by Stephen Lendman

Real journalists report issues responsibly. Scoundrels operate by different rules. They play lead US imperial roles. Without them, pretexts for war wouldn't matter. Selling them depends on widespread dissemination. Messages not heard don't exist.

Regurgitating official lies legitimizes attacking one nonbelligerent nation after another. Responsible parties share guilt with war planners.

Blood drenches their hands. Peace and stability are rejected. So are rule of law principles and democratic values. Global barbarism defines their thinking. It shows in what they endorse.

Perhaps mass slaughter and destruction energize them. They're paid to lie. They support imperial war lords. Truth and full disclosure are verboten. They willingly promote the unconscionable.

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by Stephen Lendman

Breaking the Silence (BTS) is an organization comprised of Israeli combat veterans. They served since the start of the second Intifada. They refuse any longer to stay silent.

Their testimonies expose "the reality of everyday life in the Occupied Territories." Their purpose is to stimulate public debate. They revealed abuses too gruesome to hide.

They include "looting and destruction of property." Many other crimes and abuses are much worse. In their own words, they reveal the deplorable immorality of Israel's militarized occupation.

Most Israelis ignore it. They turn a blind eye to what's done in their name. "In order to become civilians again, soldiers are (also) forced to ignore what they have seen and done."

BTS members have been revealing disturbing truths for years. A previous article discussed them, saying:

"We, reserve officers and soldiers of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF)....have always served in the front lines" (We) were first to carry out any mission, light or heavy, (and we did it) to protect the State of Israel and strengthen it."

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by Stephen Lendman

Last February, a Jerusalem Fund/Palestine Center (PC) report titled "When Settlers Attack" discussed data collected from 2004 to 2011. It includes over 3,700 separate incidents. It explains when, how, and why they occur.

PC discovered a disturbing increase in violence. Palestinian civilians are targeted. Northern rural West Bank villages are most affected.

Each year, attacks peak during olive harvest season. Most aren't "price tag" revenge incidents. They're structural and systemic. They're occupation related.

Over 90% of areas experiencing violence are under Israeli security jurisdiction. According to PC's executive director Yousef Munayyer:

"The dramatic rise in settler violence in the last several years demands investigation and analysis into why this happens."

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