NYT: Democratic Opponent of Clinton Criticizes Actions of Israel

Democratic Opponent of Clinton Criticizes Actions of Israel



WASHINGTON, July 25 — Jonathan Tasini, the antiwar candidate mounting a Democratic primary challenge against Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, said this week that Israel had “committed many acts of brutality and violations of human rights and torture.”

Mr. Tasini made the comments in a wide-ranging interview with a political blog, the Room 8, after he was asked if he believed Israel was a terrorist state, according to an audiotape posted Monday on the Web site, www.r8ny.com.

“It’s painful to say that, but when you fire missiles from sophisticated aircraft on unarmed civilians in Gaza, those are again, the definition to me of ... ,” he said, pausing to find the right words.

“Terrorism is a very heavily laden word,” he continued. “But to me, what the key thing is, what are you doing? Are your actions in violation of the international norms of the Geneva Convention, and so on? And I think it’s sad to say, but it’s clear, yeah.”

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But he said that his comments were being misconstrued and insisted that he never claimed that Israel was a “terrorist state.”

At the same time, he refused to back away from his criticism of Israeli policy.

“I have been critical of Israeli conduct in the occupied territories — Gaza and the West Bank — and in the current conflict, in the same way that I have been absolutely critical of Hezbollah,” he said.

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/longisland/politics/ny-ustasi264829520jul26,0,1553498.story

Senate hopeful slams Israel's actions
BY GLENN THRUSH
WASHINGTON BUREAU

July 26, 2006

WASHINGTON - Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's Democratic foe Jonathan Tasini says that Israel - where he spent his teenage years - is violating international law and terrorizing civilians in Lebanon and Gaza.

When asked if Israel was acting like a "terrorist state" during an interview with the political blog Room 8, Tasini seemed to respond in the affirmative.

"It has certainly committed many acts of brutality and violations of human rights and torture," said Tasini, an American Jew who lived in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem from 1971 to 1980 with his father, a university professor.

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Tasini, who said his father fought "shoulder to shoulder" with assassinated Prime Minister and Clinton family friend Yitzhak Rabin during Israel's fight for independence, accused the senator of political pandering. "For simply pure political reasons, Hillary Clinton will not stand up and say the violence must stop - and that's costing lives," he said. "She's no friend of Israel when she essentially endorses this kind of war."