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Ahead of New Confirmation Hearings, UN Ambassador Bolton
Blocks Measure Condemning Lethal Israeli Attack on UN
As Fighting Continues, Lebanese Author Says New Poll Shows
Overwhelming Support For Hezbollah
CodePink Founder Interrupts Iraqi PM's Speech To Congress
in Protest Against Iraq War
Ahead of New Confirmation Hearings, UN Ambassador
Bolton Blocks Measure Condemning Lethal Israeli Attack on
UN
US Ambassador to the UN John Bolton has blocked a Security
Council resolution condemning Israel's killing of four UN
observers in Lebanon. UN commanders say that Israel ignored
10 calls to stop attacking the UN base. Meanwhile, the Senate
holds confirmation hearings for Bolton today. We're joined
by author Phylis Bennis. [includes rush
transcript]
On Tuesday, four UN peacekeeping troops died in an Israeli
airstrike in Khiam in southern Lebanon. UN commanders say
their outpost came under attack for hours and that Israel
ignored 10 calls to stop. By the time the assault ended peacekeeping
troops from Canada, Finland, China and Austria had died.
Israel is denying its troops were targeting the UN. But the
Consul General of Israel in New York, has accused the UN troops
of being sympathetic to Hezbollah.
Last week interim U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations,
John Bolton dismissed calls for an immediate ceasefire in
Lebanon, and today the Senate Foreign Relations Committee
is holding hearings on Bolton’s nomination to become
U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. Last year President
Bush gave Bolton a recess appointment after he failed to win
enough support in the Senate.
Phyllis Bennis joins us from Washington, D.C. -- she is a
fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies, specializing in
Middle East and United Nations issues. She is the author of
several books including ‘Challenging Empire: How People,
Governments, and the UN Defy US Power.’
- Phyllis Bennis. Fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies
in Washington DC, specializing in Middle East and United
Nations issues. She is the author of several books including
"Challenging Empire: How People, Governments, and the
UN Defy US Power."
As Fighting Continues, Lebanese Author Says New Poll
Shows Overwhelming Support For Hezbollah
Authors Amal Saad Ghorayeb and Robert Dreyfuss join us to
talk about the origins of Hezbollah and Hamas. According to
Ghorayeb, a new poll shows 87 percent of Lebanese support
Hezbollah’s resistance against the ongoing Israeli attack.
[includes rush
transcript]
International crisis talks in Rome have failed to produce
a unified call for an end to the fighting in Lebanon, after
the US and Britain refused to back a ceasefire. Israeli Justice
Minister Haim Ramon said the diplomatic stalemate gives Israel
the authorization to continue attacking Hezbollah until it
is no longer present in southern Lebanon.
But many have questioned whether Israel's military actions
have in fact strengthened Hezbollah. To discuss the origins
of Hezbollah, we're joined from Beirut by Amal Saad-Ghorayeb.
She is a professor at the Lebanese American University in
Beirut and the author of "Hizbu'llah: Politics and Religion."
And from our D.C. studio we're joined by investigative reporter
Robert Dreyfuss. He is the author of "Devil's Game: How
the United States Helped Unleash Fundamentalist Islam."
- Amal Saad Ghorayeb. Professor at the Lebanese American
University in Beirut. She is the author of "Hizbu'llah:
Politics and Religion"
- Robert Dreyfuss. Investigative reporter and contributing
editor at The Nation, a contributing writer at Mother Jones,
and a senior correspondent for The American Prospect. He
is the author of "Devil"s Game: How the United
States Helped Unleash Fundamentalist Islam."
CodePink Founder Interrupts Iraqi PM's Speech To
Congress in Protest Against Iraq War
On Wednesday, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki addressed
a joint session of Congress. He was interrupted when CODEPINK
founder Medea Benjamin yelled out: “Iraqis want the
troops to leave, bring them home now.” Benjamin was
arrested and charged with disrupting Congress. She joins us
from Washington, where she is on her 24th day of a fast against
the war. [includes rush
transcript]
On Wednesday, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki addressed
a joint session of Congress. In his 30-minute speech al-Maliki
stated that his country’s future depended on continued
US commitment and that Iraq was a front line in the war on
terrorism. At one point during the speech a protester began
to scream ‘Iraqis want the troops to leave, bring them
home now.’
The protester, CODEPINK’s Medea Benjamin, was arrested
and charged with disrupting Congress. Medea is on her 24th
day of a long-term fast for peace called - the Troops Home
Fast. Also fasting is environmental activist and co-founder
of CodePink Diane Wilson. Diane has said that she will continue
fasting until the U.S commits to a plan to bring the troops
home.
Medea Benjamin and Diane Wilson both join us from our Washington
D.C. studio.
- Medea Benjamin. Longtime peace activist and founder of
the anti-war group CODEPINK
- Diane Wilson. Texan environmental activist and co-founder
of the anti-war group CODEPINK. She has been on a hunger
strike outside the White House since July 4. She is the
author of the book "An Unreasonable Woman: A True Story
of Shrimpers, Politicos, Polluters, and the Fight for Seadrift,
Texas."
For a copy of today’s program, call 1 (800) 881 2359.
Our website is www.democracynow.org.
Our email address is mail@democracynow.org.
Democracy Now! is produced by Mike Burke, Sharif Abdel Kouddous,
Ana Nogueira, Elizabeth Press, Jeremy Scahill and Parvez Sharma.
Mike Di Filippo is our engineer.
Thanks also to Uri Galed, Angela Alston, Orlando Richards,
Simba Russeau, Johnny Sender, Rich Kim, Joe Murgio, John Randolph,
Chris Zucker, Karen Ranucci, Denis Moynihan, Eric Rweyemamu,
Jenny Filipazzo and Isis Phillips.
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