Angry White Kid

Elbit: Exporting Oppression from Palestine to Latin America

By Scott Campbell
June 27, 2014
Upside Down World

Surveillance. It’s in the headlines and on the tips of tongues. As technology offers new possibilities for connection, it also offers new means to keep tabs on people. Surveillance has become seemingly ubiquitous, from the NSA reading emails to drones in the skies. As a nation that has for 66 years been ruling over an indigenous population by force, one of the main countries practicing surveillance is Israel. And it is the Israeli defense industry that has been reaping the profits off of the oppression and surveillance of the Palestinian people.

One of the top occupation profiteers in Israel is the defense firm Elbit Systems. The largest non-governmental defense company in the country, its revenue stood at $2.83 billion in 2010. Using knowledge and expertise gained from assisting in the occupation of Palestine, Elbit has made millions exporting surveillance and defense materiel worldwide – and increasingly so to Latin America. While Israel’s role in arming dictators and oppressive regimes in Latin America during the last century is well known, Elbit is at the forefront of a new wave of Israeli arms industry involvement in countries in the region. Elbit has a presence in at least five Latin American countries, as well as along the US-Mexico border. Far from being benign, the application of its technology should raise concern among those working for human rights in the area.

"It is Time for Accountability"

Originally published by Mondoweiss.

By Scott Campbell
June 24, 2014

July 9 will mark ten years since the International Court of Justice declared Israel’s wall in the West Bank illegal under international law. The ICJ also ruled that the wall must be torn down, that Israel must pay reparations for the damage caused by its construction, and that the international community should work to ensure Israeli compliance.

None of the above has occurred. Instead, Israel has used the past ten years to complete 70 percent of the more than 700 kilometer long wall. More Palestinians have been boxed in, cut off from their land, work, families and friends, education, and healthcare. Israeli and multinational companies have made millions off of constructing the wall. And shirking its obligations, the international community has stood by the sidelines, letting impunity reign.

Catastrophe: 61 years and counting

A scene from the nakba.

Today around the world Palestinians commemorate the nakba (catastrophe) of the 1948 establishment of Israel and the ethnic cleansing of 75% of the indigenous Palestinian population from their lands and homes.

Sixty-one years later the Palestinian population is dispersed around the globe, forbidden by Israel to return to their homes.  Millions live in the refugee camps of Syria, Lebanon and Jordan.  Millions more live in camps or homes under occupation in the Gaza Strip, East Jerusalem and the West Bank.  And more than a million live as third-class citizens under an openly racist, apartheid regime in the land they were born - now called Israel.

While Hamas and Fatah squabble over who gets to be the Palestinian facilitator of Israel's occupation, dictatorial Arab regimes count their U.S. dollars, and Israel continues the nakba backed by the U.S. and Europe.

Civil society, the only place where power truly resides, must continue to act.  BOYCOTT. DIVESTMENT. SANCTIONS.

Support NYU occupation students

Rally for student occupiers and their demands
Tuesday, February 14
7 PM
South side of Washington Square Park
Manhattan, NYC

Sign the petition expressing your support for the students.

My note to the NYU Vice President of Public Affairs John Beckman, in response to an email similar to this statement:

Dear Mr. Beckman,

The NYU administration handled itself in a disgraceful manner in trying to resolve the occupation. This was epitomized by the administration agreeing to negotiations then detaining and suspending the student negotiators when they arrived.  That was nothing but thuggish and cowardly behavior.  It was certainly not respectful of the "free exchange of ideas" to which you say NYU is committed.  I also saw video this evening of a security guard physically assaulting Farah Khimji while dragging her off the balcony.  Is that a "measured response"?  This is my first semester at NYU and based on the administration's behavior during this occupation I have learned that NYU does not keep its word and it will use physical force against those who disagree with it.  This is deeply disturbing to me, as it is to my friends, colleagues and family.

