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Israel’s Knesset passes ‘judicial reform’

By Christopher Overfelt

Israel’s far-right legislature has passed a bill limiting the power of the Israeli supreme court. This new legislation will allow the far-right legislature to enact new laws without the oversight of the judicial branch. Many Israeli citizens marched in the streets in protest, but to no avail. The protesters were met with violence by Israeli police, including being sprayed with noxious gasses, a practice used before only on Palestinians. After decades of genocidal practices perpetrated by the Israeli government on the people of Palestine, the citizens of Israel are now beginning to experience those practices perpetrated upon themselves.

The genocide and racism that have infected the Israeli government are being funded by the US taxpayer. Every year, tens of billions of US taxpayer dollars flow into Israel, which are then, through weapons purchases, transferred into the pockets of the American military-industrial complex. The genocide that is being perpetrated upon the people of Palestine is subsidizing the lavish lifestyles of the CEOs of Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and many, many others.

Hundreds of Palestinians have been killed by Israel forces in 2023, including many women and young children. Palestinian houses, schools, and hospitals have been torn down by Israeli construction workers, and Israeli settlements have been built on top of them. Palestinian water wells have been filled with concrete by Israeli forces so that Palestinians cannot grow food on their land.

US taxpayer dollars fund these practices not just in Israel but in many other countries as well. Saudi Arabia and Egypt both receive billions in American taxpayer money, which they then use to operate repressive regimes. These corrupt regimes secure American corporate power and wealth around the world. While American corporate power grows, the rest of us do what we must to survive.   

—Christopher Overfelt, a member of Veterans for Peace, serves on the PeaceWorks KC Board. © 2023, Christopher Overfelt, Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike 4.0 International License. April 23, 2023, photo: https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?search=Tel+Aviv+protest&title=Special:MediaSearch&go=Go&type=image

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