After Israel’s first 60 years, where do we go from there?

Israel’s history since 1948 has been a turbulent one. It resulted in the re-birth of the remnants of the Jewish People who were almost decimated by Hitler and the Nazis during the Holocaust. The Jewish people had been a persecuted minority for centuries in the Diaspora. Before Israel was established in 1948, many Jews, who survived the Holocaust, were displaced after the war. Those who were liberated from the Nazi concentration camps finally had a home where they could go. Israel’s establishment arose from the ashes of the many concentration camp victims who did not live to witness the event.

Israel has hardly known a day of peace since its establishment. The reason for this is that the indigenous people - the Palestinians - paid a very heavy price! Many of them were displaced and were forced out of their homes to make way for Jewish immigration from Europe and the Arab countries. The Jewish people’s joy was counterbalanced by Palestinian sorrow and suffering! No matter how one looks at this, the fact remains that Israel’s establishment had created a very severe Palestinian refugee problem that remains unsolved to this day.

Israel was faced by many problems. It had absorbed so many Jewish immigrants from all over the world. The education gaps and cultural differences between the different Jewish communities created many absorption problems. No country in the world faced such social problems because of absorbing so many different immigrants of differing cultures as Israel in such a short space of time. In addition to this, Israel was surrounded by hostile Arab states that refused to recognize Israel’s right to exist and seized every opportunity to declare war on Israel in order to destroy the fledgling state.

Despite all these problems, Israel had made incredible progress in many scientific fields, including medicine, technology, computer science and agriculture. It could have achieved more had Israel not had such high security expenditure.

If one were to examine the history of Israel’s establishment and the effect that it had on the Palestinian population, it is obvious that both Palestinians and Israelis are right. This is what makes the conflict so difficult to solve. Israel had not gone far enough in trying to encourage coexistence between the two peoples. Allow me to illustrate this point by a simple anecdote even though it may be viewed as an over simplification of a very difficult problem. A person A takes over another person B’s home and says, “This home is big enough for both you and me to live. B, you are invited to stay here with your family, but this is now also my home! If you do not accept this, I shall throw you out!” It is quite natural that B would not be prepared to share his home with A. Why should B accept the presence of A, who has come to displace him because of the suffering of A and his people under Nazi occupation? B feels that he has to pay the price for Jewish suffering under Nazi Germany and in much of the Diaspora. If one were to see the problem in this perspective, it is understandable why the Arab nations did not agree to the UN partition plan of 29^th November 1947. They felt that the Jews had stolen their land. It somehow does not seem right that their stolen land should be divided into two states – a Jewish State and a Palestinian state.

Israel had fought many wars of survival. The Zionists maintained that there was no Palestinian nation in 1948 when Israel was established. If this is true, then how does one explain the existence of many Arab villages prior to 1948? There is documentation of this. Perhaps the terminology used is controversial. The Palestinians view this as “ethnic cleansing” of Palestine in order to make way for Jewish immigration. The Zionists view Israel as the legitimate homeland of the Jewish People and those Palestinians who fled did so because they were encouraged or forced by their leaders to flee. There is much controversy as to what really happened to the Palestinian refugees of 1948. This is a very emotional issue for the Palestinians and is the core of the Palestinian – Israeli conflict that defies solution. Benny Morris has researched this and contrary to the Zionist version of events he wrote the following:

Why 700,000 people became refugees was disputed between Israel and its supporters and the Arabs and theirs. Israeli spokesmen--including "official" historians and writers of textbooks-- maintained that Arabs had fled "voluntarily," or because the Arab states' leaders had urged or ordered them to leave [click here to read our response to this claim], to clear the ground for the invasion of May 15, and enable their spokesman to claim that they had expelled the refugees systematically and with premeditation. Documentation that surfaced in massive quantities during the 1980s in Israeli and Western archives has demonstrated that neither "official" version is accurate or sufficient.
The creation of the [refugees] problem was almost inevitable, given:

• the geographical intermixing of the population
• the history of the Arab-Jewish hostility since 1917
• rejection of both sides of a binominal solution
• The depth of Arab animosity that existed toward the Jews and fears of coming under Jewish rule.

