1d ago

Getting the USA and USSR to agree is impressive

6 comments

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libyan_Arab_Airlines_Flight_114
On 21 February 1973, the Boeing 727–200 left Tripoli and flew to Benghazi, for its scheduled stopover. After taking off from Benghazi, it became lost because of a combination of bad weather and equipment failure over Northern Egypt. The aircraft entered Israeli controlled airspace over the Sinai Peninsula, where it was intercepted by two Israeli F-4 Phantom IIs,[1] it was shot down by the Israeli fighter pilots with the authorisation of David Elazar, the Israeli chief of staff.
The downing of the plane earned unanimous international criticism: both the Soviet Union and the United States condemned the incident, not accepting the reasoning given by Israel;[2]: 290 all member-nations of the International Civil Aviation Organization voted to censure Israel for the attack. Israel's Defense Minister, Moshe Dayan, called it an "error of judgment", and Israel paid compensation to the victims' families.[3][1]
- Wow, I feel like this would never happen today. If anything, the US would give Israel another 20 billion worth of military equipment, claim the plane was a woke HAMAS tunnel, and actively support Israel shooting down even more passenger aircraft.
  
  Anytime before the 1980s was a very different time for US-Israel relations.
  
  Who says they didn't give them the money they paid to the victims
- Expanding Military Aid and supporting Israel's military goals does not constitute any genuine 'condemnation' anymore than a fingerwag.
  https://www.axios.com/2023/11/04/us-israel-aid-military-funding-chart
  On February 28, 1973, during a visit in Washington, D.C., the then Israeli prime minister Golda Meir agreed with the then U.S. National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger's peace proposal based on "security versus sovereignty": Israel would accept Egyptian sovereignty over all Sinai, while Egypt would accept Israeli presence in some of Sinai strategic positions
  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel%E2%80%93United_States_relations
  Massive US aid transfers to Israel begin, 1973
  During the months between the war and the signing of the aid bill, Washington sent slightly less than $1bn in military equipment to be "the edge" Israel would need if the fighting were renewed.
  The bill drastically reduced military aid to other countries.
  "To the Arabs it will be seen as a reaffirmation of the inability of the United States to pursue an even‐handed policy," he said during a debate on the bill.
  By comparison, the US has on average provided Palestinians with around $400m in assistance annually since 1993, according to a Congressional report.
  https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/eight-moments-history-US-support-Israel-Trump-deal-of-the-century

If I had a nickel for every time Israel did something that got the US and Soviet Union to agree on something to the detriment of Israel, I'd have (at least) two nickels, which isn't a lot but it's weird that it happened (at least) twice.

6 comments