-Zuhri also urged the Palestinian Authority not to endorse the American president’s speech. He stressed the need to coordinate Palestinian positions in the face of what he referred to as “American-Israeli arrogance.”
No surprises there, considering Obama recognized that there should at least be a state of Israel. But no worries! I’m sure they’ll come around during negotiations.
Someone else unhappy with Obama’s speech is none other than anti-Israel blogger Richard Silverstein, who especially took issue with Obama’s mention of Israel’s right to self-defense!
And there were other troubling omissions and lapses like this:
As for security, every state has the right to self-defense, and Israel must be able to defend itself -– by itself -– against any threat.
Here again, we see no awareness that it is often the Israeli military itself that is not a self-protective defender of Israeli security, but rather an aggressor that kills and maims at will. Where is the recognition that Palestine will need protection from Israeli violence?
I posit the only troubling omission was Silverstein’s father not using a condom.
A law school graduate, David Lange transitioned from work in the oil and hi-tech industries into fulltime Israel advocacy. He is a respected commentator and Middle East analyst who has often been cited by the mainstream media
A law school graduate, David Lange transitioned from work in the oil and hi-tech industries into fulltime Israel advocacy. He is a respected commentator and Middle East analyst who has often been cited by the mainstream media
