The United States should break ties with Israel.

"Israel continues to flout international law on a wholesale basis, and its illegal occupation of Palestine and its oppression of Arabs in Israel has been widely condemned by the United Nations and numerous human rights organisations. "1. Mere defiance of international law is no basis for isolating a country. Even assuming that international law is a valid standard of judging and limiting states (which I do not grant), only severe and inherent systems of oppression have historically merited extreme measures. An example would be South Africa's apartheid system of wage-slavery and political repression created in order to maintain the superiority and power of South Africa's white population.2. Occupation in itself is not illegal under international law; belligerent occupation is recognized by the Hague Conventions: [. http://en.wikipedia.org...]. I think that Pro here is referring to the illegal settlements, which are ostensibly not something worth breaking relations over.3. I have never heard any serious argument that Arab citizens are actively oppressed by the state of Israel. Most Israeli Arabs prefer to live in Israel than any other Middle Eastern country and recognize Israel's right to be a Jewish state. Arabs have served in Parliament, on the supreme court, and one Arab muslim briefly served as President: [. http://en.wikipedia.org...]. I invite Pro to provide evidence for his claim. "Israel is possesses nuclear weapons but refuses to sign up to the Treaty on Nuclear Non Proliferation or allow independent inspection of her nuclear facilities. "India and Pakistan have not acceded to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Does my opponent think that the US should break ties with them, too? The NNPT is voluntary and not legally required in international law: [. http://www.iaea.org...]. Allowing inspectors into their nuclear sites would be an open admission of having nuclear capacity, which they have deliberately never confirmed as a matter of diplomatic policy, not a desire to use them aggressively. "By politically, militarily and financially supporting the Israeli regime the US has made many enemies in the Arab world and has lost the respect of other developed nations in Europe and Asia. America must join the international community in condemning Israeli aggression and the persecution of Arabs, and boycott Israel just as the US boycotts other rogue nations. "It is not at all true that Israel is a pariah state. While France, Britain, and Spain have all low public support for Israel, they maintain their economic, military, and diplomatic ties. Israel also has excellent relations with Germany, Greece, India, China, and even Muslim countries like Turkey, Azerbaijan, Morocco, and the Gulf states. It is also not true that the United States loses support by aligning itself with Israel. The US, while recognizing Israel, did not become a real ally until the Six-Day War in 1967. During the failed Sinai invasion by Israel in 1956, the President Eisenhower pressured the Israelis into withdrawing, taking Egypt's side: [. http://en.wikipedia.org...], yet the following year Egypt became a Soviet ally, despite an essentially anti-Israel position taken by the US government. In fact, it was the broad turn of the Arab world towards an anti-American position that caused the US-Israel alliance to form in the first place. Syria, Iraq, and other Arab countries were financed and supported by the Soviets through the Cold War: [. http://en.wikipedia.org...]. The claim that the Arab world is anti-American because of its support for Israel does not hold water- in reality, their attitudes shift according to the interests of the Arab regimes. Israel is also an extremely useful ally to have in the Middle East. It actively resists Iran's quasi-empire (now extending to Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Lebanon, and the Palestinian territories): [. http://67.208.89.102/files/2008/02/19/20080227_IranianInfluenceReport.pdf], provides intelligence to and cooperates with the United States, and keeps Arab countries from developing nuclear weapons. In addition, it has working relations with Turkey, the strongest and stablest Muslim country, Azerbaijan, which is strategically located to block both Iran and Russia's sphere of influence while providing a platform for the US and Israel to operate out of, and Jordan and Saudi Arabia (despite the absence of formal ties) which cooperate with Israel against Iran. Pro must also show that these benefits are outwighed by the negative repercussions of support for Israel. I am finished and await Pro's counterarguments.