As Take Back NYU! has emphasized, for many months they have been attempting to engage the administration regarding their concerns.  NYU showed then, as it shows now, a complete disregard for the valid concerns of its students.  That is the other lesson I learned this past week.  NYU has no respect nor tolerance for the grievances of its student body when those grievances may affect NYU's business model.  That truly shows where its priorities are.

Sincerely,
Scott Campbell
Draper Program

NYU administration thuggishly breaks occupation

Continuous updates on Twitter.

Today New York University has shown its true face more than ever. Claiming to be a "private university in the public service," it is clearly not even in the service of those students whose tuitions allow it to exist.

Earlier today, NYU cut power to all outlets in the occupied space and turned off the wireless internet.  Obviously this was an attempt to silence and intimidate the occupiers who have broad-based support.

Then, NYU said it would negotiate and instead detained and suspended the student negotiators when they showed up.  Security has now broken through the barricade and people are being detained and suspended.

Instead of dialog and negotiation, the NYU administration has shown they prefer the authoritarian, dissent-quashing, dictator route. It is a true reflection of how they run their university. Nothing but thugs with suits on, interested in getting rich under the guise of "education."

Be prepared to defend any individual or group that is targeted academically or legally for their role in the occupation. Widespread support for the occupation and its demands will not be extinguished by NYU's hypocritical, tyrannical behavior.

Come out to 60 Washington Square South if you can.

Email NYU Administrators. Demand amnesty and no suspensions:

NYU President John Sexton: john.sexton@nyu.edu

John Beckman, NYU Spokesperson: jhb5@nyu.edu

Office of the Provost: provost@nyu.edu

Office of the Vice President: evp@nyu.edu

Protest outside occupied NYU building attacked

As the administration threatened to declare the students occupying the Kimmel Center at New York University as trespassers and subject to expulsion or arrest as of 1 AM Friday morning, a crowd of 500 people gathered outside to support the occupation.

Around midnight the crowd took the street in front of Kimmel. The police responded by firing pepper spray. A few injuries have been reported but no arrests.

Please continue to spread the word. Contact NYU. They state they will not grant amnesty. Amnesty for those taking part of the occupation is non-negotiable.

NYU refuses to negotiate

And they're also not letting security eat.

The only offer NYU has come up with in the face of the Kimmel Center occupation was that they'd agree to negotiations at 5PM today, but only if students left Kimmel by 4PM. Since it's after 4PM and the occupation is still going, you can guess what the students' response was.

At 5PM there will be a press conference in front of Kimmel Center. Come out and/or spread the word.

There's also now a sample letter and adminstration email addresses for people to use to express their support for the occupation and its demands.

NYU Occupied!

Demonstration in support of the NYU occupation:

Thursday, 12:15 PM
In front of Kimmel Student Center
60 Washington Square South, Manhattan, NYC

Since 10pm Wednesday night the third floor of the Kimmel Student Center at New York University has been occupied by more than 70 NYU and non-NYU students. Originally present for the first few hours of the occupation I had to leave for personal reasons, but it is still going strong and spirits are very high.  It was recently announced the head of NYU university relations has cut his vacation short and is flying back home.  They're clearly worried.

This is in direct solidarity with the many occupations occurring recently across the globe, from Greece to Britain to the New School and the University of Rochester.

There are 13 demands relating to NYU investments in war profiteers and occupation, the cost of tuition, the lack of transparency and the lack of respect for NYU workers.

See the full list of demands here. See live streaming video from the occupation here.

Help out and spread the word by:

• Come support the occupation!
• Send a letter to the administration in solidarity
• Send an e-mail to your professors, peers, listservs, facebook groups you name it! Tell the world.
• Have your parent write a letter or e-mail to the university
• Print the following demands and distribute them far and wide!

