US should help world impose sanctions against Israel: Writer

An American writer says Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu only understands the language of sanctions and the US should help the world implement the recent UN Security Council declaration.

James Petras, a professor emeritus of sociology at Binghamton University in Binghamton, New York, and adjunct professor at Saint Mary's University in Halifax, Nova Scotia in Canada, made the remarks in a phone interview with Press TV on Monday.

On Friday, the UN Security Council passed Resolution 2334, which demands an immediate end to illegal settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territories like East Jerusalem al-Quds.

The resolution was adopted after the US refused to veto it, reversing its longstanding policy of shielding Israel from condemnatory measures at the world body.

On Sunday, a furious Netanyahu summoned US Ambassador to Israel Daniel Shapiro and a group of other foreign envoys over the Security Council's rebuke of Israel’s settlement policy.

In addition, Netanyahu also accused US President Barack Obama of "colluding" with the Palestinians, and carrying out a “shameful ambush” by not vetoing the resolution against Israel.  

Israel has lost touch with reality

Professor Petras told Press TV that the Israeli regime has “no connection with reality.”

“In fact, the US government is finally acting with the vast majorities of the countries in the world -- I would say over 90 percent who do not support Israel’s seizure of Palestinian territory and the colonization [of it],” he stated.

The analyst said that “the US finally took a step declaring its independence of Israel and its multi-billionaire-dollar supporters in the United States. This is a very positive development. And I think it has caused Israel a great deal of consternation, because Israel depends on the US to continue its policies.”  

“If the United Nations Security Council declaration was implemented that would be even more important because it could lead to sanctions against Israel, which is the only language the Netanyahu regime understands,” he explained.

“If they lost money, if they lost income from trade, I think Israel would finally begin to negotiate a two-state solution,” he continued.  

“So we can say that this measure is a very positive step forward, but it is insufficient to make Israel understand that it cannot engage in colonialism in the 21st century,” the writer said in his concluding remarks.

Netanyahu’s accusations  

The Israeli PM told his cabinet on Sunday that Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry were responsible for the “shameful” vote.

"From the information that we have, we have no doubt that the Obama administration initiated it, stood behind it, coordinated on the wording and demanded that it be passed," Netanyahu told his ministers.

Following the UN vote, US Deputy National Security Adviser Ben Rhodes told the whining Israeli prime minister that only he is responsible for Washington’s decision to allow the Security Council to adopt the resolution.

Rhodes dismissed Netanyahu’s claim that Obama colluded with other members behind the scenes, saying that the president only informed his national security team on Friday morning of his decision to abstain from the vote.

Rhodes added that Netanyahu did not pay attention to repeated American warnings that increased illegal settlement activity on the occupied Palestinian lands could lead to greater pressure from the international community.

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