1967 oPt: Israeli occupied Palestinian territory, Jimmy Carter's book tour (2006-2007)

Ward Boston Jr. (then Captain, U.S. Navy, JAG, based in Italy, a lawyer, a former FBI agent, a world war 2 naval aviator in the Pacific), was senior legal counsel for this:

John S. McCain Jr. (Commander in Chief, U.S. Naval Forces Europe, London), “Court of Inquiry” (telex message to multiple commands, dated June 11 1967 1:11pm GMT/Zulu) (CINCUSNAVEUR DTG 111311Z JUN 67) {88kb.pdf, source}.

An attack by the Israeli navy and air force on the USS Liberty (AGTR-5), a Naval/NSA electronic surveillance ship, killing 34 U.S. sailors, wounding 172, and doing their very best to kill every last one of them, to leave no witnesses (June 8 1967, day-3 of the six day war).

36 years later, in an affidavit, published October 22 2003, Ward Boston exposed a prima facie criminal lie (18 U.S.C. § 1001) and prima facie criminal conspiracy to lie (18 U.S.C. § 371) by U.S. military commanders above him, in the chain of command, on the prima facie criminal orders of Lyndon Baines Johnson (President) and Robert S. McNamara (Secretary of Defense) (together, the “National Command Authority”), to conceal facts, alter facts, and falsify findings of fact and opinion, the findings of the court of inquiry Ward Boston conducted.

Ward Boston’s affidavit is part of the Findings of the Independent Commission of Inquiry Into the Israeli Attack on the USS Liberty (Thomas H. Moorer, chairman, October 22 2003), reprinted in, John Conyers Jr. (then ranking minority member, House Judiciary Committee, now chairman), “In Recognition of Admiral Thomas H. Moorer,” 150 Congressional Record E1886-E1889 {pf} {28kb.txt, 89kb.pdf} (daily edition 150:130, October 11 2004, U.S. Congress 108-2) {SuDoc: X/A.108/2:150/130}.

Ward Boston later prepared a 26 paragraph declaration {384kb.pdf, source, copy, source} (January 8 2004), that the 1967 transcript he certified was later falsified:

See also, David C. Walsh (Washington D.C.), “Attack on the Liberty: Lifting the 'fog of war'” (The San Diego Union-Tribune, March 28 2004) (“the second-oldest newspaper in Southern California”), U.S.S. Liberty (NSA/CSS: National Security Agency, June 8 2007) (“On 08 June 2007, the National Security Agency (NSA) finalized the review of all material relative to the 08 June 1967 attack on the USS Liberty. This additional release adds to the collection of documents and audio recordings and transcripts previously posted to the site on 02 July 2003.”), Alison Weir, American Media Misses the Boat: “USA Today and the USS Liberty” (CounterPunch, June 23/24 2007).

____________________

National Character

On this evidence, Lyndon Baines Johnson ordered the U.S. military to lie to the public.

He feared the truth would undermine U.S. public support for Israel.

LBJ made a political decision, to continue U.S. support for Israel, instead of leading an international coalition to denounce Israel, the unnecessary preemptive war Israel launched (the six day war), the heated rhetoric from Egypt which pretexted Israel’s attack, demand a return to the status quo ante, and action to correct the injustice inflicted on the Palestinians, the Israeli provocation for Egypt’s heated rhetoric.

LBJ was a coward.

And dishonest.

As his lie demonstrates.

He was frightened.

To take political heat, for his political decision.

From the Israel Lobby.

From Members of Congress

From the U.S. public.

And he was frightened.

He might not be able to sell his political decision.

And make it stick.

If he told the truth.

About the USS Liberty.

About why Israel’s preemptive war was unnecessary.

About intensified injustice.

To Palestinians.

LBJ’s leadership (which he did not originate) is long since firmly established.

Selling policy by lies.

A hallmark.

The national character of the United States.

And of its citizens.

Terminal cancer.

Prima facie criminal lies, criminal conspiracies, among Members of Congress, their staffs, witnesses they select to lie to Congress, executive branch officials who lie to Congress, to each other, Members of Congress wielding Congress as a tool, to promote their crimes, a RICO (racketeer influenced and corrupt organization), to lie to Congress, the military, the public.

Like this:

H. Con. Res. 110-21 {H.Con.Res.21.eh, 8kb.txt, 34kb.pdf} (U.S. Congress 110-1): House concurrent resolution, “Calling on the United Nations Security Council to charge Iranian leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad with violating the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide and the United Nations Charter because of his calls for the destruction of the State of Israel,” introduced January 9 2007 and referred to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, referred February 5 2007 by that committee to two of its subcommittees (Middle East and South Asia; International Organizations, Human Rights, and Oversight), floor debate (without subcommittee hearing or markup, or full committee hearing or markup debate), “Calling on United Nations Security Council to Charge Iranian President With Certain Violations Because of His Calls for Destruction of Israel,” 153 Congressional Record H6600-H6605 {pf} {47kb.txt, 88kb.pdf} (June 18 2007, 4:00-4:50pm, daily edition 153:98, U.S. Congress 110-1) {SuDoc: X/A.110/1:153/98}, vote, House roll call vote 110-1:513 (411/2/11/8) (June 20 2007, 12:29 p.m.), 153 Cong. Rec. H6754-H6755 {pf} {9kb.txt, 49kb.pdf} (June 20 2007, 12:25-12:30pm, daily edition 153:100, U.S. Congress 110-1) {SuDoc: X/A.110/1:153/100}.

Every single individual who voted for this resolution knew, for a fact, at the time of the vote, that s/he did not know, whether this was a “fact,” or not.

This assertion of fact is a prima facie criminal lie.

By each of them, one by one, as they cast their vote.

And a criminal conspiracy to lie, among the leaders among them, who engineered this assertion.

Moreover, they each of them knew, as well, that it’s unlikely to be a fact, in the teeth of more than 2000 days of IAEA inspections, some of them very intrusive, extending beyond even what the Additional Protocol permits.

So in Iran, as in Iraq, when the U.S. threw-out the U.N. inspectors, to prevent them from confirming that Iraq had no WMD.

In Iran, the same was happening, Iran’s extensive cooperation with IAEA inspectors. The U.S. could see what was coming — what later came — a formal declaration, by the IAEA (2008), that every single one of the U.S. assertions (portraying Iran as having a nuclear weapons program), every last one of them, were untrue, without merit, a U.S. lie.

Seeing this writing on the wall, the U.S. engineered the IAEA Board of Governors to refer Iran to the U.N. Security Council (February 2006) to provoke Iran to stop cooperating with the IAEA, and thereby create an atmosphere of uncertainty, secrecy, the U.S. could point to, as evidence of a nuclear weapons program (an inference, in lieu of actual evidence).

But Iran was not tricked, and they continued to cooperate, 100% as their safeguard agreement requires, terminating only the extra cooperation they were voluntarily providing.

When the bombs fall, the bullets strike, in overt war and covert action — as they have already, in Iraq, Lebanon, Gaza, and many other places — these crimes of lying such as this, by these individuals, become violent crimes as well, overt acts, complicity in the crimes they intended to incite, promote, aid and abet, facilitate, and international crimes too, such as the crime against peace and war crimes.

I oppose the death penalty, for several good reasons.

But down the road, in an alternate universe, in the case of United States v. 411 Former Members of Congress, if the jury decides, that death is the proper penalty:—

I will not weep.

For them.

But I might weep.

For joy.

Charles Judson Harwood Jr.
July 8 2007
May 25 2009