The structural weaknesses that characterized Palestinian society on the eve of the war made it especially susceptible to collapse and flight. It was

• poorly organized, with little social or political cohesion,
• there were deep divisions between rural and urban population, and
• between Muslims and Christians, and
• Between various elite clans.
• The absence of representative leaders, and
• National institutions [such as labor unions, health care, defense, tax collections, etc.]
• Because of economic and social processes that had begun in the mid-nineteenth century, large parts of the rural population had been rendered landless by the 1940s. In consequence there was a constant, growing shift of population from the countryside to urban shantytowns and slums; to some degree this led to both physical and psychological divorce from the land. Moreover, 70 or 80 percent of the people were illiterate [reader should note that the public educational system available to Palestinians before 1948 was limited to 25%-30% of total eligible Palestinian student population]. In some measure, this resulted in and was mirrored by a low level of political consciousness and activism. The "nationalism" of the urban elite was shared little; if at all, by the urban poor and peasantry.
• And finally, the Arab economy in Palestine had failed to make shift from primitive, agriculture economy to a reindustrialize one--as the Yishuv had done. Equally relevant, in towns very few Arab workers were unionized; none, except the small number in British government service, enjoyed the benefit of unemployment insurance. Effectively ejected from Jewish enterprises and farms when Arab factories and offices closed down, they lost their means of livelihood. For some, exile may have become an attractive option, at least until Palestine calmed down.

It was also during this period that there was talk of transferring the Palestinian population from Israel to the neighbouring Arab states by force if necessary. Leaders of the yishuv (Jewish settlements) saw this as legitimate:

Another crucial precondition was the penchant among Yishuv leaders to regard transfer as a legitimate solution to the "Arab problem." Recently declassified Zionist documents demonstrated the virtual consensus emerged among the Zionist leadership, the wake of the publication in July 1937 of the Peel Commission recommendations, in favor of the transfer of at least several hundred thousand Palestinian Arabs--if not all of them-- out of the areas of the Jewish state-to-be. The tone was set by Ben-Gurion himself in June 1938:

"I support compulsory [Palestinian Arab population] transfer. I do not see in it anything immoral."

Ben-Gurion's views did not change--though he was aware of the need, for tactical reasons, to be discreet. In 1944, at a meeting of the Jewish Agency Executive discussing how the Zionist movement should deal with the British Labor Party decision to recommend the transfer of Palestinian Arabs, he said:

"When I heard these things. . . I had to ponder the matter long and hard ....[but] I reached the conclusion that this matter [had best] remain [in the Labor Party Program] . . . Were I asked what should be our program, it would not occur to me to tell them transfer . . . because speaking about the matter might harm [us] . . . in world opinion, because it might give the impression that there is no room in the Land of Israel without ousting the Arabs [and] . . . it would alert and antagonize the Arabs . . ."

Ben-Gurion added,

"The transfer of Arabs is easier than the transfer of any other [people]. There are Arabs states around . . . And it is clear that if the [Palestinian] Arabs are transferred this would improve their situation and not the opposite."

None of the members of the Executive opposed or questioned these views; most spoke in favor. Moshe Sharett, director of the Jewish Agency's Political Department, declared:

"Transfer could be the crowning achievements, the final stage in the development of [our] policy, but certainly not the point of departure. By [speaking publicly and prematurely] we could mobilizing vast forces against the matter and cause it to fail, in advance."

And he added:

"[W]hen the Jewish state is established--it is very possible that the result will be transfer of Arabs."

On February 7, 1948, three months into the war, Ben-Gurion told Mapai's Central Committee that in Jerusalem's Western neighborhoods, from which the Arabs had fled or been expelled, he had seen:

"no strangers [Palestinian Arabs]. Not since Jerusalem's destruction in the days of the Romans has it been so Jewish. . . . I do not assume this will change. . . . And what happened in Jerusalem . . . could well happen in great parts of the country. . If we hold one, it is very possible that in coming six to eight or ten months of the war there will take place great changes. . . . Certainly there will be great changes in the composition of the population of the country."

