Israel: An outpost of empire

Israel's sense of impunity knows no limits, writes Michael Fiorentino, who recently returned from a two-month stay in the occupied West Bank.

"JERUSALEM IS not a settlement," said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the March 22 meeting of the American Israeli Political Action Committee. "It is our capital."

These were confident words, especially in light of the "strained" diplomatic relations between the U.S. and Israel after it was announced that Israel would construct 1,600 new housing units in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Ramat Shlomo.

The announcement, which coincided with U.S. Vice President Joe Biden's visit to the country on March 9, was an act of defiance in the face of the Obama administration's earlier call for Israel to halt settlement construction as a precondition for restarting "peace negotiations" with the Palestinian Authority.

"I condemn the decision by the government of Israel to advance planning for new housing units," said Biden. "[The] substance and timing of the announcement, particularly with the launching of proximity talks, is precisely the kind of step that undermines the trust we need right now and runs counter to the constructive discussions that I've had here in Israel."

Mainstream commentators, such as the New York Times' Thomas Friedman and Newsweek's Fareed Zakaria, have spilled much ink decrying the "crisis" in U.S.-Israeli relations.

But the supposed tension in the "special relationship" between the U.S. and Israel is largely to please domestic constituencies. Netanyahu is anxious to demonstrate his commitment to the maximum program of Israel's colonial expansion in the face of criticism from his right, and Obama is eager to show the skeptics that he is an unflinching Israel booster who can be "tough on the Arabs."

So the "damage control" started immediately. Two days after his initial statement critical of Netanyahu's plan to build more settlement housing, Biden was reiterating that the U.S. has "no better friend than Israel." When Netanyahu came to the U.S. for a closed-door meeting with Obama on March 24, the leaders of both parties in Congress were quick to show that support for apartheid Israel is thoroughly bipartisan.

"We in Congress stand by Israel, something we have a joint bipartisan commitment [to]," said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. "[There's] no separation between us on this subject. In Congress, we speak with one voice on the subject of Israel."

And here was the fawning House Republican leader John Boehner: "We have no stronger ally anywhere in the world than Israel. We all know we're in a difficult moment. I'm glad the prime minister is here so we can have an open dialogue."

The dialogue ended with Netanyhu reaffirming that the plans for the Ramat Shlomo neighborhood would not be halted. Indeed, the next day, the Jerusalem Municipality gave the go ahead to the construction of 20 new settler homes in Sheikh Jarrah, an Arab neighborhood in East Jerusalem that has been targeted by the extreme right-wing Ateret Cohanim settler group. More