House was right to condemn Goldstone report
Washington, D.C.,
Nov 4, 2009 -
Yesterday, the House voted on and passed H.Res.867, calling on the President and the Secretary of State to oppose unequivocally any endorsement or further consideration of the "Report of the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict" in multilateral fora. As a cosponsor of this resolution, I was very pleased to see it come to the floor.
The United States and Israel have shared a close relationship of friendship, cooperation, and strategic alliance that serves as an example to the rest of the world, and I believe it is imperative for the United States to unequivocally reject the findings of the Goldstone Report, in order to preserve and nurture this relationship.
The U.N. Human Rights Council has long been recognized for its anti-Israel bias, so it comes as little surprise they would rubber-stamp the “Goldstone Report” and its findings of “crimes against humanity” with regard to Israel’s activities in Gaza. To quote Israel’s Ambassador to the U.S., Michael Oren, “Israel basically was the equivalent of being summoned to a court in which its guilt was already presumed…I can’t think of any country in the world which would participate in such a farce of justice.”
Indeed, while this report condemns Israel’s actions, it ignores the precipitating causes of Israel’s self-defensive behavior, concluding that Israel’s military operations were “deliberate and systematic,” and directed at the people of Gaza as a whole, failing to acknowledge Israel’s right to defend itself against terrorism, namely the thousands of rockets launched daily at its citizens. Moreover, the Goldstone Report ignores the extraordinary steps taken by Israel to minimize civilian casualties, often putting its own soldiers at greater risk to do so.
It is unfortunate that recent years have been marked by escalating armed conflict between Israel and Hamas; however, I believe the United States should stand steadfast in its commitment to a free and secure Israel as the Middle East comes to embrace the liberties and freedoms of democratic societies.
(Cross-posted at the Republican Jewish Coalition Blog)
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