Panetta’s Slaughterer Israel visit part of political bid to win Jewish vote in US

A US daily says the upcoming visit to Israel by the Defense Secretary, which follows similar visits by high-ranking American officials to the occupied territories, is a sign of Washington’s bid to win the Jewish vote in next November’s US presidential election.

Leon Panetta will be the latest in a torrent of top officials of President Barack Obama administration to call on the Israeli regime in the past three weeks, the New York Timesreported on Tuesday.

According to the report, the highest ranking among the officials that have visited Israel recently were Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, National Security Adviser Thomas Donilon and the administration’s Counterterrorism Chief John Brennan in addition to a recent tour of Israel by the Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney.

The daily speculated that frequent visits to Tel Aviv by so many American political officials may have the dual intent of showing “strong support for Israel in an election year” and expressing concern about Israel’s newest threat of military action against Iran.

Iran’s top political and military officials have repeatedly dismissed Israel’s military threats against the country, warning that if Tel Aviv dares to launch such an attack, it will be reduced to rubble. They have also warned that any country aiding the Israeli effort will be held responsible, risking an Iranian retaliatory measure.

According to the paper, political observers believe that American officials and the two dominant political parties do not count on the relatively small Jewish vote; rather they count on the huge wealth and powerful political influence of pro-Israeli Jewish individuals and organizations in the United States.

In an effort to provoke some type of American action against Iran, top Israeli officials have expressed anger over the failure of the US-led sanctions on the Islamic Republic.

“We have to be honest and say that all the sanctions and diplomacy so far have not set back the Iranian [nuclear energy] program by one iota,” Netanyahu said on Sunday in a meeting with US presidential hopeful, Mitt Romney.

“I believe that we need a strong and credible military threat, coupled with the sanctions, to have a chance to change that situation,” AFP quoted Netanyahu as saying.