Phyllis Bennis, Institute for Policy Studies, 16 June 2008
UFPJ Talking Points #59: U.S. trying to “legalize” permanent occupation of Iraq; Shifting discourse on Israel-Palestine
*The Bush administration is escalating its efforts to make permanent its occupation of Iraq through imposing a “bilateral” agreement on the Iraqi government, but Iraqi opposition is growing. If those efforts fail, the U.S. and Iraq may try to pressure the United Nations to extend its current mandate “legalizing” the U.S. occupation.
*While U.S. policy has not yet changed, public and media discourse on Israel and Palestine is in the throes of a major transformation.
“Legalizing” the U.S. Occupation of Iraq
In recent weeks, the Bush administration has intensified its longstanding effort to make the U.S. occupation of Iraq permanent. Its first choice is to coerce the U.S.-backed Iraqi government to sign an ostensibly “bilateral” agreement – what the White House would like to call a “status of forces agreement” (SOFA). The administration is pushing to meet the July 31 deadline that was earlier agreed to for that agreement. There are new indications of Iraqi resistance to the proposed agreement – both U.S. occupation-backed Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki and the influential Shi’a cleric Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani have recently indicated strong opposition. But the U.S. effort to impose a “security agreement” remains in force.
The reason for the Bush administration’s urgency is that the current United Nations mandate expires on December 31st of this year. That mandate, which the U.S. forced on a reluctant but unwilling-to-resist Security Council, transformed the U.S.-British occupation army into a UN-approved “multi-national force.” It provided a veneer of international legitimacy over what would otherwise be understood to be a thoroughly illegal occupation. That veneer that will be stripped away on January 1, 2009, making the U.S. occupation officially illegal and leaving the 150,000 or so remaining U.S. occupation troops without immunity from Iraqi law.
Take Action: Votes on Military Aid to Israel Coming Soon
June 23rd, 2008
We’ve just learned that the House and Senate committees which have jurisdiction over foreign aid will be voting soon on military aid to Israel for FY2009.
The House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs will “mark-up” the foreign aid bill on July 16 and 17, respectively, which includes the President’s request for $2.55 billion in Foreign Military Financing (FMF) for Israel.
Eric Garris | 23 June | Iran War Resolution May Be Passed Next Week