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Press TV has conducted an interview with Henry Norr, a political commentator, from Berkeley, about the European Union delegation saying war crimes were committed by Israel in its attack on the Gazan population.

Press TV: Let’s look at the significance in your perspective at the situation of the delegation from the European Union who says that war crimes or basically genocide has been committed by Israel against the Palestinians.

Norr: I think it’s an important sign of a much larger trend all over the world. I think the latest onslaught on Gaza has opened more eyes; forced more people even people who have previously been sympathetic to Israel to begin the grasp the nature of their brutal treatment of the Palestinians.

To me their use of the word genocide is not the key thing... I mean, certainly by the legal definition it is very clear a case of genocide, the legal definition doesn’t necessarily correspond I don’t think to what most people understand – at least in the United States – most people think of genocide as an attempt to eliminate the population altogether.

Many Israelis obviously would love to do that and there is more and more evidence that that is becoming policy, but so far we are not quite at the level killing everybody.

But the important thing I think in this is the mounting pressure to impose some kind of economic sanctions and diplomatic sanctions.

If the Europeans would break away from the US and Israeli hegemony and actually take some concrete steps that would put some cost to the Israelis for their crimes that would be a huge step forward.

I am hoping or I am looking to Europe because it is certainly not going to come from the United States for a long time in the foreseeable future.

Press TV: What about them saying that basically sanctions now should be implemented against Tel Aviv, I want to look at that aspect of it... How likely is that to happen? This is coming out of Europe itself.

Norr: I’m afraid I’m not familiar enough with the politics of the European parliament. I don’t know who these 13 members are and I can’t really assess the likelihood...

It’s certainly past time. Sanctions should have been imposed in 1949 and in 1967 or 1968 or whatever. Any move like more people speaking out adds up to more pressure.

The problem is that there is a big gap between public opinion and government policy. That’s particularly true in the United States, but it is true in Europe as well.

I think from what I understand from this delegation their report back represents shifting sands in public opinion. What it will take to translate that into actual government action is another story and I don’t know if I can predict when that may happen.

Press TV: What do you attribute – because obviously there is a big difference between the United State and Europe, perspective-wise from the people and also from their officials although most European countries of course are very pro-Tel Aviv.

But still it seems there is a big difference between the Americans and Europeans and now we have for example this partial delegation from the European parliament to say this. What do you attribute the difference to?

Norr: There are a number of factors as to why the United States remains pretty much – certainly the government remains totally – under the influence of the Israelis; and the majority of public opinion, although that is changing – their control is eroding here – it has a lot to do with the power of the Israel lobby in this country, which is substantial in all European countries, but even more powerful here in the US.

I think it has something to do with... the Israelis have very effectively manipulated the American racist Islamophobia and the American post 9/11 – post September 11 – panic about terrorism.

The Israelis clearly very deliberately set out to convince Americans that 9/11 proves that they are on the side of goodness and decency and shows you what all civilized people – as they put it – are up against.

And that’s been very effective with the American media and the American media feeding that to the American people.

On a deeper level there is something else. This country like Israel is a settler colonial society. Most people are not very conscious of the fact that it rests on the genocide of the native Americans, but I think that is perhaps in the subconscious of a lot of American that if we are going to condemn the Israelis then what does that imply about the Americans.

So, that may even be a kind of a subtle factor, the fact that most Americans still buy the Israeli story.

I think an important thing to notice is that there is no sign of change in American government policy; there are very definite signs of changes in American public opinion. More people here are waking up.