Join the academic and cultural boycott of Israel

 

In light of Israel's siege on Gaza, in accord with Palestinian civil society's call for a boycott, divestment and sanctions movement, and in following with the legacy of the anti-apartheid struggle in South Africa, a formal U.S. Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel has been launched.  It calls for five measures:

(1) Refraining from participation in any form of academic and cultural cooperation, collaboration or joint projects with Israeli institutions that do not vocally oppose Israeli state policies against Palestine;

(2) Advocating a comprehensive boycott of Israeli institutions at the national and international levels, including suspension of all forms of funding and subsidies to these institutions;

(3) Promoting divestment and disinvestment from Israel by international academic institutions;

(4) Working toward the condemnation of Israeli policies by pressing for resolutions to be adopted by academic, professional and cultural associations and organizations;

(5) Supporting Palestinian academic and cultural institutions directly without requiring them to partner with Israeli counterparts as an explicit or implicit condition for such support.

Currently the campaign has 154 endorsers, myself included. If you are involved in academia, I urge you to endorse the call. Even if you are not, please share this important initiative with others.

Israel's trail of dead children in Gaza

Graffiti left by Israeli soldiers in Gaza. Other pieces said, "Death to Arabs,"
"Arabs must die," and "One down, 999,999 to go."

At least 400 Palestinian children in Gaza were killed by Israel during its three-week massacre there. At least 1,630 children were injured. As the media was prevented by Israel from entering Gaza during the attacks, the horrific tales of "Operation Kill As Many Palestinians As Possible Before Obama Takes Office And Help Kadima Gain In The Polls Cast Lead" have just started to emerge.  And of course some of the most tragic involve the children.

For example, four-year-old Samar Abed Rabbu:

At her bedside, her uncle Hassan told us the family had been ordered out of their home by Israeli soldiers who were shelling the neighbourhood.

A tank had parked in front of the house, where around 30 people were taking shelter.

The women and children - mother, grandmother and three little girls - came out waving a white flag and then, he said, an Israeli soldier came out of the tank and opened fire on the terrified procession.

Samar's two sisters, aged seven and two, were shot dead. The grandmother was hit in the arm and in the side, but has survived.

Or Abdul Rahim Abu Halima, 14:

killed when his home was hit by an Israeli white phosphorus artillery shell in Atatra, in north-eastern Gaza, on 4 January. He died along with two of his brothers, Zayed, eight, and Hamza, six, his sister Shahed, who was 15-months-old, and their father, Saad Allah, 45, who was sheltering them in his arms in the hallway when the shell struck.

Then there are the children who witnessed family members executed in front of them. There were four children among the 13 people who saw Fuad Helw murdered by Israeli soldiers in his home:

As the troops burst inside, family members said Fuad Helw, 55, jumped up with his arms in the air.

"We all put our hands up and yelled, 'We're women and children. We're not the resistance,' " recalled Sherine Helw, Fuad's daughter-in-law.

The soldiers opened fire on Fuad, said Sherine, and he died in front of his family.

Nine-year-old Abdullah Samouni lost his father in a similar way. He:

described the moment his father was allegedly "executed" by Israeli soldiers.

Holding his arms in the air, he said: "He was surrendering like this. My father came out and they shot him right away."

Of course such acts, along with the use of white phosphorous and DIME bombs, are war crimes. And Spain is showing its willingness to act on a previous Israeli war crime in Gaza. Hopefully more investigations continue. (And here are some of the people who should be prosecuted.)

Israel does not seem to care. Instead there are high schoolers screaming "Death to the Arabs" and the Israeli army's chief rabbi saying mercy is "terribly immoral." Meanwhile, Obama's envoy to the region, George Mitchell, has assured Israel that no change will occur during this new administration.  Mitchell even promised Israel that Obama stood by Bush's 2004 letter to Ariel Sharon, barring the return of Palestinian refugees to Israel and ceding large settlements in the West Bank to Israel.

Amidst all the horror and slaughter, at least some in the U.S. mainstream media are beginning to ask the touch questions, such as the 60 Minutes report below.

May Palestine and all of us see justice and liberation. The struggle continues.