{"id":259154,"date":"2024-04-15T12:00:40","date_gmt":"2024-04-15T11:00:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/?p=259154"},"modified":"2024-04-10T07:22:13","modified_gmt":"2024-04-10T06:22:13","slug":"israeli-milestones-from-six-day-victory-to-six-month-failure","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/2024\/04\/israeli-milestones-from-six-day-victory-to-six-month-failure\/","title":{"rendered":"Israeli Milestones: From Six Day Victory to Six Month Failure"},"content":{"rendered":"

8 Apr 2024 <\/em>– In June 1967 Israel launched surprise attacks on its Arab neighbors and captured Gaza, the West Bank, Jerusalem and the Golan. With military and intelligence support from Lyndon Johnson\u2019s administration, Israel shocked and overwhelmed its neighbors, largely destroying Egypt\u2019s air force on the ground. Israel not only seized possession of these territories, they humiliated their adversaries. It only took six days.<\/p>\n

This assault was pivotal in three respects. First, it cemented hard core zionism\u00a0 including unrepentant violence at the core of the country. This is shown not only by the atrocities committed against their Arab neighbors.\u00a0 It is shown in the attempt to sink the USS Liberty<\/a> and kill all its US navy personnel. Second, it created the myth of Israeli military and intelligence superiority.\u00a0 Third it generated huge support for the Zionist state internationally. As they say, \u201cEverybody loves a winner\u201d,\u00a0 and Israel was the undisputed winner in 1967.\u00a0 Anti-zionist sentiment in the US and international Jewish community, previously quite strong,\u00a0 declined significantly. Western support for Israel increased dramatically. Due to effective propaganda, public support also increased.<\/p>\n

The decades since then have seen a consistent Israeli refusal to compromise with the people whose land they took and whose livelihoods they control. Gaza has been under siege for decades and a concentration camp since 2007. The West Bank and Jerusalem are not much better with ever tightening restrictions, checkpoints and arrests.<\/p>\n

The Al Aqsa Flood Operation<\/strong><\/p>\n

On 7 October 2023 it was the Israeli military that was shocked.\u00a0 Hamas and other Palestinian resistance forces broke out of the concentration camp, seized Israeli military posts, entered Israeli towns and kibbutzes. They killed about 400 Israeli military and police and took about 250 military and civilians hostage. About 800 civilians died either from Hamas gunfire or Israeli tanks or Apache gunship helicopters. Hundreds of cars\u00a0 containing both Palestinians and Israelis were demolished by the latter.<\/p>\n

The Israeli assumptions of\u00a0 military, intelligence and ethnic superiority were exploded\u00a0 that day. In\u00a0 rage, Israeli military\u00a0 and political officials vowed to avenge\u00a0 the embarrassment and military setback. Ministry of Defense Yoav Galant<\/a> said Palestinians were \u201chuman animals\u201d and vowed to kill through military means and starvation. They vowed to \u201cdestroy Hamas\u201d and immediately launched wave after wave of bombing attack.\u00a0 After about\u00a0 a month of bombing, the Israeli military entered Gaza . They are still there.<\/p>\n

Steeped in belief in Jewish supremacy, much of the Israeli public supports the ongoing massacre. Now, after six months of relentless attacks,\u00a0 the belief in Israeli superiority has fallen apart. The Israeli military has not been able to \u201cdestroy\u201d Hamas or weaken Palestinian resolve. On the contrary, support for Hamas and the other resistance forces has increased both in Gaza and the West Bank.\u00a0 Israeli leaders thought they could easily conquer and \u201cdestroy\u201d Hamas but they have not been able to do that despite billions in US and western supplied armaments.<\/p>\n

Hamas and the other Palestinian militants have survived and still inflict significant losses on the Israeli military. Yesterday, four more<\/a> Israeli soldiers were killed in Khan Younis.<\/p>\n

Israel has destroyed United Nations schools and shelters, churches and mosques, universities and even hospitals. They have killed over 100 reporters and thousands of\u00a0 health workers, ambulance drivers, doctors and university professors. The recent killing of seven World Central Kitchen aid workers was only exceptional because the victims were from the West. Israel has been committing atrocities like this against Palestinians for six months. .<\/p>\n

