The Gates of Gaza “The attackers came at dawn, quickly occupying the town. The men were separated from the women and shot. One of the attackers, opening the door of one of the homes, found an old man standing there. He shot him. ‘He enjoyed shooting him,’ an eyewitness to the attack said afterwards.
I also have come lately to this position. I am anti-Hamas and anti-Zionist now. I am now pro-free Palestine and pro-Yitzhak Rabin-style moderate Israel.
I am a huge consumer of geopolitical news and I listen to most of it dispassionately. I don't know why this Israeli-Palestinian conflict is hitting me more personally but I find myself tearing up when I read or hear well-balanced takes on the situation.
I teared-up reading this article.
Thank you, Scott, for being a truth-teller and a principled man and for helping us know the world as it is a little better.
If this is your take away from my article, then I have zero use for you.
The intellectual deficit necessary for you to write this is mind boggling, which leads me to believe that you’re simply trying to disrupt the conversation. And in that case, pound sand.
Thank you Scott. I was married to a Palestinian whose grand parents were murdered by the Irgun; their land stolen, and his 10 and 11 year old parents were forced to flee to Jordan. My husband was born in a refugee camp and had to stand in line all day for one piece of bread for a family of 5. Every time you took Israel's side it broke my heart to hear that from someone I respect. Thank you again.
I am so proud, so happy to know you exist, so inspired by your words, thank you!!!
I have been calling and writing Congress for three days calling for a cease fire, for an end to US providing Israel with funding/weapons. Questioning the role of Israel in the attacks, pointing out the end result is Palestinian Genocide.
I have posted links on many websites to the writings of every capable author who questions the attacks, the reporting of the attacks, the role of Bibi in all of this. I have despaired seeing the number of US politicians calling for unquestioning support of Israel. And then you show up with the truth, searing through the years of lies as a hot knife through butter.
Maybe there is a chance we can stop this insanity. Thank you Scott.
Thank you Scott for presenting such an authentic foundation for your position, based on long years of experience and reflection. You have recorded your trajectory thoroughly and your empathy for the people of Palestine is palpable.
Scott, I stand with you and have been railing against the Zio-Nazis for a long time. I was a Neocon Dupe and went through an existential crisis when I saw the error of my ways. I've worked to redeem myself since. I was propagandized and enthralled by the Masters of the Narrative.
I agree with you about Hamas and Israel's war crimes.
Thank You Scott. An amazing piece of context for those too superficially enflamed by misinformation and emotion to see, objectively and honestly the real truth behind this sad human tragedy.
I find repulsive, the blind fealty of so many here in America, to the image of Israel as the victim of the Palestinians and the Moslem world. In so many eyes, Israel can do no wrong, such that these people turn a blind eye to the atrocities of Israel. How easily they discount and dismiss the genocide and Crimes against Humanity of Israel against Palestinians with an air of entitled arrogance and hubris.
And dare anyone raise a criticism of Israel, lest they incur the wrath of the ADL's Johnathan Greenblatt and his reflexive automaticity cries of ANTISEMITE leveled at anyone for daring to observe that Israel simply has never learn the basic playground skill of playing well with others.
Ignorance Kills. Israel's efforts to deny and coverup their serial crimes against Humanity creates and reinforces their ignorance. In truth, this is simply the legendary Zionist deception in action. Were the wonderful and decent Israeli People to rise up and throw out their pathological and parasitic leadership, they could end this entire nightmare. As an American, I feel for them as my country faces the same challenge... to throw off our own political leaders who also have no clue about how to play well with others...
With luck, many will take the time to read this piece, Scott. Hopefully, they will learn something and their humanity will be able to punch through their killing ignorance.
İt is very sad that you ignored the history of Palestine and jumped from 1897 to 1948. Here as follows The Ottoman government took some precautions against this movement threatening its territorial integrity. In 1871, long before the Zionists took action, the Ottomans declared 80 percent of Palestine as state property. Following the succession of Sultan Abdülhamid II, he increased preventive measures against the Jewish settlement in Palestine. In 1883, he restricted the acquisition of Palestinian lands and decided to take the strategic territory himself.
In 1900, Sultan Abdülhamid II restricted Jews' stay in Palestinian territory to 30 days. He further prohibited the acquisition of territories to foreign Jews in the Ottoman Empire, including Palestine. It was declared that the Ottoman Empire was not a settlement area for people who were exiled from Europe.
