Justice Done

“Justice has been done”: these were the words that personified the US’s achievement in the war on terror with the killing of Osama bin Laden. Justice — with regards to avenging the deaths of nearly 3,000 people that were killed in the 9/11 attack. The entire world was shell shocked at seeing the epitome of US business and glory crumble down into dust. The entire US nation had mourned for their beloved ones for nearly a decade and finally they were served with JUSTICE — they sought their REVENGE.

But has the killing of Osama brought about any feeling of content or satisfaction among the bereaved? How has killing him redeemed the many who had lost their loved ones in such a dreadful attack? This is surely hard to answer.

However, perceiving the celebrations that erupted soon after President Obama’s announcement, there did seem a heightened sense of satisfaction and relief.

Bin Laden had wronged in killing the thousands of innocent people, not only in the US but the world over. His ideology of seeking ‘blood for blood’ was inhumane and outrageous. He justified his acts saying they were instigated as a result of the US policies, in particular Palestine. However, he voiced his concerns in a very different perspective and in an unusual way, to say the least. Probably because he realised that there were not many listeners and so he had to do something out of the ordinary to grab everyone’s attention. He thus transformed into one of the most feared terrorist in the world.

The US should have tried to capture Osama and put him on trial, just like they did with Saddam. Instead of shooting him in the head, they could have shot him in the arm or the leg or even immobilize him using one of their ingeniously created weapons.

Putting him on trail in a US court would certainly not have resulted in capital punishment. However, many elusive facts could have been revealed and even more conspiracy theories would have generated. I feel that the US feared losing Osama more than capturing him and putting him on trial.

Nevertheless, though there is a feeling of respite and relief among many who suffered at the hands of Osama, Martin Luther King Jr. said it best:

“I will mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy. Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that”.

Stalled Mid East Talks

The Middle East peace talks have stalled, yet again. The Obama administration has blatantly accepted its failure in continuing the peace efforts it started twenty months back. It does not surprise since it was only a matter of time that another deadlock to the peace efforts came into place.

The Israeli government is hell bent on colonizing the shrinking patches of land left to the Palestinians, paying no heed to the international calls, and uses its military brute force to contain any resistance.

The US has been unable to counter it, either willingly or unwillingly. Will the US be able to crack the nut and restart a fresh series of talks? Will it be able to drag both parties to agree on common ground? The answers to such questions remain skeptical.
The Obama administration’s inability to contain the Israeli demographic clock - that had been waiting to start ticking - is yet another glimpse of ingrained bias in US politics, which remains the prime factor in discontinuing the peace process. The unwarranted political support towards Israel and US media that tends to be more pro-Israeli than pro-Arab makes it highly unlikely that US will ever be seen as an even-handed peace broker. Moreover, the plights of the 1.3 million Palestinians who are left in a virtual prison in the Gaza strip have been ignored in every aspect making matters even worse. Their refusal to negotiate with a democratically elected Palestinian government (Hamas - which was elected in the 2006 elections prompted by the US but later rejected it when it did not like the results) makes the peace efforts look half-hearted and half dealt. Though it is not hard to estimate the difficulty of the task Obama has in hand, one feels the US is trying to merely tackle the issue for the moment. Whether they succeed in developing yet another temporary solution or a lasting one remains to be seen. However, the current motives do not predict any changes in the Middle East peace process.

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The above blog appeared in Khaleej Times Letters to the Editor on 18th Dec, 2010

Obama's Challenge

It certainly is worthy of praise the efforts that President Obama has set forth for the reconciliation of the Middle East peace process. Though at one point in time the efforts were meagerly comprised of words and promises, it is commendable that those words have taken shape given the hefty Pro-Jewish American ideology. President Obama is to be applauded for identifying the Israeli-Palestinian dispute as a key foreign policy priority and his stepped up efforts.

Nonetheless, as rightly identified, the mammoth task of comprising and settling the debate for ‘settlement freeze’ is the first and the primary head stone in the peace reviving efforts. Both, Netenyahu and Abbas, have concreted a stern stance on their objectives and persuading the men to sit in the same room constitutes a kind of breakthrough.
It is evident that this time round President Obama has sided with the Palestinians; favoring their stance on settlement freeze, and views it essential for the peace process to advance. This is where the challenge steps in. He has already made glimpses for his support towards the Palestinians and promised to ‘… make right the wrongs’ and issued blunt warnings to Jerusalem to halt its illegal settlement activity in the occupied West Bank (land designated for the Palestinians by the UN Charter) saying “…(it) undermines efforts to achieve peace”. Provided the strong and fortified Israeli lobby within the US administration, his going might get tougher as he might not only receive criticism from within but also from the European allies of Israel.

The question for Obama is how long he can go without having something tangible to show for his engagement. Arab states have balked at making gestures of normalisation towards Israel as long as there is no movement on the settlement front - an issue of enormous symbolic significance that is seen as a test of Israel's good intentions.