Sowing future terrorism in Iraq?(Insider Report)

In a September 18 dispatch, the Associated Press quoted an Israeli military official as disclosing that the U.S. military "is showing an interest in Israeli software instructing soldiers on how to behave in the West Bank and Gaza." "The United States is looking at the Israeli policies as examples of how American soldiers can better handle a hostile population in Iraq," notes investigative author James Bovard. "That may not be the perfect recipe for peace in the American-occupied territory."

"The Israelis are justifiably anxious to protect themselves from the torrent of murderous suicide bombers," continues Bovard. "While some Israeli policies may reduce short-term casualties among Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), other Israeli policies stir up hostility that can help inflame Palestinians."

Perhaps the most inflammatory and counter-productive policy employed by Israeli occupation forces in Palestine is the doctrine of collective punishment, under which families of terrorists have seen their homes bulldozed by IDF troops, and the vacated housing plots are sometimes filled by Israeli settlers or military officials.

"From September 2000 through April 2003, Israel demolished the homes of more than 12,000 Palestinians," notes Bovard. "The rate of destruction increased sharply in early 2003, despite a lull at that time in Palestinian suicide attacks on Israelis." Many Palestinian Arabs have been killed in home demolitions.

The October 12 London ...