Date: 2008-12-30 15:41 Subject: Israel - Palestine Conflict: Are They Giving Up Their Right to Self-Governance? Security: Public Location: Talking out my Butt Mood: crappy

I have a final suggestion. Force Israel back to their pre-1967 borders, create an independent and sovereign Palestinian state and create a UN controlled water district that ensures that water and other natural resources are made available fairly and justly to all in the region. The Middle East is a region that if left to the people living there will continue to create instability and export its violence to Europe and America. Perhaps, they are giving up their right to govern themselves.

Dave the Unitarian and I have been arguing about the Israeli air raids on the Gaza strip. Dave, an avid reader of The World Socialist Web Site takes their stance that Israel’s attacks have intensified a severe humanitarian crisis in the area. The WWSWS reports that at least 364 Palestinians have been killed. What they neglected to report is that majority of these deaths were militants and political leaders.

The plight of the utterly defenseless Palestinians who are suffering against the Israeli bombing is being called an act of terrorism. Yet, nowhere does WWSWS discuss the utterly defenseless Israeli’s that have been murdered by Hamas. There is a big difference between Israel’s tactics and Hamas’ tactics. Hamas deliberately targets innocent and defenseless people. This is the mainstay of all terrorist operations.  Israel looks for military and governmental targets. Hamas just attacks whatever is convenient.

Collateral damage is an unfortunate part of waging war on an enemy, but make no mistake; Hamas and other Arab groups are dedicated to eradicating Israel from the face of the map. Does this justify the deaths of innocent Palestinian children or civilians? Never! But, it does speak to the simple truth. Israel has the right to defend itself against any threat to their nation’s stability and well-being.

I, too, am concerned about Israel’s heavy handed assault on the Gaza strip. Anyone who reads my blog or knows me personally understands that I am often very critical of Israeli foreign policy. They certainly have been the author of many of their own woes. They thrust themselves into the Gaza and West Bank areas and have dealt shamefully, if not criminally, with their Arab neighbors in the past, especially with those from Palestine. It is not hard to understand how groups like Hamas can become belligerent and angry in the face of this treatment.

Hamas came into being in 1987 following the First Intifada where Palestinians attempted to cast off the yoke of Israeli rule. Israel has no truer friend then former President Jimmy Carter, who addressed the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in his book, Palestine Peace Not Apartheid. Carter was criticized for speaking out against Israel’s venality in the region, especially where it came to their occupation of Palestinian territory not given to them by the United Nations. Israel owes the existence of their nation to the United States and Great Britain and, indeed, would not have existed had the portion of the Palestinian land that was a former British protectorate not been given to them.

The Ultra Orthodox and radical Zionists will disagree with me, and even – perhaps – have the chutzpah to call me anti-Semite. But, this has nothing to do with Jewish people as a race and religion. It does have everything to do with their actions as a geo-political state in the world community. These actions are never above reproach. No nation is.

Dave the Unitarian says that Israel’s government is behaving toward Gaza much like the Bush Administration behaved toward Iraq. But, there is one difference. Hamas’ threats to Israel are very real and palpable. The Bush administration knowingly took advantage of bad intelligence and American fear to launch a war that had nothing to do with American Safety.

Israeli citizen’s live with the constant threat of missiles being lobbed into residential areas and suicide bombers. We here in the United States have been very fortunate that events of September 11, 2001 – heinous and dramatic as they are – are much more rare occurrence than for those living in places such as Israel.

In 1967 Israel along with British and French military forces invaded sovereign territory and set up occupation along the West Bank, Gaza Strip and the Sinai Peninsula. This was an aftermath of the so-called Suez Crisis. The simple answer is that these problems were the result of water disputes. The longer answer goes back millennia. The events of the Six Day War affect the geo-politics of the region today. The Six Day War also contributed to the gas crunch of the early 1970’s when the member nations of OPEC sought to sanction the U.S. for our support of Israel.

The Suez Crisis and the Six Day War could be considered the impetus that created modern terrorism as we have come to experience it today. The Arab world tends to view Israel as an interloper who is nothing more than a puppet regime wielded by the U.S. and Britain. Sometimes, I have thought this too. But no one tells Israel what to do. They are allies, but no mere puppets with the U.S. hand up their asses.

There have been a lot of attempts to create peace in the Middle East. I am not sure anything will ever work short of one group wiping out the other entirely. It horrifies me to think of these thoughts. But, while I hold Israel accountable for their share of the problem it is Hamas that has brought this heavy handed attack on them.

In my heart I have to support an Israeli campaign to topple Hamas. The Arab world seems unable to get their militants under control. If they don’t this will be the end of them. Palestinian President Abbas has failed to bring Gaza under his government’s control and has allowed the Hamas extremists to have their way in the area. Abbas should have taken control of that area and put an end to terrorist attacks against Israel. But, all he can manage is to say is that he doesn’t have much influence in the area. No shit!

Don’t read into this that I think Israel is handling this as they should. I just believe that world community needs to put things in perspective. If they are going to join with the thousands of Arab protestors in decrying the nation’s actions then they also need to decry the actions that led to the attacks. Israel was not unprovoked.

This does not give Israel the right to impede humanitarian relief efforts as was reported this morning by CNN. Despite their protestations to the contrary it is difficult to view the ramming of a relief boat this morning to be anything other than aggressive. Israel should be supported in their quest to eliminate Hamas, but they must not impede relief efforts. Israel should be careful that their campaign does not lead to genocide.  I would like to believe that the collective Jewish experience at the hands of the Nazis will stay their hand in this regard. I have faith that it will. But, no way of knowing and who can say what a beleaguered nation living under the constant threat of murder by terror is capable of when they are finally pushed to act.

In the end, the world community may need to sit back and let the people of the Middle East duke it out for themselves. I find it difficult to support any side 100% of the time and feel that they all contribute to the problem. No one is innocent and they all have washed themselves in the blood of their enemies. Arab terrorists target civilians and innocent people. They often use their own children as weapons, putting mere babes in harms way. These tactics have put U.S. and Israeli military personal in harms way as they are loathe to murder children. Arab militants do not have the same reservations. It seems to be the duty of every man, woman and child to be ready and willing to die for Allah’s cause.

And speaking of Allah, maybe the best policy toward the Middle East is, “Kill them all and let God sort them out,” or more specifically, let them kill each other and then let God sort them out. Since that idea most likely does not appeal to the masses – especially if you are a liberal – then I have a final suggestion. Force Israel back to their pre-1967 borders, create an independent and sovereign Palestinian state and create a UN controlled water district that ensures that water and other natural resources are made available fairly and justly to all in the region. The Middle East is a region that if left to the people living there will continue to create instability and export its violence to Europe and America. Perhaps, they are giving up their right to govern themselves.