1967 vs Today <\/strong><\/p>\n

As Israel\u2019s international stature grew after the Six Day War, it is collapsing after the Six Month Siege and Massacre in Gaza.\u00a0 In 1967 many American Jews embraced Israel. Now, rapidly growing numbers who condemn Israel\u2019s atrocities and want nothing to do with the country. They correctly perceive the difference between a state (Israel) and ideology (zionism)\u00a0 on the one hand, and a faith and ethnicity on the other. They are proud to wear T-shirts saying \u201cJewish Voice for Peace\u201d and\u00a0 \u201cIf Not Now\u201d.<\/p>\n

The Global Majority of nations are fervently opposed to Israel and what it is doing. The UN General Assembly has condemned the zionist state and numerous countries have withdrawn<\/a> their ambassadors.<\/p>\n

Even western states closely allied with Israel, such as Canada, are changing their tune. Canada has suspended arms shipments to Israel and restored funding<\/a> to UNRWA.<\/p>\n

The International Court of Justice has recently ordered Israel to allow food and aid into Gaza. The Australian ICJ judge confirmed<\/a> they have ordered Israel to suspend military operations in Gaza. If Israel refuses to comply, it will only increase the global condemnation.<\/p>\n

As another sign of how much geopolitics are changing, Nicaragua<\/a> has filed a case at the International Court of Justice charging Germany with complicity in Israel\u2019s genocide.<\/p>\n

The US Congress and Administration continues to support Israel\u2019s genocide but is now shifting due to popular presssure, protests and demands. Even Democratic Party leader Nancy Pelosi<\/a> is now urging Biden to cease arms shipments to Israel.<\/p>\n

The Six Month Failure<\/strong><\/p>\n

Israel\u2019s Six Month Failure has fueled the contradictions inherent in the state.\u00a0 Political and religious contradictions are escalating with bigger and bigger demonstrations against Netanyahu and his refusal to end the war and bring home the hostages.\u00a0 Demonstrations inside Israel are getting bigger and more volatile. Last Saturday, five protesters<\/a> were purposely hit by a car.<\/p>\n

We have passed the tipping point.\u00a0 The unrelenting slaughter of Palestinian civilians over the past six months has forever changed the perception of\u00a0 Israel in the West.<\/p>\n

Israel is now widely seen internationally as a \u201cbad guy\u201d similar to how the US was seen in the late 60\u2019s in Vietnam. Just as the Tet Offensive cost the lives of tens of thousands of Vietnamese but was a crucial turning point, the October 7 Al Aqsa Flood operation marks a crucial turning point for Palestine.<\/p>\n

___________________________________________<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a> Rick Sterling is a member of the <\/em>TRANSCEND Network<\/em><\/a> and an investigative journalist who lives in the SF Bay Area, California. He can be contacted at <\/em>rsterling1@gmail.com<\/em><\/a> or <\/em>rsterling1@protonmail.com<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

8 Apr 2024 – We have passed the tipping point.\u00a0 The unrelenting slaughter of Palestinian civilians over the past six months has forever changed the perception of\u00a0 Israel in the West. Israel is now widely seen internationally as a \u201cbad guy\u201d similar to how the US was seen in the late 60\u2019s in Vietnam.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":186639,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[40],"tags":[532,1854,2898,1199,2242,87,865,1643,1029,1966,1644,88,2416,715,427,124,70,965,1025],"class_list":["post-259154","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-transcend-members","tag-colonialism","tag-crimes-against-humanity","tag-ecocide","tag-ethnic-cleansing","tag-famine","tag-gaza","tag-genocide","tag-genocide-convention","tag-hamas","tag-hunger","tag-international-court-of-justice-icj","tag-israel","tag-israeli-occupation","tag-massacre","tag-palestine","tag-united-nations","tag-usa","tag-war-crimes","tag-west-bank"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/259154","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=259154"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/259154\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":259155,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/259154\/revisions\/259155"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/186639"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=259154"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=259154"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=259154"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}