One of the finest commentators on Israel and Palestine, Jonathan Cook – a British journalist living in Nazareth – discusses the rights of Palestinians in Israel proper and a host of other issues. Speaking of Israel’s belligerence and unwillingness to recognise reality:
A report issued Wednesday by Peace Now claims that 32 percent of land held for settlement and outpost use is private Palestinian property, as is 24 percent of the land on which the settlements are actually built.
The organization says the report is based on “official figures” from the Israel Defense Forces’ Civil Administration.
Peace Now says that it had previously received data about West Bank land from the Civil Administration that did not reveal the ratio of privately owned Palestinian land to privately owned Jewish land.
The group says that the specific figures were withheld to cover up the fact that approximately one-third of land held by settlements was established on private Palestinian land.…
This is all rather reminiscent of the Western media’s constant ability to miss the big stories in front of their faces. It would be like discussing Iraq and ignoring the brutality of the American soldiers towards the Iraqi people. Examining Israel and Palestine and side-stepping the ever-expanding occupation is equally dishonest.