THE HILL
by Abraham Miller
August 15, 2014
Have you noticed that no member of the Obama administration ever mentions Israel’s right to self-defense without adding the word “but?” Usually, what follows “but” is more important than the hackneyed allusion to self-defense that preceded it.
One of the latest supporters of Israel’s right to self-defense with the compulsory “but” is Valerie Jarrett, President Obama’s chief confidant and senior adviser.
The president has proclaimed that he completely trusts Jarrett to speak for him, especially on delicate issues. When Jarrett makes the rounds of the Sunday morning television talk shows, it is Obama’s positions that are being underscored.
Recently on CBS’ “Face the Nation,” Jarrett enunciated what has become the mantra of the administration in describing the war in Gaza, “It’s a devastating situation. Israel absolutely has the right to defend itself, and we are Israel’s staunchest ally. But you also can’t condone the killing of all of these innocent children.”
The inescapable implication of this circumlocution is that Israel can avoid killing “all of these innocent children.” Like other Hamas apologists, Jarrett provides no context. There is no discussion of human shields, putting weapons near and in schools and hospitals, or even mentioning that Hamas has put civilians at risk by moving its headquarters to the Shifa hospital in Gaza City.
On Jarrett’s and every other observer’s mind was the allegation that Israel had shelled a school near the Rafah crossing that morning. United Nations Secretary General Bin Kai-moon could not contain his anger and called the alleged shelling, “a moral outrage and criminal act.” Department of State spokesperson Jan Paski used the words “outrage” and “disgraceful” to describe the shelling, which stood in sharp contrast to the word “irresponsible” that the administration typically uses for Hamas’ rocket attacks.
Paul Miller of the Franklin Center for Government & Public Integrity’s noted this past week in the Daily Caller that the Rafah incident “was inaccurately reported by the international press, as video footage clearly shows the school was unharmed and Israel indeed struck outside the building.”……
ArchitectGuy on Israel 