[Click here for more "transfer" (Ethnic Cleansing) Zionist quotes]

Refugees Flight: In Four Stages

These "great changes" took place in four stages. The first was between December 1947 and March 1948, when Yishuv was on the defensive and upper-and middle-class [Palestinian] Arabs--- perhaps as many as seventy-five thousand--- fled, mainly from mixed cities, or sent their dependents to the West Bank, Lebanon, Egypt, Syria, or Transjordan. In this context there can be no exaggeration the detrimental effect on the Arab morale of the IZL and LHI bombing campaigns in big towns.
These families had the wherewithal to settle comfortably in Cairo, Nablus, Amman, or Beirut, and in any case most viewed their exile as temporary. As in the exodus of 1936-1939, they expected to return once the hostilities had ended. Many notable families also resented or feared the domination of the Husseinis, and indeed may have feared a Husseini-ruled Palestine as much as they did life under Jewish rule. It was at this time that many of the political leaders and/or their families left the country--- including most members of the AHC [Arab Higher Committee] and of the Haifa National Committee. Jewish-Arab hostilities were only one aspect of a more general breakdown of law and order in Palestine after UN [General Assembly] Partition Resolution. There was also a gradual collapse of public services and a withdrawal of British authority, and an influx of both urban and rural districts of Arab irregulars, who extorted money from prosperous families and occasionally abused people in the streets.

Arabs also abandoned a number of villages in areas earmarked for Jewish statehood and with Jewish majority, such as the coastal plain. In villages on the edge of Jewish urban centers, a combination of fear of the Jews and actual intimidation, principally by the IZL and LHI, prompted flight. In at least one case there was also outright expulsion by the Haganah---on February 20 at Caesarea, midway between Tel Aviv and Haifa.

The flight of the upper and middle classes entailed the closure of schools, clinics and hospitals, businesses, and offices, and in turn engendered unemployment and impoverishment. This was the background of the second stage, the mass flight from urban neighborhood and rural areas overrun by the Jewish forces during spring 1948. The earlier flight of the elite sapped popular morale and gave the masses an example to emulate.

The principle cause of the mass flight of April-June was Jewish military attack, or fear of such attack. Almost every instance---exodus from Haifa on April 21- May 1; from Jaffa during April-early May; from Tiberias on April 17-18; from Safad on May10- was the direct and immediate result of an attack on and conquest of Arab neighborhoods and towns. In no case did a population abandon its homes before an attack; in almost all cases it did so on the very day of the attack and in days immediately following. And flight proved to be contagious. The fall of, and flight from, the big cities---principally Haifa and Jaffa---radiated pessimism and despair to surrounding villages. In the countryside flight by one clan led to that neighborhood clans and flight from one village to flight from neighboring villages.

Haganah documents described "a psychosis of flight" griping the Palestinian population during this period. The echo of the slaughter on April 9 of the village of Deir Yassin, augmented by Arab atrocity propaganda regarding what happened there, both reinforced and symbolized this. Fear that the same fate might befall them propelled villagers to flight, and this "atrocity factor" was reinforced periodically during the months of fighting by other Jewish massacres, especially in October [such as Safsaf, Sa'sa', 'Ayn al-Zaytun, Etc.]. Residents of a small number of villagers---more than a dozen---were expelled before the start of the first truce (June 11) by Jewish troops; and some were intimidated by propaganda disseminated by Haganah agents. In most areas there was no need for direct expulsion. Villagers and townspeople usually abandoned hearth and home at the first whiff of grapeshot.

In some areas Arab commanders ordered the villagers to evacuate to clear the ground for military purpose or to prevent the surrender [or collaboration, examples are too many to list]. More than half a dozen villages---just north of Jerusalem and tin the lower Galilee--- were abandoned during those months as a result of such order. Elsewhere, in East Jerusalem and in many villages around the country, the commander ordered women, old people, and children to be sent away to be out of harm's way.

Indeed, psychological preparations for the removal of dependents from the battlefield had begun in 1946-47, when the AHC and the Arab League had periodically endorsed such a move when contemplating the future war in Palestine. Altogether about two to three hundred thousand [Palestinian] Arabs fled their homes during the second stage of the exodus.

