India realises that the road to America runs through Israel

By making nice with Sharon's Israel, India also joined a long list of nations that sacrificed the Palestinians to further their own interest. Egypt was the first. The group that was betrayed in Camp David was, of course, the Palestinians. According to the Israeli peace activist Uri Avenry, just before the Camp David negotiations, the State Department prepared a dossier for President Carter. The dossier stated that Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin focused on minute details, while Sadat dealt with big ideas, and that both men were susceptible to flattery. More ominously, the dossier concluded that Sadat cared only for Egyptian, not Arab interests, and was ready to sell out the Palestinians. Begin and Carter were too willing to oblige. The agreement did not call for a sovereign Palestinian state, but for Palestinian "autonomy" that would allow Israel to continue its occupation. Not entirely happy, Begin annexed to the agreement a statement that "the Palestinian people" means "the Arabs of Eretz (Greater) Israel." Says Avenry: "The Palestinian people were not, of course, represented at the conference that was to decide their fate. They were not consulted at all. Carter, Begin and Sadat determined their fate as if they were too primitive to have an opinion. Sadat was ready to sell the Palestinians down the river in order to sign a separate peace with Israel, and gain the favour and money of the United States."

It was common knowledge that Jordan's King Hussein was secretly meeting with the representatives of the nation his country was officially at war with, such as Israeli Defense/Foreign Minister Moshe Dayan, as early as the sixties; one reason he remained Israel's and America's favourite king. Hopelessly dependent on Iraqi oil, Jordan professed neutrality during 1991 Gulf War I, and earned the ire of the US and Israel. In 1994, however, Jordan signed a peace treaty with Rabin's Israel, and got back into the US's good book. For its trouble, currently Jordan enjoys free trade with the US. What is less known is that Iraq's Saddam Hussein also made sweet noises to Israel. After the Camp David accord in 1979, Saddam led the Arab League's efforts to expel Egypt from the organization. In 1982, however, when Israel invaded Lebanon, Saddam did not condemn Israel, even though a year earlier in 1981, Israel had destroyed Iraq's nuclear facility in an unprovoked attack. Iraq at that time was being aided by the US in its war against Iran; Saddam did not want to jeopardize that by alienating Israel.

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Now let us see how two staunch US allies, who have not paid their respects to Israel, are faring. By keeping oil prices low, thus saving the US consumers trillions of dollars, and generally being totally obedient to the wishes of the US, no country has done more for the US economy than Saudi Arabia. Yet, thanks to the very negative portrayal of Saudi Arabia in the Zionist-controlled US media, currently it is the nation most hated by Americans. In its cover story in the September 15 issue, TIME magazine posed the question: "THE SAUDIS, whose side are they on in the war on terror?" Why? Because the Saudis have not made up with the Israelis! A historical ally of the US, Pakistan reversed its foreign policy towards Afghanistan at the US's behest after 9/11. In spite of giving America a free hand in Pakistan, Pakistan remains the second most hated nation in the US. No wonder General Musharraf in making overtures about normalizing relations with Israel.

Although publicly India has been vociferous in its support for the Palestinians, secretly India too has been meeting with Israeli officials since Israel's birth in 1948. In his autobiography, the late Israeli Defense/Foreign Minister Moshe Dayan said that he had secretly visited India at the Indian government's invitation as early as in the 1960s. Critics say that Israel helped India develop its atomic bomb. What Sharon visit had done is to make the Israeli-Indian nexus public. Like any other nation, India is entitled to follow a policy that is in its own interest. The Sharon visit did not surprise the writer. Educated Indians are pro-Israeli. Twenty years ago, the writer was surprised to find so many of his Indian colleagues critical of their government for not forging stronger alliance with Israel. It would have made perfect sense if India had invited peacemakers such as Yitzhak Rabin, Shimon Peres or Ehud Barak. It is unfortunate that India decided normalize relations with Israel by inviting the mass murderer Ariel Sharon, who is not even welcome in Europe! It is supposed to be cowardly to hit someone who is down. The Muslim world, and certainly the Palestinians are now down. It is hard to imagine how Sharon's visit can help India when Muslims and Palestinians rise up again.

Pakistan has always griped that in spite of its wholehearted support for the Palestinians, the Palestinians have maintained neutrality over the Kashmir dispute (because of Indian support for the Palestinians). The timing of India's hobnobbing with Israel could not have been worse for the Palestinians. No less than the Vice Prime Minister of Israel, Ehud Olmert, has advocated the killing of the elected leader of the Palestinians, Yasser Arafat. President Bush, who loses sleep anytime Palestinians kill Israelis, as usual is totally silent. Secretary of State Powell said that if the Israelis were to kill Arafat, "I think you can anticipate that there would be rage throughout the Arab world, the Muslim world." Notice the wording. Not because the act would be criminal, which should land Sharon in international War Crimes Tribunal in The Hague, but because the act would be bad for Israel! That is the typical line of the Bush Administration: not that the Israeli fence snaking into the West Bank is illegal, but because incorporating so many Palestinians into Israeli territory is "not good for Israel!"

Sharon believes that with continued settlement building and occupation of the West Bank, the West Bank will over time become a part of Eretz Israel. Who says might is not right? That is why Sharon has sacrificed more Israelis -- over 850 dead, another 4,200 injured (population-wise, equivalent to 50,000 dead Americans, and 250,000 injured Americans) -- in the last three years; far more than Israel ever lost in any war. To hasten its strategic alliance with America, the risk that India is taking by embracing Israel so hard at such an inopportune time, is that India may be in danger of being stained by Israel's sins.