Barack Obama's direct appeal to Israeli citizens for peace

arya

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Barack Obama made an impassioned plea to Israel's people over the heads of its government by calling on them to put themselves in the shoes of Palestinians and pressure the country's political leadership to seek peace.

n a speech deploying his full range of rhetorical gifts, the US president first cast himself as an unyielding friend of Israel before appealing to ordinary Israelis by asking them to recognise that Palestinians shared their hopes and aspirations, but were being denied the right of an independent state.
Addressing an audience of around 1,000 students at Jerusalem's International Convention Centre, Mr Obama then went a step further by urging a public long-wary of him to pressure Israel's political leaders to take risks for peace.
"Speaking as a politician, I can promise you this: political leaders will not take risks if the people do not demand that they do. You must create the change that you want to see," he said in a refrain that reprised the message preceding his election as president in 2008

"Put yourself in their shoes — look at the world through their eyes. It is not fair that a Palestinian child cannot grow up in a state of her own, and lives with the presence of a foreign army that controls the movements of her parents every single day." In an implicit rebuff to hard-line pro-settlers in Israel's newly formed coalition government, he linked the practices of injustice to the side-effects of the country's settlement policies in the occupied West Bank and east Jerusalem, which Palestinians hope will form part of their future state.
"It is not just when settler violence against Palestinians goes unpunished," Mr Obama said. "It is not right to prevent Palestinians from farming their lands; to restrict a student's ability to move around the West Bank; or to displace Palestinian families from their home.
"Neither occupation nor expulsion is the answer. Just as Israelis built a state in their homeland, Palestinians have a right to be a free people in their own land."
Citing the bilateral support for Israel in the US Congress, Mr Obama said it would be politically more convenient for him to ignore the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
But he believed in speaking the truth to friends, he said. And peace was necessary to safeguard Israel's future as a democratic and Jewish state as well as in meeting Palestinian aspirations. It was also possible — although he admitted it was not guaranteed and entailed risks.
It would mean abandoning settlement building and giving up dreams of establishing a Greater Israel on lands once inhabited by Jewish people in biblical times. Quoting the former Israeli prime minister, Ariel Sharon, the president said: "It is impossible to have a Jewish, democratic state and at the same time to control all of Eretz Israel. If we insist on fulfilling the dream in its entirety, we are liable to lose it all.
"Given the demographics west of the Jordan River, the only way for Israel to endure and thrive as a Jewish and democratic state is through the recognition of an independent and viable Palestine," he added to surprisingly loud applause.
Mr Obama's eloquent call for peace contrasted with a stumbling performance earlier in a press conference in Ramallah with Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian leader, when he appeared unsure over how to address Israel's continued settlement expansion.
It was all the more striking for having been preceded by a long declaration of unstinting loyalty to America's alliance with Israel. Invoking sources ranging from Martin Luther King to David-Ben Gurion, Israel's founding prime minister, Mr Obama professed a deep belief in the legitimacy of the Zionist dream of a Jewish ancestral homeland.
Those rejecting Israel's right to exist "might as well reject the earth beneath them and the sky above", he said. "Israel is not going anywhere".
As if to reassure wavering doubters, he stated his willingness to stop Iran building a nuclear bomb — a prime concern of Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's prime minister. "America will do what we must to prevent a nuclear-armed Iran."
As if to reinforce Israeli fears, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader, threatened, in a speech marking the Iranian new year, to "raze Tel Aviv and Haifa to the ground" if Israel attacked the Islamic regime's nuclear installations.


source ::: Impassioned Barack Obama's direct appeal to Israeli citizens for peace - Telegraph
 

W.G.Ewald

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A nauseating performance by a obsessive political campaigner. When will this supercilious twit attempt to govern in the position he was elected to, instead of giving speeches?
 

Neil

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A nauseating performance by a obsessive political campaigner. When will this supercilious twit attempt to govern in the position he was elected to, instead of giving speeches?

i dont know about performance or delivering on promises....but W.E. sir... that guy is a damn good orator... not many can connect with their audience like he does...
 

asianobserve

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i dont know about performance or delivering on promises....but W.E. sir... that guy is a damn good orator... not many can connect with their audience like he does...

Well so far he failed to connect with our friend Mr. Ewald...
 

W.G.Ewald

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Way better than a stuttering President...
You really want to keep going with this?
 
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W.G.Ewald

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You've been drinking too much Cool Aid buddy...
Let me help you with your analogy.

Drinking the Kool-Aid - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Drinking the Kool-Aid" is a metaphor commonly used in the United States that refers to a person or group holding an unquestioned belief, argument, or philosophy without critical examination. The phrase typically carries a negative connotation when applied to an individual or group. There are two likely sources for the term: the first is the Ken Kesey Kool-Aid Acid Tests of the 1960s. The second source is the November 1978 Rev. Jim Jones Jonestown Massacre,[1][2] where members of the Peoples Temple were said to have committed suicide by drinking a Kool-Aid drink laced with cyanide.[3][4]
It is the followers of Obama who do not question anything he says or does, and are more likely to use drugs (as he did).

You probably mean to call me a racist, since that is what you call anybody who questions Obama.
 