During the first stage, there was not Zionist policy to expel the [Palestinian] Arabs or intimidate them into flight, though many Jews, including Ben-Gurion, were happy to see the backs of as many [Palestinian] Arabs as possible. And without a doubt, Jewish-both Haganah and IZL- retaliatory policies and the IZL/LHI terror bombings were precipitants. There was no Arab policy, aside from sporadic AHC efforts, to stem the tide of the upper-and middle-class departures.

During the second stage, while there was no blanket policy of expulsion, the Haganah's Plan D [Dalet] clearly resulted in mass flight. Commanders were authorized to clear the populace out of the villages and certain urban districts, and to raze the villages if they felt a military need. Many commanders identified with the aim of ending up with a Jewish state with a small [Palestinian] Arab minority as possible. Some generals, such as [Yigal] Allon, clearly acted as if driven by such a goal [especially in the Galilee panhandle and central region].

On the Arab side there was general confusion at this time about everything concerning the exodus. The governments appear simply not to have understood what was happening and, initially, did not try to stop it. Indeed, Arab Higher Committee [AHC] agents instructed the population of Haifa, after the flight from the town had begun, to continue to leave. But the exodus, as far as the evidence goes, not initiated---as Jewish spokesmen later claimed---by an order from the AHC. It is quite possible that both Arab states and Palestinian leaders were happy to see it happen in order to have a good cause to intervene once the British departed. By early May, some Arab states and the AHC began to take action [to stem the flight]. Transjordan, the AHC, and the ALA [Arab Liberation Army] repeatedly cautioned the inhabitants to stay put and tried to pressure those who had already fled the country to return, to no avail. Meanwhile the Haganah, certainly from mid-May on, adopted a policy of preventing refugees from returning to their homes, using live fire when necessary.

The pan-Arab invasion of May 15 clearly hardened Israel's resolve regarding the Palestinian civilian population, for good military and political reasons. On June 16, the cabinet, without formal vote, resolved to bar the return of refugees. The IDF general staff ordered its units to stop would-be returnees with LIVE FIRE. At some time the army, the settlements, and the JNF [Jewish National Fund] Lands Department took a number of initiatives designed to obviate a return. Abandoned villages were razed or mined or, later, filled with new Jewish immigrants, as were abandoned urban neighborhoods; fields were set alight, and landowners still in place were urged to sell out and leave; and new settlements were established on Arab sites and began to cultivate the abandoned fields.

In the third and fourth stages of the exodus, in July and October-November 1948, about three hundred thousand more [Palestinian] Arabs became refugees, including the sixty thousand inhabitants of Lydda and Ramla who were expelled by IDF troops [based on the orders of Ben-Gurion and Yitzhak Rabin]. However, many of Nazareth's [Palestinian] Arabs were allowed to stay, apparently to avert the prospect of negative reactions by Western Christian states [For the same reason Nazareth was the ONLY place where Ben-Gurion gave clear orders to shoot to kill any Jewish looter].

Palestinian Resistance to Expulsion Policy

Israel's readiness to expel the [Palestinian] Arabs was to some degree counterbalanced by a newfound [Palestinian] Arab desire to stay put. By October, villagers in the Galilee had understood that their return was far from imminent. So, during the second half of the war, there was far less "spontaneous" flight. Most of this time was due to clear, direct cause, including brutal expulsion and deliberate harassment.

Ben-Gurion clearly wanted as few [Palestinian] Arabs as possible to remain in the Jewish state. But there was still no systematic policy; it was never as far as we know, discussed or decided upon at the Cabinet or IDF general staff meetings. Yet Israeli troops, both in the "Ten Days" in July and during Operation Yoav and Hiram in October-November 1948, were far more inclined to expel Palestinians than they had been during the first half of the war. In Operation Yoav, [Yigal] Allon took care to leave almost no Arab communities along the lines of advance. In Operation Hiram, in the north, where Moshe Carmel commanded the Israeli forces, there was confusion and ambivalence. Despite Carmel's October 31 guideline "to assist the Arabs to depart," some units expelled villagers, others left them in place. And while in general the attitude towards Muslim villages was more severe, there were expulsion and massacres of Christians and many Muslim villagers, such as Majd al-Kurum, were allowed to stay. During November, when the IDF cleared the strip from five to fifteen kilo metered deep along the border with Lebanon, for security reasons, both Christians and Muslims were transferred [such as Tabrikha, Kafr Bir'im and al-Mansura]. (From Critical Analysis of the Birth of the Palestinian Refugee Problem by Benny Morris)

