On the second of November 1917, a letter from the United Kingdom's Foreign Secretary Arthur James Balfour was delivered to Walter Rothschild, the 2nd Baron Rothschild and a leader of the British Jewish community, for transmission to the Zionist Federation of Great Britain and Ireland. It read: "His Majesty›s government view with favor the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavors to facilitate the achievement of this object, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine, or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country." This became known as the Balfour Declaration and it gave birth to one of the greatest tragedies in the 20th century – the attempted extermination of the Palestinian people. This Zionist-inspired plan led to the bizarre creation of the nation of Israel on Palestinian lands. The illegal occupation initially by Jewish refugees from Europe and later from other parts of the world has been going on for decades. It has been for the most part condoned by most of the Western world made to feel guilty for the crimes of Hitler against the Jews during World War II, notwithstanding the fact that neither the Palestinians nor the Arabs had anything to do with those atrocities. The Israelis, too eager to establish their domain, began expropriating Palestinian land and encouraging Jewish settlers from all over the globe to take advantage of free land much to the dismay of the native population, many of whom were killed, tortured, maimed or imprisoned for protesting the usurpation of their rights or for fighting back. Israel soon became the pariah of nations in the region. The conflict, well into its eighth decade, has pitched the mightily armed Israelis against the woefully unequipped Palestinians who have been subjected to a constant barrage of targeted killings, bombings, destruction of their homes and imprisonment without charge. Such is the apartheid state of Israel that was given credence by Britain. So when a Peace Conference organized by the French government was recently planned to bring the Israeli-Palestinian issue to the fore and work toward a salvageable solution, what did those behind the creation of Israel do? They declined to participate in the conference, preferring instead to send observers to watch and take notes. Here you have a conference trying to bring nations together to seek a solution to a long and potentially explosive conflict, and the UK government decides to take a pass! And the lame excuses offered are enough to make someone sick. They stated that they had reservations about the outcome of a Middle East peace conference in Paris, because it risked "hardening positions." A British Foreign Office statement read: "We have particular reservations about an international conference intended to advance peace between the parties that do not involve them - indeed which is taking place against the wishes of the Israelis - and which is taking place just days before the transition to a new American President when the US will be the ultimate guarantor of any agreement. There are risks therefore that this conference hardens positions at a time when we need to be encouraging the conditions for peace. Well, hello. Naturally the Israelis do not want the conference. They do not want to be disturbed in the midst of their illegal occupation and ongoing brutality in Palestinian lands. Indeed, who would be stupid enough to invite attention while they are up to no good? John Kerry, the US Secretary of State, was right when he declared the current Israeli government as "the most right-wing in Israeli history." But guess what? He was scolded by Prime Minister Theresa May's government! Following on the heels of revelations last week by Al-Jazeera TV which demonstrated the entrenchment of Israeli moles in the UK government and how many UK lawmakers are on the payroll funded by Zionist sympathizers, all of this comes as no surprise. What is tragic, however, is that the Brits are unwilling today to work to heal a wound they created a century ago that is still painfully infected. — The author can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @talmaeena
