Boston Globe columnist Stephen Kinzer is a former New York Times foreign correspondent and a senior fellow at the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs at Brown University. One would hope that he has some modicum of understanding of foreign affairs.
Evidently not.
Kinzer criticizes the current round of televised debates involving Democratic Party presidential candidates, taking moderators and candidates to task for not dealing with difficult questions surrounding foreign policy. Kinzer comes up with his own questions that he believes need to be asked.
Join the fight for Israel’s fair coverage in the news
Unsurprisingly and quite legitimately, Israel is included. But the alarm bells start ringing before the questions even start. Kinzer refers to Elizabeth Warren:
She is known, for example, as a reflexive supporter of Israel, and even applauded Israel’s 2014 invasion and occupation of Gaza.
Operation Protective Edge in 2014 was an Israeli military operation in response to almost daily rocket barrages from Gaza against southern Israeli communities. Between June 12 and July 7, 2014, Hamas and other terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip fired approximately 300 rockets and mortars at Israeli population centers. In addition, Israel discovered a number of cross-border attack tunnels.
The operation was not, as Kinzer states, an “invasion and occupation of Gaza.” It’s one thing to ‘applaud’ Israel’s right to defend itself. It’s quite another to imply that Elizabeth Warren was actively celebrating unjustified belligerence.
Perhaps Kinzer was confused. A short ground offensive that saw Israeli troops withdraw certainly doesn’t constitute the “occupation of Gaza.” Yet, despite Israel disengaging from Gaza in 2005, Kinzer still believes Gaza is “occupied” judging by the question he wants to see asked at the Democratic debates:
The nearly 2 million citizens of Gaza live under the world’s harshest occupation, without freedom to travel, develop their economy, or speak freely. Israel claims that security requires it to continue this occupation. Is it justified, or should the occupation end?
Given that there are no longer any Israeli forces or settlements in Gaza and that it is self-governed by a Hamas, it’s difficult to understand how the citizens of Gaza live under “the world’s harshest occupation.”
There is, however, a blockade on Gaza enforced by Israel and Egypt in response to security concerns following the forcible takeover of the territory by Hamas in 2007.
Related reading: The Gaza Blockade: An Explainer
As for the charge that Palestinians in Gaza cannot speak freely, there’s only one address for this complaint: Hamas. Israel exercises no restrictions on freedom of speech on the residents of Gaza. They are free to criticize Israel as much as they want. They cannot, however, publicly criticize Hamas without suffering potentially serious consequences.
Stephen Kinzer, by all means ask Democratic presidential candidates foreign policy questions, including ones on Israel. But at least get the facts right.
Featured image: via JCS/D. Myles Cullen; Kinzer via YouTube/WGBHForum;
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