As we can see, the activities of the Zionists in those days certainly did much to lay the foundations of hate between Palestinians and Israelis. The Palestinians viewed Jewish immigration into Palestine as a threat to their welfare and existence. Zionist historians made many attempts to hide the truth. They refused to acknowledge the existence of Arab towns prior to 1948. All this was swept under the carpet and statements of a malarial swamp where there were no inhabitants were accepted as truth.

In order to find a solution to this conflict, it is important to be aware of the roots of the conflict and both sides must learn to come to terms with the history of the conflict. The two versions of what happened in 1948, the Israeli version and the Palestinian version, are flawed and both sides see the truth in a different way. Those leaders of good will on both sides of the conflict have a large responsibility to their respective peoples in trying to find a solution to this conflict that has remained a festering sore for more than 60 years. The tendency is to harp on this history ad nauseam which has resulted in total lack of progress to reach a just settlement by which both sides can live side by side in peace.

Many attempts have been made by various scholars in Israel to research the Palestinian refugee problem and they began to ask painful questions about the treatment meted out to the Palestinians by the Hagana, Irgun Zvei Leumi (I.Z.L) and the Sterne Gang. The original Zionist version of events which was considered the truth was under threat of being nullified by the “New Historians”. They questioned the official Zionist historical view of the establishment of Israel and came to conclusions that were unacceptable by the Israeli mainstream.

The Six Day War of June 1967 further complicated the Palestinian refugee problem as more Palestinians escaped from the Israeli occupation in the territories. Israel had become a colonizing power because of this war. Israel’s lightening victory over her opponents was overwhelming. Israel had gained territory. These territories were referred to as “liberated territories” by P.M. Menachem Begin when the Labour Party lost the elections in 1977. A huge settlement programme was initiated and Israelis were encouraged to settle in the occupied territories. They were given financial help by the government. Nobody thought then that this was a grave mistake which only complicated the issue and lead to a situation whereby the Palestinians were further deprived of their agricultural lands.

The settlers in the occupied territories built themselves palatial homes and encroached further onto Palestinian lands. Palestinian agricultural lands were destroyed to make way for aggressive housing projects for illegal settlements. This resulted in Palestinian farmers losing their livelihood and of course with that, increased frustration and hate for Israel. A new generation of Palestinian was born that never knew any other life apart from misery, poverty and squalor. Israel had evaded its responsibility towards the Palestinian people that it had conquered and ruled. Zionists were never prepared to accept that their settlement policies had created a ticking time bomb that would eventually explode into violence and this would spill within the green line.

Despite all the progress that Israel had made in many scientific fields, the Palestinian people had never benefited from it. Their situation was hopeless economically and this became a breeding ground for the creation of radical Palestinian groups such as Hamas, Islamic Jihad and various splinter groups too numerous to mention. Their attitudes towards Israel were uncompromising and their hate for Israel increased with every army retaliatory action.

The Palestinian plight became a breeding ground for other regimes to take advantage. The main player here is Iran under Mohammed Ahmadinajad. He is exploiting the Palestinian suffering for his own gains. This Iranian dictator is not interested in the Palestinians at all. He is making use of them in order to increase his influence and power in the Middle East. If Iran does become a nuclear power, it will be a threat to all the nations of the Middle East. Nuclear weapons destroy everybody and make no distinction between Palestinians and Israelis. The fall out would go beyond these two peoples and effect the Arab world no less.

The Palestinian dream of the right of return of refugees has always been at the helm of any discussion concerning peace between the two peoples. Israel refused to discuss this issue honestly even though it is really the core of the conflict. Israel would never accept the right of return of the refugees as they viewed them as a threat to Israel’s existence and its Jewish character.

