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US Taxdollar Aid to Israel United States diplomats like to say that when it comes to the conflict between Israel and Palestinians the US plays the role of "an honest broker." But the US' massive financial and military support for Israel means that, in fact, the US is taking sides. Israel is the largest recipient of US foreign aid, receiving more than $3 billion annually [1] -- or about $8 million every day. If a level diplomatic playing field is to be created, the US' unfair and biased support of Israel must end. Until the US stops lending its weight to Israel, a truly just peace will remain elusive. Reasons to Oppose US Aid To Israel The U.S. as an Obstacle to Peace Although the U.S. has claimed to be an "honest broker" between Israel and the Palestinians, it has provided the weapons, funding and political backing for Israel to maintain the occupation.
The U.S. as an Obstacle to Peace US Aid: The Lifeblood of Occupation Economist tallies swelling cost of Israel to US U.S Financial Aid To Israel From 2001: The Cost Of Israel To The American People Put another way, the nearly $14,630 every one of 5.8 million Israelis had received from the U.S. government by October 31, 1997, cost American taxpayers $23,241 per Israeli. That's $116,205 for every Israeli family of five. "What can I do?" |
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US Vetoes UN Action Against Israel List of UN resolutions Israel is in violation of A History of U.S. Vetoes There is another major area, largely ignored, that at some point must be faced. It involves the serious distortion of the official Security Council record by the profligate use by the United States of its veto power. In 29 separate cases between 1972 and 1991, the United States has vetoed resolutions critical of Israel. Except for the U.S. veto, these resolutions would have passed and the total number of resolutions against Israel would now equal 95 instead of 66. These resolutions would have broadened the record by affirming the right of Palestinian self-determination, by calling on Israel to abandon its repressive measures against the Palestinian intifada, by sending U.N. Observers into the occupied territories to monitor Israel's behavior and, most serious, by imposing sanctions against Israel if it did not abide by the Council's resolutions. Such a list of resolutions passed and resolutions vetoed is unparalleled in United Nations history. The list in itself forms a stunning indictment of Israel's unlawful and uncivilized actions over a period of 45 years and of America's complicity in them. Yet references to this damning record are totally absent from the vocabularies of American leaders as they go about saying they are seeking peace. If they are really serious about peace, then at some point they must act with the same firmness they displayed toward Iraq's occupation of Kuwait. Had they approached Iraq with the same timorous tactics they are applying to Israel, Iraqi soldiers still would be in Kuwait. The point is that aggressors have always answered the question of whether they want peace by their actions. If the United States really wants peace in the Middle East, it must insist that Israel abide by the judgment of the world community as expressed in resolutions by the United Nations. The U.S. can do this at any time simply by forsaking the use of the veto and joining the world consensus. Anything less makes a sham of the peace process, and is demeaning to leaders of a democratic country. Lessons to be Learned From 66 U.N. Resolutions Israel Ignores US Veto list Some more UN resolutions Thirty-four times over the past 30 years the United States has vetoed United Nations Security Council resolutions critical of Israel The US turned its back on the British UN worker gunned downby Israeli soldiers in December 2002 by vetoing a subsequent UN resolutionthat condemned the killing and called for Israel to abide by the Fourth Geneva Conventionin the occupied territories. What message does that send to the rest of the world? Another article about the veto. More UN vetoes |
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