Israel is the main source of terror and instability in the Middle East. But the west continually turns away from this reality, says Guardian columnist Owen Jones
As the G7 issues a statement declaring that Israel has a “right to defend itself”, you have a right to ask if you are losing your mind. Israel launched an unprovoked onslaught on Iran. Its excuse – that Tehran may acquire a nuclear weapon – renders its attack illegal under the UN charter, which forbids wars justified by the claim of a future threat.
“Iran is the principal source of regional instability and terror,” declares the G7 statement. Even though Donald Trump’s intelligence chief testified three months ago that the US intelligence community “continues to assess that Iran is not building a nuclear weapon”. Even though it’s Israel that actually possesses nuclear weapons, while refusing to sign the nuclear non-proliferation treaty and refusing International Atomic Energy Agency inspections. Even though, as progress was being made in nuclear talks between Iran and the US, Israel targeted Iran’s chief negotiator and proceeded to exterminate scientists, including their families, alongside countless other civilians, including children, an athlete, a teacher, a pilates instructor. Even though Israel’s leader is subject to an arrest warrant, accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity. And even though Israel has erased Gaza in a genocidal frenzy, and subjected the illegally occupied and colonised West Bank to an escalating pogrom, attacked southern Lebanon and Beirut, and invaded and occupied Syria. No country in the Middle East is as great a source of regional instability and terror as Israel: it’s not even close.
the consent manufacturing machine is really at full tilt right now.
I think Israel is reaching the end of the patience of a lot of public figures in the west and they’re trying to regain the news cycle by pivoting the focus away from their attempts to clear out the strip of people for the sake of land development.
Major mainstream media outlets were finally starting to go “hey they shot at a bunch of people waiting in line for food… what the fuck?” and so now a new conflict must occur to lead news cycles and force public figures to take a side.
It's not Israel or Iran or whatever, it's the region itself:
Main land bridge from Africa to the rest of the world
Scarce in basic resources like water and arable land
Lately, plentiful in oil, which everyone wants some of
Add to that some religions where everyone can go "but before that, you [insert aggression]" for thousands of years back, and it's no longer about any dozen of countries.
Rather than ask "who is a greater source of instability", one should ask "which country is a source of any stability".
Iran is working on a bomb. You do not enrich uranium to 60% for anything else. Commercial uses are like 3%. So, the question is what to do. Nothing, they get nuclear weapons which is clearly their intent. Negotiation is just a delaying tactic and got us to here. So what remains to be done?