As Israel enters the next sixty years, peace is still as evasive as ever. There are now more players involved. There is Hezbollah on Israel’s northern border and Hamas in Gaza and it will only be a matter of time before Hamas takes over the West Bank as well. The two-state solution which is gaining acceptance even by the Israeli mainstream will be unattainable while there is expansion of existing settlements and creation of new settlements in the West Bank. In a previous article I mentioned that in order to create an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel there would have to be massive disengagement and a withdrawal of the settlers to Israel within the green line. This is highly unlikely. The West Bank is not the Gaza strip. The settlements there are more established and the settler population is much higher and logistically it will be a greater problem to solve. The present Palestinian leadership under Mahmoud Abbas is weak and ineffectual and this will strengthen Hamas in the end.

The future of peace between Israel and the Palestinians is very bleak and there does not seem to be any change of attitudes towards finding a peaceful solution to this conflict.

The binational state solution will return for discussion as that is the only alternative to a two-state solution that has been destroyed before it even started due to the settlement policies of previous Israeli governments.

Israel will be involved in higher military expenditure to prevent terrorism as well as the launching of Qassam missiles into its territory. These missiles will be further developed by Iran and their range will increase with time. This will threaten Israel’s main population centres. The situation between Israel and the Palestinians will deteriorate even further while the refugee problem of 1948 and 1967 will always remain a focal point to justify Palestinian militarism and terror against Israel.

Another very disturbing phenomenon in Israel is the snowballing corruption in high places. PM Ehud Olmert is being investigated by the police for corruption and bribery. His ex-Finance Minister Hirschson is also under investigation for similar acts. Added to this, we have a very special phenomenon known as Gaydamakism. A Russian multimillionaire, Arkadi Gaydamak, became involved in “helping distressed communities” by donating large sums of money. He is now buying out the Pensioners Party in order to get a foothold in the Knesset (he calls it “Knesset shmesset”) where he can have the most influence. Gaydamak is a dangerous man and he is a threat to democracy in Israel. He is also under suspicion of money laundering and has been cross examined by the police. If this buying of influence in the Knesset is not stopped, Israel’s democracy will be threatened. Power and money is a very unhealthy combination which is gaining popularity in Israel.

President Bush was in Israel for its 60^th Anniversary. He gave a speech in the Knesset which was very sympathetic to Israel. He had attended the Economic Summit in Sharm-el-Sheikh, where he upset many Arab nations with his paternal pontifications. Bush’s record at solving the problems in Iraq speaks for itself. The US destroyed Saddam Hussein and created a tragic chaotic situation there with violence and strife between Shiites and Sunnis gaining the upper hand. The US has botched up Iraq totally. It is a case of a president living in a glass house and throwing stones. His vision of peace between Israel and the Palestinians before the end of 2008 when his term ends is the height of naivety if not downright stupidity.

Hamas is an essential component which has to be taken into account in a future peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians. If Israel continues its military policies of trying to weaken Hamas in Gaza, they are bound to fail in the end. The next 60 years are critical for Israel and the Palestinians. Failure to reach a peace agreement will result in further 60 years of violence, an increased military expenditure to prevent the violence as well as the introduction of further players such as Iran into the region including nuclear weaponry which will threaten all the nations in the Middle East including the Palestinians.

Perspectives on Israel’s 60th Anniversary and Naqba

Israel is celebrating sixty years since its establishment and at the same time the Palestinians will be mourning. For the Palestinian people there is no cause to celebrate. Many of us who were born in Israel or who had immigrated and become Israeli citizens under the Law of Return do not see much cause to celebrate either. Undoubtedly, disapproving eyebrows will be raised at this statement! The Jewish communities of Europe had almost been exterminated in the Holocaust of the 1930’s and 1940’s by Hitler and his Nazis. After the Second World War, remnants of the Jewish survivors made their way to Palestine.

On 29 November 1947 the United Nations voted to terminate the British Mandate of Palestine by 1 August 1948 and, to resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict in the British Mandate of Palestine, for a plan for the partition of the Mandate territory. The plan came to be called the United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine or United Nations General Assembly Resolution 181. The plan was approved by the United Nations General Assembly by 33 votes to 13, with 10 abstentions.

The plan would have partitioned the territory of Palestine into Jewish and Arab states, with the Greater Jerusalem area, including Bethlehem, coming under international control. (From Wikipedia).