No room for consent
Budapest native Theodor Herzl, the leader of the Zionist movement, requested an audience with Sultan Abdülhamid II. When this request was declined, he delivered his offer to the sultan through his close friend, Polish Phillip Newlinsky, in May, 1901. They offered to pay the Ottomans' foreign debts and to provide propaganda for the Ottoman Sultan in Europe in exchange for opening Palestinian lands to Jewish settlement and transferring governance to the Jewish people.
The sultan declined this offer with the famous saying: "I won't sell anything, not even an inch of this territory because this country does not belong to me but to all Ottomans. My people won these lands with their blood. We give what we have the way we got it in the first place." Herzl repeated his offer once again the following year, but the answer was the same.
Wow - great article - thank you! If only more people would read this. Towards the end I got the answer to my question about Israel creating Hamas. I had read that before. So Hamas was or is an intelligence asset of the Mossad. When you compare the 1947 map of the region to that of today - the encroachment is incredible. They have created an exodus of Palestine's that have resettled in other countries and brought their resentment. I think Netanyahu is more than capable of sacrificing the lives of his own people to justify war. He did it before resulting in the deaths of Americans and of those which he wanted invaded. He will use any means to achieve his ends and it will not stop at Palestine territory. Which makes me wonder how many nukes and chemical/biological weapons they have in their arsenal.
Scott, imo Isr bombing Syrian commercial airports, an act of war, should be the top headline. And it's reluctance to react widening the war bringing usa in. What's up?
One thought kept coming to me as I read this. Recently I have heard, via separate interviews, Scott say he can't believe 9/11, and now 10/7 were allowed to happen by the victim countries. I fail to understand how the contrived evil Scott writes about can happen yet similar contrived evil events are beyond his ability to accept.
I was, until the last year or so, of equal mind, however I was introduced to well documented information that has caused me to accept what once seemed unacceptable.
People have a difficult time realizing evil is a third party that has its own objectives.
We have long ago passed the time when a so-called "two-state solution " was viable. Only one country for Muslims, Christians and Jews, renamed Great Jerusalem, based on human rights. No nuclear weapons. A nuclear-free zone in the Middle East. A model for getting there is the Antarctic Treaty. Paradoxically, this is now more real than ever in the current crisis.
Why I no longer stand with Israel, and never will again
This Jew would like to thank you for your principled position. I have no desire to live in a Jewish ghetto on stolen land. Free Palestine.
I also have come lately to this position. I am anti-Hamas and anti-Zionist now. I am now pro-free Palestine and pro-Yitzhak Rabin-style moderate Israel.
I am a huge consumer of geopolitical news and I listen to most of it dispassionately. I don't know why this Israeli-Palestinian conflict is hitting me more personally but I find myself tearing up when I read or hear well-balanced takes on the situation.
I teared-up reading this article.
Thank you, Scott, for being a truth-teller and a principled man and for helping us know the world as it is a little better.
If this is your take away from my article, then I have zero use for you.
The intellectual deficit necessary for you to write this is mind boggling, which leads me to believe that you’re simply trying to disrupt the conversation. And in that case, pound sand.
Thank you Scott. I was married to a Palestinian whose grand parents were murdered by the Irgun; their land stolen, and his 10 and 11 year old parents were forced to flee to Jordan. My husband was born in a refugee camp and had to stand in line all day for one piece of bread for a family of 5. Every time you took Israel's side it broke my heart to hear that from someone I respect. Thank you again.
I am so proud, so happy to know you exist, so inspired by your words, thank you!!!
I have been calling and writing Congress for three days calling for a cease fire, for an end to US providing Israel with funding/weapons. Questioning the role of Israel in the attacks, pointing out the end result is Palestinian Genocide.
I have posted links on many websites to the writings of every capable author who questions the attacks, the reporting of the attacks, the role of Bibi in all of this. I have despaired seeing the number of US politicians calling for unquestioning support of Israel. And then you show up with the truth, searing through the years of lies as a hot knife through butter.
Maybe there is a chance we can stop this insanity. Thank you Scott.
Thank you Scott for presenting such an authentic foundation for your position, based on long years of experience and reflection. You have recorded your trajectory thoroughly and your empathy for the people of Palestine is palpable.
Carol,
Thanks. And yes, we received your kind donation. Again, thank you very much!
Scott Ritter
Scott, I stand with you and have been railing against the Zio-Nazis for a long time. I was a Neocon Dupe and went through an existential crisis when I saw the error of my ways. I've worked to redeem myself since. I was propagandized and enthralled by the Masters of the Narrative.
