On Monday, the Russell Tribunal on Palestine (RTP) completed its two-days session in Cape Town (South Africa). In its unanimous verdict the RTP found that the Zionist regime is a racist and apartheid entity as defined under international law. In their recommendations, the jury called upon the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court to initiate an investigation into to the international crimes committe by Israel; Palestine to accede to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court; and the UN General Assembly to convene a special session to “consider the question os apartheid against Palestinian people” including considering the roles of individuals, organizations, corporations and all public and private bodies which have been material in assisting Israel in its apartheid policies. (BTW: This is not going to happen under international law as all the five UNSC veto-powers are guilty of collaboration with the Zionist-regime in the past).
During the session, Tribunal’s official website was hacked by Zionist IT thugs (It’s still not available). As part of ‘Jewish vengeance’ the Knesset (parliament) of the ‘only democracy in the ME’, has stripped its elected member, Haneen Zoabi, for testifying in front of the RTP. For the safety of Haneen Zoabi’s life, the Tribunal has asked South African government to ensure Israeli Mossad takes no reprisals against those who testified in Cape Town.
The RTP, ‘the People Tribunal’, is named after the famed Western philosopher, Bertrand Russell (1872-1970) and was founded by the Bertrand Russell Foundation. The first international session of Russell Tribunal on Palestine was held in Barcelona (March 1-3, 2010). The second session was held in London (November 20-22, 2010) and the third one in Cape Town (November 5-7, 2011).
The jurors at the Cape Town session included; Stéphane Hessel, Gisèle Halimi, Ronnie Kasrils, Mairead Maguire, Michael Mansfield, Antonio Martin Pallin, Cynthia McKinney, Aminata Traoré, Yasmin Sooka and Alice Walker
In addition to Haneen Zoabi – the other witnesses included Michael Sfard, Shawan Jabarin, Raji Sourani, Ingrid Jadarat, Jeff Halper Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Winnie Madikizela-Mandela.
South African Zionist Jew judge Richard Goldstone, who has long lost his human dignity under Zionist pressure – blasted the RTP session. Earlier this week, in a NYT op-ed, he denounced people who compare Zionist regime’s actions to apartheid South Africa. In fact several Jewish writers believe the Zionist regime is even worse than Nazi regime. John Dugard, former UN Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Territories says that since Zionist regime cannot be held accountable for its actions by any international tribunal as it refuses to accept the jurisdiction of either the international Court of Justice or the International Criminal Court. The Russell Tribunal seeks to remedy this weakness in the international system of justice by providing for accountability by a court of international opinion.
“Most South Africans who visit the West Bank are struck by the similarities between apartheid and Israel’s practices there. There is sufficient evidence for the Russell Tribunal to conduct a legitimate enquiry into the question whether Israel violates the prohibition of apartheid found in the 1973 Apartheid Convention and the Rome Statute,” wrote John Dugard.
John Dugard’s response to Richard Goldstone in full can read here.
I hate to admit, but I think Richard Goldstone has some valid points for not comparing Israel with apartheid South Africa. For example, the White colonists occupied South Africa by military invasion and turned the natives into Whiteman’s slaves. On the other hand, Palestine was declared Jewish homeland by the same western colonial powers once they’re convinced by leaders of World Zionist movement that that was the best way to solve Europe’s centuries-old “Jewish Problem”. South African White Christian settlers never built separation walls to hide from the natives – but Israeli Jews have built separation walls to protect themselves from the non-Jewish natives. John Kaminisky, an American writer and blogger describes the difference eloquently: “When you read the history of Israel from objective sources, you discover that it’s an outlaw state, created by the powers that be by stealing the land from its original inhabitants, and systematically exterminating them ever since“.
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