Israel chose not to defend her position at the Hague. I suppose it would have been an exercise in futility - kind of like banging one's head against a concrete barrier. It seems the world will always hold the Jewish nation up to different standards and look at it in a different light.

But, had I been asked to represent the defense, my approach would have also been different. I would have put the world on trial. I wouldn't have wasted my efforts or the court's time presenting any evidence remotely Jewish or Israeli in nature. My testimony would have been limited to documentation gleaned exclusively from "unadulterated" media sources emanating from Europe, Africa and the Arab world (no pro-Israel bias here).

I would have taken the focus off of Israel and pointed those judges due South, towards the Sahara...

While the international community descended upon Israel in a frenzied bid to stop construction of an anti-terror security fence - lest it lead to murder, rape pillaging, ethnic cleansing, and genocide - Arab terrorists known as Janjaweed, or "devils on horseback", were doing just those very things to black African farming families in Western Sudan.

At about the same time that ISM activists like Rachel Corrie decided to set herself in front of a bulldozer and Tom Hurndall managed to place himself in the line of fire (all in the name of humanity), Arab tribes, at the behest of the Sudanese government, began a 16-month campaign that, according to African sources, "has killed up to 100,000 people, driven more than 1 million from their homes and left more than 2 million in desperate need of aid."

That's human tragedy on an immense scale. I wonder how the United Nations and other international bodies missed that one? After all, things of this magnitude don't happen overnight. Perhaps they were too busy barking up the wrong fence and didn't have time to listen to the eyewitness accounts or to view the satellite images of 155 burnt villages, or hear the authentic cries and screams of African humanity over the din of the pseudo-humanitarian anti-fence protesters.

But now that the Hague decision is in, the UN and EU can turn to more pressing matters. Just this week, Kofi Annan flew into Sudan's Darfur region for a firsthand look at what officials are calling "the world's worst humanitarian crisis..."

It seems that these Arab/Islamic raiders found another incredible loophole in the Koran. They need not achieve martyrdom in order to receive their reward in paradise. They simply ride into the nearest Sudanese neighborhood, butcher the men and boys, and snatch their prize. While the terrorists enjoy "paradise", the abducted women-folk get a 10-day excursion through Hell - including gang rape, torture and various other humiliations. For their trouble, the young girls get to pick up their "white-skinned" trophy nine months later. Check it out for yourself on the BBC online. You may have trouble finding the story. First you have to scale the homepage coverage on the Israeli security fence decision before you can read about the mass rape and murder taking place in Sudan, so I'll help you to navigate. Try accessing http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/3791713.stm.

Why a fully aware EU, UN, Hague and international media deliberately chose to bury disastrous developments in Africa in favor of perpetuating a Palestinian/Arab propaganda campaign is worth investigation . Sounds like a combination of negligence and complicity to me. I could raise the possibility of an anti-Semitic lynch, but I agreed to stay away from Jewish/Israeli issues.

Now that the word is out and the fence thing is over, one would expect the EU to place this urgent African crisis at the top of their agenda. And yet, the July 11th report found at EUbusiness.com places the plight of the Sudanese at rock bottom.

Topping the agenda is Iraq and the "EU's response to the ruling by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) that Israel's West Bank barrier is illegal."

Somewhere in the middle of the summary you can find mention of the ongoing WTO (World Trade Organization) negotiations and farming subsidy issues. Last and obviously least, by EU standards, is the following item:

"And they [the EU] will discuss the escalating humanitarian catastrophe in war-torn Darfur, western Sudan, where government forces and so-called Janjawid militias are accused of conducting a brutal campaign of ethnic cleansing and forced starvation...."

The international political, economic and judiciary arenas knew. The media knew, and the international aid agencies knew. And yet a choice was made to disregard the urgency of the situation in Africa and to focus instead on thwarting Israel's efforts to boost her security.

As an Israeli and Jew, I'm a bit guilt-ridden for not knowing about the humanitarian crisis in Africa. I guess we were all too wrapped up in our own state of emergency. And yet, now that we do know, I'm sure our doctors and relief supplies like food, medicine, blankets and tents are, as always, available and ready to go at a moment's notice.

We¹ve always been there and continue to be there for a world in need. And yet, the international community continues to hold us in contempt. That's both a shame and a tragedy for a very needy and sick world.

The defense rests.

References:

http://mathaba.net

http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2004/698/re72.htm

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/3791713.stm

http://www.eubusiness.com/afp/040711013220.hxcisd0s

http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/WO0407/S00041.htm

http://www.veteransforpeace.org/Israels_wall_sparks_111103.htm