Posted on 06/19/2002 8:56:42 AM PDT by NorCoGOP
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- When I began researching the Israeli-Palestinian crisis, I was immediately taken back by the polarization. People are generally in either pro-Israel or pro-Palestine groups, with very little room for someone in the middle. As Americans, however, we need a much broader perspective on this situation, whereby we aggressively search for a means for peace. The key is to stand as honest, neutral peacemakers rather than be dragged into the polarization.
We must accept the facts and then morally support wherever these facts lead. We must not be either pro-Israel or pro-Palestinian but be pro-human life. Once we do that, we can make progressive strides toward brokering peace.
Misconceptions play a huge part in the miseducation of Americans. Unless they are addressed, we can never have a true understanding of the stakes and the players.
The first misconception is that Israel, through its invasion into occupied territories -- the West Bank, Gaza Strip and Golan heights -- is fighting a "war on terror" akin to the American War on Terrorism. Granted, the situation is complex, but here it is in simple terms. The Israeli side can be broken down into the Israeli civilians and the government. The Palestinian side is broken down into the Palestinian civilians, the Palestinian Authority and terrorist organizations like Hamas, Islamic Jihad and Al-Fatah, who sympathize with the Palestinian plight.
Palestinian sympathizers, for various reasons, commit acts of terror against Israeli civilians. In return, the Israeli government retaliates, and that retaliation is usually misdirected. Palestinian civilians suffer the brunt of reprisal when it should be directed at the terrorists. We must separate between those who carry out the horrific suicide attacks and the ones who receive the majority of the punishment. They are not the same.
The second misconception is that the religious and international community is split on the Israel-Palestinian crisis. All mainstream Christian churches in the Middle East, as represented by the Middle East Council of Churches, have called for an Israeli withdrawal of troops from the occupied territories. There is a move within the American Jewish community to call for an end of the occupation.
Members of the European Union and the United Nations have also made similar requests, and Amnesty International is considering legal action against the Israeli government for human rights violations. An international consensus for action exists.
For the past 15 years, according to B'Tselem, the Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories, 179 Israeli civilians were killed by acts of terror. B'Tselem states also that 109 Israeli soldiers have died as a result of terrorism. It is clear that Israel has a right to seek recourse.
The question should not be whether or not the Israeli government has that right, but how the numbers stack up in defense of their strategy. In 15 years of retaliation and invasion, 163 Palestinian security forces have been killed, but the truly astounding statistic is that Israeli soldiers have killed 1,965 Palestinian civilians.
Seven times as many Palestinians have died as a result of Israeli occupation and retaliation than Israelis at the hand of terror. This is to say nothing about reports from Ha'aretz Daily (an Israeli national newspaper) that Israeli soldiers have used Palestinians as human shields.
It gets worse. According to the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (equivalent to the American Red Cross), the "Israeli army continues to deny and restrict access to PRCS ambulances in all areas of the West Bank to transport the dead, sick and wounded to hospitals for medical treatment."
For the past few days, I have communicated with Sam Bahour, a Palestinian-American writer living in the West Bank city of Ramallah. Even though he daily witnesses the despair and destruction of his people, he has yet to give up hope. He emphasizes that the struggle is for "national independence, civil liberties and human rights," and to establish a stable economy for the Palestinian people.
Like Bahour, we must not give up hope. As Americans and supporters of human rights, we must examine the facts. We must honestly judge for ourselves the tragedy. It will not be easy. Both sides shoulder the burden, and both sides must do more to stop the violence and take steps to bring about peace. As people who value freedom and peace, we must oppose the approaches that both sides take -- neither leads to peace for the war-ravaged peoples.
More than that, we must unequivocally stand on the shoulders of great men like Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and carry his vision of harmony and peace to this calamity. We must envision a day when Israeli children can play safely with Palestinian children without hate or fear. We must stand on the shoulders of men like Robert F. Kennedy and dedicate ourselves to "tam[ing] the savageness of man and make gentle the life of this world."
We must, above all else, advocate peace and human dignity. If we do this, with patience, time and determination, we can help bring an end to the violence in Israel.
"Someones prayin',Lord,Kumbaya,Someones prayin'Lord......C'mon everybody......."
Assuming freedom.
As usual, for the history-impaired.
Should the US have avoided "polarization" in order to be a "neutral peacemaker" between Japan and the rest of the Pacific? How about between Germany and the rest of Europe? For some reason, the name Neville Chamberlain comes to mind. Also the phrase "peace for our times" which he announced on returning to England with a treaty signed by Adolf Hitler.
I think this geopolitical moron should go to Israel, and ride the buses and hang out in pizza parlors. He could chat with any Palestinians he found in such places. Eventually, one of them would assist him in seeing the light.
Congressman Billybob Click for: "Speaking without Talking -- Hearing without Listening."
BARF ALERT. BARF ALERT. Would the author count a person with a gun who fires his gun at an Israeli soldier while hiding in a crowd of Palistinian youths, and who is then shot by an Israeli sniper, a "civilian"? Yes, he would. His distinction between Palestinian security forces and civilians is misleading and dishonest.
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