Duran leads Al Nassr past Yokohama Marinos into AFC Champions League Elite semi-finals    Al Ahli cruise past Buriram into AFC Champions League Elite semi-finals    Saudi Arabia offers condolences to Iran following deadly Bandar Abbas port explosion    Saudi Arabia welcomes Palestinian leadership reforms, appointment of Hussein Al-Sheikh    Ministry of Hajj issued over 150,000 Nusuk cards for the Hajj of 2025    Saudi Arabia deports 12,866 illegal residents in a week    Pope Francis laid to rest at historic funeral in Rome    Massive explosion at Iran's Shahid Rajaee Port injures over 500 people    SFDA clears first 44-ton medical shipment for Hajj pilgrims    Over 13 million worshipers pray at Rawdah Sharif in a year    Saudi orchestra to perform at Sydney Opera House in May    Al Hilal thrash Gwangju to reach AFC Champions League Elite semi-finals    Nammos Amala Resort to open soon with Saudi-Greek designs    Saudi Arabia completes 674 Vision 2030 initiatives, achieves 93% of KPIs as ninth-year milestone marked    GACA chief chairs 16th meeting of the Steering Committee on aviation's strategy    Alkhorayef praises advancements in Al-Kharj food industries sector    Saudi Theater Commission launches its Work and Learn Project in UK    The season has begun — and one comment shook us all    Average life expectancy in Saudi Arabia rises to78.8 years    Famed Philippine film star Nora Aunor dies at 71    Pakistani star's Bollywood return excites fans and riles far right    Veteran Bollywood actor Manoj Kumar dies at 87    Bollywood actress vindicated over boyfriend's death after media hounding    Grand Mufti rules against posting prayers and preaching in mosques on social media    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Ayoon Wa Azan (Hagel Defeats the Evil Cabal)
Published in AL HAYAT on 28 - 02 - 2013

The presence of the trio Barack Obama, John Kerry, and Chuck Hagel in one administration is reassuring. For one thing, they are not seekers of foreign military adventures, and do not consider the United States to be the world's policeman. Nor do they speak of American “exceptionalism" which the warmongering cabal had used to justify its bid to impose American values on the rest of the world.
I spent several weeks following up the hearing sessions for the confirmation of Chuck Hagel, former Republican Senator for Nebraska, as defense secretary. I noticed that the most violent campaigns against Hagel came either from advocates of war such as Sen. John McCain, who was captured in Vietnam where Kerry and Hagel had earned the highest military decorations there are; or from Sen. Lindsey Graham, one of the pro-Israel trio in Congress, which includes him, McCain, and Joe Lieberman, or Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas – that is, a “Cowboy."
The Republicans blocked the vote on Hagel's confirmation as the head of the Pentagon, but their bid was ultimately unsuccessful, and Hagel was confirmed against their will. 58 Senators voted in favor of Hagel's confirmation, against 41 who voted against. While this is the least amount of support ever secured by a defense secretary since the post was created in 1947, it is good enough.
Hagel retracted some of his past statements and offered some context to adjust others. As I was listening to him, I remembered President Obama's speech at the steps of the Capitol building on January 21, 2013.
In a speech that lasted 15 minutes, Obama made only one reference to the peace process, and spoke at length about national consensus which he knows full well he would never get. He also tackled issues like safeguarding healthcare and social welfare benefits, welcoming immigrants, gay rights, and equal pay for men and women, as well as investment in renewable energy.
The above are all top priorities for the president. Yet the peace process is also among them. While the president may have omitted or refrained from emphasizing this issue, this is because he does not want to give the warmongering cabal further ammunition to be used against him.
Personally, I believe it likely that the U.S. administration will become more engaged in the peace process in the last two years of the president's current term. We shall see the beginning of this during Obama's visit to Israel next month.
The warmongering cabal knows and expects this, which explains the daily attacks on Barack (Hussein) Obama, and on every policy and stance he adopts. We saw this with Hagel, for instance, and I cite a number of headlines from the gang's media which include: “Hagel's credibility left in shreds;" “Chuck Hagel: Unworthy of Confirmation;" “Chuck Hagel's trust in Fidel Castro;" and “Containing Hagel."
The concern of the neoconservatives and the Israel lobby towards Chuck Hagel is actually justifiable. To be sure, the man has taken stances against war and its advocates, and against Israel and its crimes. His statements during his confirmation hearings do not alter his stances, and only reflect his self-preservation in order to confront the attacks against him by the warmongering cabal.
In 2002, Hagel welcomed the Arab peace plan, or the proposal by then Crown Prince Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz, the current king, for the establishment of a Palestinian state along the borders of 1967, living in peace side by side with Israel.
On January 12, 2003, the Lincoln Journal Star, in an interview with Hagel, quoted the former senator as saying that Israel kept Palestinians caged up like animals. Hagel also criticized the division of the Palestinian people, and called on Fatah and Hamas to unite in the same interview.
In 2007, Hagel voted against the Kyl-Lieberman amendment in the Senate, which labeled the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps a terrorist group.
In 2008, Hagel spoke of a “Jewish lobby" threatening members of Congress. Though he retracted this statement during his confirmation hearings, and stated that he should have said “pro-Israel lobby" instead, I say that the Israel lobby has indeed bribed members of Congress and put them under its total control.
In 2009, Hagel gave a speech to J Street, a moderate pro-Israel lobby named after the street that houses its headquarters in Washington D.C. Hagel said in his speech that relations with Israel should not come at the expense of U.S. relations with friendly Arab countries. Instead, he argued, Washington should maintain strong ties with both sides, as this was something fundamental and not marginal to counter-terrorism and preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons capability, as well as securing global energy supplies.
Although Hagel spoke at a pro-Israeli Jewish lobby, the warmongering cabal, which comprises the neocons and Likudnik Americans that betray “their country" every day for the benefit of Israel, attacked him sharply and said that his statements constituted betrayal of Israel and the so-called special bond with the United States.
What is important now is for the trio, that is, Obama, Kerry and Hagel, to begin working in earnest for advancing U.S. interests, rather than those of Israel. This would be enough for us.
[email protected]


Clic here to read the story from its source.