Right, even though this rash action by Israel endangers our relationship with Turkey and potentially our troops in Iraq, we should bend over backwards not to alienate Israel.
The situation is difficult for the United States, which has close relations with both countries and is now in the awkward position of crafting a reaction that avoids alienating either side. Both the United States and Israel use Turkish air space for military exercises. The United States supplies the majority of its Iraq effort from a military base in southern Turkey.
I am tired of our country acting like Israel’s poodle.
Turkey’s foreign minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, urged the U.N. Security Council in an emergency session Monday to condemn Israel’s raid on a humanitarian aid flotilla bound for the Gaza Strip and to set up a U.N. inquiry to hold accountable those responsible for it.
“Turkey would like to see that the Security Council strongly reacts and adopts a presidential statement strongly condemning this Israeli act of aggression, demanding an urgent inquiry into the incident and calling for the punishment of all responsible authorities,” he said in an address to the 15-nation council. “I call on this council to step up and do what is expected of it.”
Behind closed doors, U.S. diplomats sought to prevent the council from authorizing a U.N. investigation into the Israeli raid, saying Israel should be given a chance to conduct a credible investigation first.
Here’s a NEWSFLASH for our diplomatic corp. There is no such thing as a credible Israeli investigation. That’s because no one believes a thing they say. But, there’s no example in history where someone killed over a dozen civilians in cold blood and then were told to investigate the crime. The word ‘credible’ doesn’t exist in the same universe as that scenario.
And this next bit is a bit like scolding Martin Luther King Jr. for being ineffective.
The Turkish initiative at the United Nations placed the United States in the difficult position of trying to mediate between two important allies. Alejandro Wolff, the United States’ second-highest ranking ambassador to the United Nations, said the United States is still trying to “ascertain the facts” but that it “regrets the tragic loss of life and injuries.” Wolff said the United States expects “a credible and transparent investigation and strongly urges the Israeli government to investigate the incident fully.”
But Wolff also scolded the members of the humanitarian convoy, saying that their unapproved delivery of aid “by sea is neither appropriate nor responsible, and certainly not effective, under the circumstances.” Wolff said that “non-provocative and non-confrontational” procedures exist for delivering assistance to Gazans.
Contrary to Wolff’s position, I hope people start sending a flotilla a day. You know what’s inappropriate and irresponsible? Blowing up civilians to make a political point. Non-violent direct action is the moral alternative to terrorism. And when Israel kills activists in cold blood who haven’t come near their territorial waters? That’s just murder. Not even the Jim Crow governors gave out those kind of orders.
And our government’s response is to scold the people who died?
This whole relationship has become untenable.
