EIGHT years ago, as Barack Obama was preparing to take up his duties in the White House, Israel was busy bombarding the Palestinians trapped in the Gaza Ghetto. Zionists within the forming Obama administration insisted that Israel's blood-letting policies were justified by the militants' firing of rockets into Israel. Obama was deeply unhappy but, as he was soon to demonstrate in his long and tortured contemplation of what to do in Afghanistan, he did not push back immediately. In picking Hillary Clinton to run the State Department, Obama had chosen a machine politician wedded, "welded" might be a better word, to Washington's slavish financial and political support for Israel, even though this ally stole any military secrets the US refused to give it and happily murdered American sailors on an effectively-unarmed US navy intelligence-gathering vessel. What swung it for Obama with Israel were his early encounters with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Obama expressed his deep concern at what had happened in Gaza. The response from Netanyahu was described by one White House aide, as "deeply undiplomatic". The new president was lectured, hectored even for his doubts about the justice and wisdom of the massive use of force in Gaza. He was also told that it had been Hamas aggression that had been entirely responsible for obstructing the Oslo peace process. Coupled with a racist comment reportedly made by a member of Netanyahu's party during his first trip to Washington, relations with Obama got off on the wrong foot and never really recovered. But it has taken eight years for the now outgoing president to get his revenge. When the UN Security Council came to vote on Israel's illegal settlements, it was known that Israel had been applying significant pressure on the White House to do what it always did and veto the resolution. But it must be wondered if Obama even took the call. This was not just payback time for the bullying behavior of Netanyhu, it was also the moment when Obama could express his real feelings, his disgust and real horror at Israeli aggression. When all eyes in the UN Security Council chamber turned to UN ambassador Samantha Power it was clear that the vote was going to be carried thanks to a US abstention. Israel would no longer be treated differently in the UN, said powers. She thus made clear that Washington was no longer prepared flying political top cover for Zionism, which she recalled the UN had designated as "racist". If the Trump White House seeks to reverse this UN resolution, it has the problem that any of the other permanent Security Council members can veto the change. Netanyahu has reacted predictably, calling in the ambassadors of those countries which backed the resolution and vowing that Israel's relationship with the UN would change. He will cut Israeli funding to more UN institutions. It currently boycotts five which are seen as anti-Israeli. By provoking Netanyahu into these measures, Obama has done Palestine an immense service. Israel's existence depends on confrontation and aggression. By responding so predictably, Netanyahu has further isolated Israel from the UN and obliged more member states to recognize it for the vicious cuckoo that it is inside Palestine. Thus the likelihood of the UN's recognition and admission of Palestine as a full member state inches closer with a self-isolated Israel ever less able to head off the move.
