Have Palestinians anything to look forward to in the event of Kamala Harris winning the White House? Phil Chetwynd looks at the ties that bind the US and Israel in this particular ‘axis of evil’.
It is an extraordinary fact that despite the horrifying carnage currently taking place in Gaza and Lebanon, and the several International Human Rights rulings against Israel, the leaders of the Western world cannot bring themselves to place anything but the mildest of sanctions on Netanyahu and his fascist allies. Time and again, envoys and negotiators have been sent out to secure a peace that Netanyahu proceeds to scupper. Why then is the US is unable to break its links with a genocidal, apartheid state?
The first port of call in answering this question is the power of the US arms industry. The US accounts for more than 40% of the planet’s weapons exports, despite making up less than 5% of the world population. $100 to $200 billion U.S. dollars are pocketed in arms sales each year, and that number is gradually increasing year on year. 80% of Israeli arms come from US.
The US is promoting the sale of American ammunition to Israel while pretending to seek a cease-fire in Gaza. It provides Israel with $3.8 bn. (￡3 bn.) in annual military aid under a 10-year agreement that is intended to allow its ally to maintain what it calls a “qualitative military edge” over neighbouring countries. Little is said, of course, about the use of these weapons on the people of Palestine. This locks Israel into a ten year cycle of purchasing arms from the US arms giants, as part of the ‘deal’ is that recipient countries must buy new parts, spares etc. from the US. The US arms magnates therefore have a tidy income guaranteed over the period of any arms deal such as this. If Kamala really wanted to give Netanyahu the boot she’d have an awful lot to answer for amongst the warmongers of the US arms industry.
Hardly surprising then that the top two contributors to the Harris campaign are leading arms production companies Lochheed Martin ($1,444,579) and Northrop Grumman ($1,270,361). Interestingly, contributions to the Harris campaign from the arms industry outstrip those to Trump by over $500,000.1 Let’s hope they know which way the wind is blowing!
The intricate process of of political lobbying in the United States is another key feature of the reason why Harris can ‘t dump Netanyahu. This involves the passage of funds from large lobbying organisations and industrial corporations to individual party candidates who are seen to be the likeliest to represent the needs of these lobbies and corporations in Congress. One of the largest lobbying organisations is the American Israeli Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC).
AIPAC’s stated purpose is to “lobby the Congress of the United States on issues and legislation related to Israel”. AIPAC regularly meets with members of Congress and holds events where it can share its views. The New York Times has described AIPAC as “a major force in shaping United States policy in the Middle East” that is able to push numerous bills through Congress.2 Typically, these pass by unanimous votes.3
It is of some interest that Joe Biden himself has been the largest recipient of bribes from supporters of Israel. That “Genocide Joe “describes himself as a’Christian Zionist ‘ who has previously complained that Israel wasn‘t killing enough Palestinian women and children is also of some note.4 His political career has been supported by Israel to the tune of $6,000,000. In summary, Mr. Biden received the most money from Israel and he has been Israel ‘s most reliable comrade in arms over the years.
A curious feature of US lobbying law is that if individual members of the public offer $1 apiece to voters to vote or not vote for a candidate, doing so would be a Federal crime ! But foreign governments such as Israel are allowed to pay a US politician such as Biden millions of dollars to do their bidding as long as their instructions are left at the level of ‘doing their bidding ‘ rather than passing particular legislation!
The UK is no less complicit in the Israeli attempt to wipe out the Palestinian people than Kamala and AIPAC. According to reports from the UK government, in 2022, the UK issued arms export licenses to Israel valued at approximately ￡215 million. The Israeli firms Elbit Systems, Raytheon and the British firm BAE are arms firms that have several factories across Scotland.
Direct action has proved a particularly potent form of protest against the Israeli war machine in Scotland. Palestine Action has led the way here with campaigns against Elbit systems in Edinburgh. In addition to targeting specific facilities, Palestine Action has worked to mobilise local support in Scotland, engaging with community groups, activists, and political representatives to build a broader coalition against the arms trade with Israel. Unions have also come out strongly against Scottish involvement in the arms trade to Israel. Parts of UNITE and Unison have both been involved both at official and grass roots levels in campaigns to rid Scotland of Israeli arms companies.
The bottom line, however, is that continuing pressure on the Westminster government will be required to halt the UK ‘s complicity in Israeli war crimes. The call must be NO MORE ARMS FOR GENOCIDE.
- Opensecrets.org ↩︎
- David K. Shipler (July 6, 1987). ‘On Middle East Policy, A Major Influence ‘, The New York Times. ↩︎
- Mark Landler (February 3, 2014). “Potent Pro-Israel Group Finds Its Momentum Blunted“, The New York Times. ↩︎
- Brittany Bernstein (May 8th, 2021) “Biden Once Called for Israel to Defend Itself, Including Killing Women and Children “, The National Review. ↩︎
Phil Chetwynd is an erstwhile clinical psychologist who took up photography when he retired some 25 years ago. He is a member of the Network of Photographers for Palestine.