Liberman rejects probe of killings as IDF probes killings

By Michael Schaeffer Omer-Man May 22, 2014 | Edit

Israel’s foreign minister would be well served by a beginner’s course in using Google to search the Internet before accusing the international community of hypocrisy.

Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman rejected calls for an investigation into the killings of two Palestinian teenagers. Perhaps unbeknownst to the foreign minister, the IDF had already launched an investigation into the killings, with the urging of his colleague, Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein.

Or perhaps Liberman knew full well that the U.S. and UN were simply calling for Israel to do what it was already doing, but it touched on Israel’s national pet peeve and the likely cause of 99 percent of road rage: being called out in public.

With that in mind, Liberman went on to call out the international community for what he deemed its hypocrisy.

WATCH: Footage shows Israeli army’s killing of two Palestinian teens

“I am sad to see that these demands are not made regarding other incidents. In Syria, 170,000 people have already been killed, and I have not seen any active efforts on the part of the international community to investigate the murders,” he said.

Let me Google that for you.

But it gets better. Liberman noted, “Hamas executed two civilians in the Gaza Strip, without a lawyer and without a trial. I did not see any demands from the international community to investigate that issue.”

Okay. Let’s back up a second. You, the foreign minister of the self-described “only democracy in the Middle East,” wants to be held to the same standards and measures of accountability as a group that you, the United States and others define as a terrorist organization? The same group that, just by association, taints otherwise acceptable diplomatic partners? Okay. Let’s do that.

Perhaps just as amusing as Liberman’s hypocritical accusations of hypocrisy, however, is the Israel Hayom article I quoted to bring you this story.

As a small experiment, let’s delete everything but the first and last sentences:

Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman on Wednesday rejected international calls for Israel to investigate the apparent shooting deaths of two Palestinians during a riot in the West Bank town of Beitunia last week. The IDF’s investigation into the incident will be presented to Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon on Thursday.

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TEST TEST GAL Our team has been devastated by the horrific events of this latest war. The world is reeling from Israel’s unprecedented onslaught on Gaza, inflicting mass devastation and death upon besieged Palestinians, as well as the atrocious attack and kidnappings by Hamas in Israel on October 7. Our hearts are with all the people and communities facing this violence. We are in an extraordinarily dangerous era in Israel-Palestine. The bloodshed has reached extreme levels of brutality and threatens to engulf the entire region. Emboldened settlers in the West Bank, backed by the army, are seizing the opportunity to intensify their attacks on Palestinians. The most far-right government in Israel’s history is ramping up its policing of dissent, using the cover of war to silence Palestinian citizens and left-wing Jews who object to its policies. This escalation has a very clear context, one that +972 has spent the past 14 years covering: Israeli society’s growing racism and militarism, entrenched occupation and apartheid, and a normalized siege on Gaza. We are well positioned to cover this perilous moment – but we need your help to do it. This terrible period will challenge the humanity of all of those working for a better future in this land. Palestinians and Israelis are already organizing and strategizing to put up the fight of their lives. Can we count on your support? +972 Magazine is a leading media voice of this movement, a desperately needed platform where Palestinian and Israeli journalists, activists, and thinkers can report on and analyze what is happening, guided by humanism, equality, and justice. Join us.

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