Turning Zionists into Al-Qaida type fanatics is not going to help the cause of Israel.

Israel 'Hasbara' (advocacy) that Hurts

Israelis and supporters of Israel are angry over Barack Obama's treatment of Israel. A poll shows that only 6% of Jewish Israelis think that Obama is pro-Israel, about 50% think he is pro-Palestinian, and 36% think he is neutral.

Despite Obama's talk about the "unbreakable bond" between Israel and the United States, it appears to Israelis that he and his administration are going out of their way to snub Israel and to isolate Israel as an "obstacle to peace." Obama did not stop in Israel on his recent trip to the Middle East. Obama administration policies seem to exert pressure unilaterally on Israel. The administration offers no solution to the problem of Hamas domination in Gaza other than encouraging Palestinian unity and pressuring Israel to reward Hamas by opening Gaza to importation of cement and other materials that will allow them to rebuild their underground bunkers. Obama did not ask Palestinians to give up their demands for right of return, nor did he confront their refusal to recognize the right of the Jewish people to self determination. Obama did not even try to bring off the symbolic gesture of getting Red Cross visitation rights for kidnapped soldier Gilead Schalit, let alone getting him freed.

All the pressure is on Israel, and it is exerted in often ugly and in-your-face ways by administration officials, especially the supposedly pro-Israel Hillary Clinton. If Barack Obama is trying to project an image of "even handedness" in order to win over Muslim and Arab opinion, he certainly succeeded in Israel. Whether or not he succeeded in the Arab and Muslim worlds remains to be seen. Is it likely Muslims will forgive American bombing of civilians in Afghanistan if Israel implements a settlement freeze, or that al-Qaeda will approve of democracy, gay marriage, teaching of evolution and Bikinis if Israel gives up Jerusalem?

 

Continued: Israel 'Hasbara' (advocacy) that Hurts