Flashpoints June 25, 2002: Belgium court decides Sharon; Neta Golan defends Pals

KPFA Flashpoints News Radio

Tuesday, June 25, 2002 - Start Audio
-00:00 Dennis Bernstein: introduction: a Belgium court decides tomorrow whether to try Ariel Sharon for war crimes; interview with ISM founder, Neta Golan, in the home of a suicide bomber's family, due to be bulldozed by Israel
-00:55 Dennis: US officials continue to ridicule Arafat, but silence about Sharon's role in the 1982 massacre of Palestinian civilians at the refugee camps of Sabra and Chatilla.. interview with the lead attorney in the case, Chibli Mallat, from Lebanon (link2) (link2).. Mr. Mallat: a horrendous non-stop massacre.. killing with axes, shooting children against walls.. the Israeli army was there surrounding the camp, preventing people from getting out.. Robert Fisk discovered more victims taken away to a sports stadium, in the custody of the Israeli army.. and were disappeared.. a large scale, under international law, a crime against humanity.. Dennis: were there Israeli soldiers inside the camp?.. Mr. Mallat: (that they wouldn't have entered) defies common sense.. these camps were the nemesis of the Israelis.. the surviving victims saw Israelis inside the camp.. with loudspeakers, telling people of certain ages.. testimony and evidence.. (no further review available for this segment tonight).. more info: www.IndictSharon.net
-37:21 music break Song of Freedom, by Bob Marley "emancipate yourself from mental slavery, no one but us can free our minds.."
-41:03 Dennis: Israel went into Hebron today.. now an interview with Neta Golan in Balata Camp, in the home of a suicide bomber's family, due to be bulldozed by Israel.. Neta: the Israelis talking of sending the family to Gaza.. earlier today the electricity cut.. they came in and shot a little bit and left.. now they are outside the camp.. the city under curfew for a week now.. the University supposed to have final exams.. basically people are imprisoned in their homes.. only allowed out for an hour a day.. otherwise they get shot at.. ambulance.. body of a young man in the street.. no one allowed to come near the body for forty minutes.. a Kalashnikov rifle placed next to the body.. people are frightened.. hopefully on Friday we will break curfew and march in protest.. the drinking water contaminated.. diarrhea at epidemic levels.. ambulances stopped and searched.. a very difficut situation.. Dennis: yesterday Bush made a speech, if if if provisional state.. the feeling on the ground?.. Neta: a lot of resentment.. no other state has the right to tell another.. people here suffering a lot from the Isreali army.. no mention of that.. Dennis: a proposal from a US Jewish attorney that the families of suicide bombers should be killed.. Neta: my cousin was killed in a suicide bombing.. it's wrong, it's a criminal act.. but think, the bomber's cousin was killed four days before he exploded.. and another cousin in a wheelchair due to Israel violence.. the use of collective punishment is.. pushing the Pals to more and more desperate acts.. the only thing that will bring security to Israel is a Palestinian state.. US/Israeli policy only making things worse.. an hour ago, a tank and APC pulled up to our house.. we decided to stay in the house.. about another house destroyed with people inside.. we don't know that we will get a warning.. these people are innocent.. the logic of punishing them further, after they have lost an 18-year old boy, who killed himself.. Neta: I can't support such retribution..
-52:44 poetry break Martin Espada, reads 'Imagine the Angels of Bread'..

    This is the year that squatters evict landlords,
    gazing like admirals from the rail
    of the roofdeck
    or levitating hands in praise
    of steam in the shower;
    this is the year
    that shawled refugees deport judges
    who stare at the floor
    and their swollen feet
    as files are stamped
    with their destination.