Das ka das

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Some nerve this Obama has to criticize the only democracy in the Middle East and probably the only country where the majority of the populace is not demanding blood of kafirs (including Americans!).
 

W.G.Ewald

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Some nerve this Obama has to criticize the only democracy in the Middle East and probably the only country where the majority of the populace is not demanding blood of kafirs (including Americans!).
Would The Telegraph have been so ecstatic if Netanyahu had "gone over the heads" of US government and told American people to oppose Obama on gun control, for example? Of course they would not. There is no end to press gullibility where Obama is concerned.
 

asianobserve

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israeli media laud obama 'bear hug'
by katie glueck | 3/22/13
politico

if the coverage in the famously ferocious israeli press is any indication, president barack obama's first presidential trip to israel was a smashing success.

"u.s. President barack obama may well define his israel visit with 'veni vidi vici': I came, i saw, i conquered," declared alon pinkas, writing in the influential liberal newspaper ha'aretz. "mission: Accomplished. Goals: Achieved. Media coverage? Couldn't be better. Expectations? Reasonable. Deliverables? Maybe down the road, maybe not."

in the politically centrist times of israel, david horovitz called a thursday address to a youthful israeli crowd at a jerusalem convention center a "'reset' of obama's personal relationship with israel."

"barack obama, widely perceived by israelis before this visit as a cold president, a leader dutifully supporting israel but lacking any real empathy for it, transformed that image in the course of the powerhouse central address of his visit here on thursday afternoon — for the 1,000 ecstatic young israelis in jerusalem's international conference center, and doubtless for many, many israelis watching on live television nationwide," horovitz wrote.

At the beginning of obama's swing through israel this week, he and israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu hosted a joint press conference. The two leaders have a relationship that, until this trip, was often characterized as frosty — but during their wednesday joint appearance, the two traded jokes and offered warm words for each other.

"'what if' questions are never constructive, but one cannot help but ask how much frustration, aggravation and anger would have been prevented in both israel and the us had obama made this trip, and adopted this approach, at the beginning of his presidency," wrote herb keinon in the right-tilting jerusalem post.

"living in a neighborhood, and even in a world, in which there are those who have not exactly accepted our right or legitimacy to be here, having the most powerful man in the world come and give us a public bear hug is very important," keinon wrote, in his piece headlined "obama, he had us at 'shalom.'" "and obama gave us that."

in an opinion piece published in israel hayom — a publication launched by gop megadonor sheldon adelson — dan margalit also praised obama's trip.

"given the shower of love u.s. President barack obama bestowed upon israel when he arrived on wednesday, there were some who expected that his speech in jerusalem on thursday would be so friendly that afterward it would be suitable for him to become a minister in prime minister benjamin netanyahu's government," he wrote facetiously. "of course, this did not occur and there were some who were disappointed. But, in fact, obama's trip to israel has significantly strengthened the relationship between the two countries and their leaders."

the israeli newspaper ma'ariv was one of many israeli publications to have a large section dedicated to "obama in israel," while publications including ha'aretz and the times of israel had an active live blog, underscoring the country's fascination with the president and his trip.

On friday, israeli publications from across the political spectrum ran headlines off a remark obama made at a visit to yad vashem, israel's holocaust memorial and museum, that served as a nod to the many israelis who view their country as a safe haven for the jewish people.

"here on your ancient land, let it be said for all the world to hear," obama said. "the state of israel does not exist because of the holocaust, but in the survival of a strong jewish state of israel the holocaust will never happen again."

"there wasn't one israeli button that obama didn't push during the speech and throughout his entire visit: From holocaust to redemption, anxiety to bravery, victimhood to victory, ancient rights to start-up nation," applauded chemi shalev in ha'aretz. Shalev added later, "in this regard, obama will henceforth be a much tougher rival for his right-wing conservative critics."


read more: Israeli media laud Obama 'bear hug' - Katie Glueck - POLITICO.com
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W.G.Ewald

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Obama causes Israel to make humiliating apology to Turkey’s anti-Israel prime minister | Power Line

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu apologized today to Turkey for an Israeli raid on a Gaza-bound flotilla. The apology is, of course, the handiwork of President Obama. Indeed, Netanyahu made the call during an airport meeting with Obama shortly before Obama mercifully left Israel.

The apology is a humiliation for Israel, which had nothing for which to be sorry. Netanyahu's statement — which he wisely resisted making for three years — will not improve Israeli relations with Turkey. Relations are poor not because of the flotilla incident, but because Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan, a good friend of Obama's, is an Israel-hating Islamist.

How much does Erdogan hate Israel? Daniel Pipes reminds us that last month, Erdogan stated: "Just like Zionism, anti-Semitism and fascism, Islamophobia must be regarded as a crime against humanity." And three days ago, Erdogan stood by his claim that Zionism, the principle upon which Israel is founded, constitutes a crime against humanity.

If anyone should apologize, it is Erdogan — not just for his verbal attack on Zionism, but also for supporting the terrorists who undertook the Gaza flotilla . But instead, thanks to Obama, Erdogan is rewarded with an apology from Israel.

Erodgan/Turkey is the only winner from Obama's trip to Israel. And he's the only party Obama wanted to win, now that he has become disillusioned with the Palestinians.
 

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