Intl. silence emboldens Israel to commit crime: Pundit

Press TV has conducted an interview Jamal Juma, head of the ‘Stop the Wall’ Campaign from the West Bank city of Ramallah, about the continuation of demolishing of Palestinian houses by the Israeli regime.

The following is a rough transcription of the interview.

Press TV: According to Bet-Salama, I believe, Tel Aviv has demolished more Palestinian homes in the West Bank this year compared to nearly every year over the past decade. These are quite alarming numbers, aren’t they?

Juma: Yeah, that’s true the Israeli occupation forces have been broken all the records of destroying the Palestinian homes this year than ever. That shows that Israel’s going so rapidly and fast into the issue of ethnic cleansing in the Palestinian areas particularly in Jerusalem and the Jordan Valley, in the area C, where they are aiming at annexing to the Israeli occupation state later on as part of what so-called disengagement plan that they are planning.

Yesterday night alone in Qalandiya, which they are turning it into a ghetto by the way, Qalandiya since 2006 has been isolated and ghettoized from three sides by the world, is only one way out left. And there’s no land has been remained for the people. What has been built lately for normal expansion has been destroyed. The same in al-Sawiya last night were also other four houses. Or every day there’s destruction of houses and structures for the Palestinians.

They don’t want the Palestinians to have a normal life. This is a crime against humanity. The Israeli occupation forces are responsible over that and it should be paid for that. It should be in way that they hold responsibility and responsible over this crime that they are committing against the Palestinians. It’s impossible to continue like this. This is going to explode the whole situation in the West Bank as well as in Jerusalem in general.

Press TV: Do you believe that the Israelis’ policies against the Palestinians are crimes against humanity? What about the international silence in the face of these crimes?

Juma: Well unfortunately, Israel is able to do these crimes constantly because of the silence of the international community because the impunity that Israel has been given by the United States and by the colonial power, by Europe also as well. There is no way since 1948 up to now, Israel has been dealt with as a body above the international law and all the crimes that have been committed since then until now, none of them Israel has been punished for. That’s why they continue to do the crimes that they are doing.

Part of the responsibility of that, I think, it is on us as Palestinians, Arabs and the Muslims who didn’t really do enough in order to make Israel accountable for that. To make Israel accountable, we have to do a lobby of pressure and not just on Israel but as well on the supporters of Israel. And we have too many people, we have too many things to pressure with. I think the Arabs have very very good and strong position if there’s a political willing to do that. They can do that but unfortunately the Arab situation, the Palestinian situation is not helping and they are not doing anything and responsibility toward this. That’s why Israel is now enjoying an excellent condition to continue all these crimes that they are doing on the ground.

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