Finkelstein: Israel will pretend that illegal annexation is a compromise

Pushback with Aaron Mate

Pushback with Aaron Maté

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4.7 • 594 Ratings

🗓️ 23 June 2020

⏱️ 25 minutes

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Summary

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has set a date of July 1st to begin Israel's annexation of major parts of the Occupied West Bank. A group of 47 independent UN legal experts call the annexation plan "a vision of a 21st century apartheid." Author and scholar Norman Finkelstein argues that Netanyahu is exploiting a brief window of opportunity under Trump and will use the deadline to swallow up valuable West Bank while pretending to be making a compromise because he does not seize the entire territory. "If there were an an Oscar for Best Dramatic Performance by a Nation-State, Israel would win hands down every year," Finkelstein says. "And so they will manage to turn this illegal annexation, which will enable Israel to appropriate some of the best farmland, agricultural land in the Occupied Territories, that will preclude the possibility of a Palestinian state — they’ll manage to turn it into another agonizing, gut-wrenching compromise. I could write the script." Guest: Norman Finkelstein, author and scholar. His latest book is "I Accuse! : Herewith A Proof Beyond Reasonable Doubt That ICC Chief Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda Whitewashed Israel." www.normanfinkelstein.com Support Pushback at Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/aaronmate

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to Pushback. I'm Aaron Mattaire. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has set a date of July 1st to begin Israel's annexation of major parts of the occupied West Bank.
0:13.8	Under Netanyahu's plan, Israel would declare sovereignty over all the illegal settlements built on Palestinian land since 1967, including in the Jordan Valley.
0:24.5	Netanyahu has a green light from Washington.
0:27.1	The Trump administration has said it will recognize Israel's annexation of up to 30% of the West Bank.
0:32.9	For the rest of the world, the annexation move is the latest grave escalation of Israel's
0:38.4	illegal occupation of Palestinian land since 1967.
0:42.8	In a statement, a group of 47 independent UN legal experts called the annexation plan, quote,
0:48.7	a vision of a 21st century apartheid.
0:51.6	Well, joining me is Norman Ficklestin, author and scholar. His latest book is called
0:55.8	I accuse. Norman, welcome to pushback. Uncertainty still about what exactly Netanyahu is going to do
1:03.9	on July 1st. But what do you think people should know about his talk of annexing the West Bank?
1:13.6	Well, there are several things. First of all, it's clearly illegal under international law.
1:19.6	Secondly, what seems so prompted it is not law, but brutal politics, namely Mr. Netanyahu's of the opinion,
1:32.5	which is probably correct, that he has an opportunity which won't come again to carry out
1:39.9	a large-scale legal annexation of parts of the West Bank and that Trump may not be around
1:49.5	after November, it's a question mark, and he wants to take advantage of that opportunity.
1:58.8	And I would say, thirdly, you have to always bear in mind two things about Mr. Netanyahu.
2:08.2	Number one, he is a showman.
2:14.5	He's not really a statesman.
2:17.1	He's a showman. He's a showman.
2:18.2	He's a performance artist.
2:21.0	And number two, he is acutely aware of political opportunities.
	...

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