I agree with you about Hamas and Israel's war crimes.
I also stand with Roger Waters.
Thank You Scott. An amazing piece of context for those too superficially enflamed by misinformation and emotion to see, objectively and honestly the real truth behind this sad human tragedy.
I find repulsive, the blind fealty of so many here in America, to the image of Israel as the victim of the Palestinians and the Moslem world. In so many eyes, Israel can do no wrong, such that these people turn a blind eye to the atrocities of Israel. How easily they discount and dismiss the genocide and Crimes against Humanity of Israel against Palestinians with an air of entitled arrogance and hubris.
And dare anyone raise a criticism of Israel, lest they incur the wrath of the ADL's Johnathan Greenblatt and his reflexive automaticity cries of ANTISEMITE leveled at anyone for daring to observe that Israel simply has never learn the basic playground skill of playing well with others.
Ignorance Kills. Israel's efforts to deny and coverup their serial crimes against Humanity creates and reinforces their ignorance. In truth, this is simply the legendary Zionist deception in action. Were the wonderful and decent Israeli People to rise up and throw out their pathological and parasitic leadership, they could end this entire nightmare. As an American, I feel for them as my country faces the same challenge... to throw off our own political leaders who also have no clue about how to play well with others...
With luck, many will take the time to read this piece, Scott. Hopefully, they will learn something and their humanity will be able to punch through their killing ignorance.
Again - Thank You Scott.
İt is very sad that you ignored the history of Palestine and jumped from 1897 to 1948. Here as follows The Ottoman government took some precautions against this movement threatening its territorial integrity. In 1871, long before the Zionists took action, the Ottomans declared 80 percent of Palestine as state property. Following the succession of Sultan Abdülhamid II, he increased preventive measures against the Jewish settlement in Palestine. In 1883, he restricted the acquisition of Palestinian lands and decided to take the strategic territory himself.
In 1900, Sultan Abdülhamid II restricted Jews' stay in Palestinian territory to 30 days. He further prohibited the acquisition of territories to foreign Jews in the Ottoman Empire, including Palestine. It was declared that the Ottoman Empire was not a settlement area for people who were exiled from Europe.
No room for consent
Budapest native Theodor Herzl, the leader of the Zionist movement, requested an audience with Sultan Abdülhamid II. When this request was declined, he delivered his offer to the sultan through his close friend, Polish Phillip Newlinsky, in May, 1901. They offered to pay the Ottomans' foreign debts and to provide propaganda for the Ottoman Sultan in Europe in exchange for opening Palestinian lands to Jewish settlement and transferring governance to the Jewish people.
The sultan declined this offer with the famous saying: "I won't sell anything, not even an inch of this territory because this country does not belong to me but to all Ottomans. My people won these lands with their blood. We give what we have the way we got it in the first place." Herzl repeated his offer once again the following year, but the answer was the same.
Wow - great article - thank you! If only more people would read this. Towards the end I got the answer to my question about Israel creating Hamas. I had read that before. So Hamas was or is an intelligence asset of the Mossad. When you compare the 1947 map of the region to that of today - the encroachment is incredible. They have created an exodus of Palestine's that have resettled in other countries and brought their resentment. I think Netanyahu is more than capable of sacrificing the lives of his own people to justify war. He did it before resulting in the deaths of Americans and of those which he wanted invaded. He will use any means to achieve his ends and it will not stop at Palestine territory. Which makes me wonder how many nukes and chemical/biological weapons they have in their arsenal.
Thank you for your courage in writing about this Scott.
Scott, imo Isr bombing Syrian commercial airports, an act of war, should be the top headline. And it's reluctance to react widening the war bringing usa in. What's up?
One thought kept coming to me as I read this. Recently I have heard, via separate interviews, Scott say he can't believe 9/11, and now 10/7 were allowed to happen by the victim countries. I fail to understand how the contrived evil Scott writes about can happen yet similar contrived evil events are beyond his ability to accept.
I was, until the last year or so, of equal mind, however I was introduced to well documented information that has caused me to accept what once seemed unacceptable.
People have a difficult time realizing evil is a third party that has its own objectives.
We have long ago passed the time when a so-called "two-state solution " was viable. Only one country for Muslims, Christians and Jews, renamed Great Jerusalem, based on human rights. No nuclear weapons. A nuclear-free zone in the Middle East. A model for getting there is the Antarctic Treaty. Paradoxically, this is now more real than ever in the current crisis.
Thank you-Scott Excellent Article👍🏼