-56:15 End today's show. today's review by john lionheart

about Robert Fisk, leading British Middle Eastern Affairs journalist (London Independent), who spoke in Berkeley Thursday.. Fisk: Netanyahu said, 'there was no massacre'.. the investigation has focused on the supposed lie of the massacre, not on what actually happened.. quoting the Israeli army spokemen, there were hundreds of dead and wounded, there were plans to truck out bodies.. the Israelis said the Red Cross declined to enter Jenin, the Red Cross said that was untrue.. ABOUT MORE ISRAELI LIES.. THE UN SECURITY COUNCIL VOTED TO SEND AN INVESTIGATION TEAM.. SHARON DENIED THEM ACCESS.. A ISRAELI ARIEL PHOTO CAPTION SAID 100 SQ. METERS RAZED, WE MEASURED THE AREA, IT WAS ACTUALLY 2,000 SQ. METERS.. ABOUT THE HAGLER-REEVES REPORT.. ABOUT A NURSE THAT WAS SHOT BY ISRAELI SOLDIERS.. ABOUT A DISABLED MAN WHO WAS PLOWED UNDER BY A ISRAELI BULLDOZER.. ABOUT A MAN IN A WHEELCHAIR WITH A WHILE FLAG, SHOT AND RAN OVER BY A TANK.. Fisk: I have no doubt these reports are true.. I saw how the Israeli army acted in Lebanon.. 17,500 died in Lebanon.. Arial Sharon has never expressed regret.. Syria slaughtered 20,000.. like Sharon, Syria's leader claimed he was 'fighting terrorism'.. when does an atrocity become a massacre become a genocide.. about the Palestinian terrorists who broke into an illegal Israeli settlement and killed four civilians, including children.. and four were wounded.. the official statement by Israeli army official, said "this was a massacre".. Fisk: I don't like the mathematics of all this.. IF THE 4 KILLINGS IN THE ISRAELI SETTLEMENT WERE A 'MASSACRE', WHAT WERE THE 50+ KILLINGS IN JENIN?.. about the war crimes committed by both sides.. Arabs have suffered under Israeli occupation.. an US-Israeli supporter calling for the execution of suicide bomber's families.. Fisk: this raises some interesting questions.. if the suicide bomber has 3 children, which ones are put to death?.. this reveals the obscene depths to which this conflict has sunk.. about the Palestinian suicide bombers.. murderous acts.. the journalists, we make up weasel words.. our coverage has become muted.. "you *may* not be an anti-Semite, but your reports are (causing anti-Semitism)".. the desire to please.. we can report certain facts.. Bush has had another 'vision'.. a vision of a Palestinian state.. last fall when the US wanted to keep the Arab world quiet while the US bombed on of the poorest Muslim states in the world.. now after six visits by Ariel Sharon, Bush has another vision.. an interim state.. not one US newspaper has questioned.. how laughable.. what does 'interim state' mean?.. Albright said the Pals should be happy to get a 'sort of sovereignty' over Arab East Jerusalem.. 'provisional state' is a concept never heard of before.. WHY DO WE JOURNALISTS GO ALONG WITH IT?.. A CRAVEN POLICY.. IN NO OTHER AREA OF THE WORLD.. HAS OUR REPORTING HAS BECOME SO INCOMPREHENSIBLE.. poverty of expression.. about the mantras that western journalists must express.. for an easy life, unemcumbered by hate mail.. about the term 'terrorist'.. it's overuse.. remains as poisonous as ever.. and maybe racist.. about the death toll in Sabra and Shatilla.. why were the perpetrators never called terrorists? because the perpetrators were allies of Israel.. because Sharon was responsible.. Goldstein who killed 29 men at prayer not called a terrorist.. why?.. about Newsweek magazine cover "Terror Goes Global" alluding to Bin Ladens.. the photo shows though a Palestinian resistance fighter.. I asked the photographer, a Finn living in New York.. "I took the picture at a funeral in the West Bank".. Fisk: NEWSWEEK TURNED THE PALESTINIAN MOURNER INTO A GLOBAL TERRORIST.. THE PICTURE WAS A LIE.

IMPORTANT TO NOTE WHEN THE ISRAELIS CAME IN WITH TANKS FIRING TONIGHT, THEY HAD ALREADY ARRESTED ALL THE MEN.. THEY KNEW THAT THERE WERE ONLY OLD PEOPLE, WOMEN, AND CHILDREN THEY WERE KILLING..

now w Dr. Karem: (sp?).. they lift the curfew.. the women went to the market to buy food.. hundreds of children, persons in the street.. we send our housekeeper from the hospital to buy vegetables, and fruit from the market.. after one hour, two hour.. we hear the tanks start shooting everywhere in the town.. we hear explosions everywhere.. our hospital, something very strong.. we received nine wounded persons, one killed, a girl six years old.. she has very sad story, out from her house with father, brother, sister.. bought bread and vegetables, and milk.. father return to house.. unlucky girl.. one son and two daughters wounded.. I saw the sack of bread that the father bought, covered with the blood of his daughter.. and she died.. shot in the chest and left arm.. the muscle and the bone destroyed completely.. we treat her older sister shot in the abdomen stil in hospital, her sister 2 and half years old, shot in the thigh.. their father was lucky, not shot.. now I hear nothing.. for an hour.. about the other nine, ten wounded persons.. 2 in critical condition.. one a veternarian.. the soldiers said to me 'go home', we about ten fifteen persons dead.. I went to take my car, but car shot by tank.. Dennis: how do you feel about suicide bombers?.. Dr. Karen: We dislike any person to be killed regardless of origin, religion, nationality.. and (particularly) children should not be killed.. 4 children killed today in Jenin town.. we have no shortage now for medical supplies, drugs.. but if the seige continues long.. I like to tell you, two mothers called me today, and said before the curfew was lifted.. a new boy, six days old, has jaundice, asked me what to do.. I asked her what is her blood group, and there is a difference between her and the baby.. very dangerous.. she asked me send an ambulance.. I can not though.. It is a very sad day, If I saw four children killed anywhere, I feel very sad.. all children are innocent