The establishment of the State of Israel unfortunately resulted in the displacement of the indigenous Palestinian people and this in itself is the basis of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict that defies a solution to this day.

This country had known so many wars and both Arabs and Israelis have paid a heavy price in blood.

Many members of the Knesset are party political hacks who have no interest in the people they are supposed to serve. They are there because of the prestige that being a Knesset member holds. Many of them including cabinet ministers have police investigations pending for corruption and moral turpitude. A famous example of this is the ex-president of Israel, Moshe Katzav. Even PM Ehud Olmert is under investigation by the police for suspicions of corruption.

The Arab nations were never prepared to recognize Israel’s right to exist or to negotiate a peace settlement. The reason for this was their view that Israel had stolen Arab land and driven out much of the indigenous Palestinian population. This created a massive and tragic refugee problem that defies a solution to this day. Palestinian refugees are the indigenous inhabitants of Palestine, the majority of who were dispossessed, forced to run away or expelled when the state of Israel was created in 1948. This dispossession and expulsion has continued since with the second largest such event in Palestine taking place during the 1967 war, launched by Israel on its Arab neighbors and resulted in the occupation of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

Palestinian refugees generally fall into three main groups: Palestinian refugees displaced in 1948, internally displaced Palestinians who remained within the areas that became the state of Israel, and Palestinian refugees displaced in 1967 from the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Israel has continued to deny Palestinian refugees their right to return to their ancestral towns, villages and homes.

At least three generations of Palestinians were born of refugee ancestors. Some of them had been dispersed all over the world but many live in refugee camps under the most shocking conditions and in extreme poverty. The latter have no hope and no future and they have been exploited by heartless politicians who do not intend to solve this tragic problem. Israel had achieved much despite its struggle to survive, however it had failed in its human relationships in many ways. It claims to be a democracy but is it really? The Arab populations that remained behind and did not run away have Israeli citizenship and yet suffer from unofficial discrimination when it comes to job placements. When a country is an occupying power, it cannot be a true democracy. Occupation and democracy do not mix. Domination and control of the Palestinian People are essential elements of the occupation. Roadblocks, permits and licenses are essential for every procedure despite its insignificance to Israel’s security. Arbitrary seizure of land, privileges concerning water use, cheap labour are all part and parcel of suppression of Palestinian human rights not to mention the enhancement of the occupation.

Benjamin Pogrund was a journalist with the Rand Daily Mail newspaper in Johannesburg for 26 years, who reported and commented on apartheid's evils. He was arrested and ostracized by the white apartheid government of South Africa in the 1960’s and 70’s. He was banned from reporting. He has lived in Israel for more than ten years. He wrote in a thought provoking article “Catastrophic, but not apartheid” that the occupation and settlements are catastrophic to both Israelis and Palestinians. He continues, “I want two states, side by side in peace: That's an agreed-upon separation, not apartheid. I share the dismay and shame of many Israelis about the morass into which the occupation has dragged us - the mutual killings, the infliction of suffering, and the brutalization of both Israelis and Palestinians as perpetrators and victims. I am desperately worried about our betrayal of our moral values and of the lessons of our own persecution down the centuries”.

All these symbols of the occupation developed from a mixture of economic greed, religious messianism and security claims which are an integral part of the desire of religious zealots who received the green light from the Israeli Government to build homes and settle on usurped Palestinian lands captured in the Six Day War of June 1967.

The occupation is corrupting Israel society and is ruining it!

The settlers who live in the occupied territories have created facts on the ground which makes the establishment of an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel impossible. A Palestinian state can only be established in the territory occupied in the Six Day War of June 1967. If it were possible, it would mean a massive return of the settlers to within the green line. It is unlikely that these settlers would agree to that in order to make the establishment of a viable Palestinian state possible. It is doubtful if Israel really intends to move forward towards a two-state solution despite the utterances of its leaders. The facts on the ground prove the opposite because Israel is expanding existing settlements, even building new ones in the West Bank.

The alternative solution to this is a binational state whereby the settlers remain under joint Palestinian/Israeli rule which would allow for the right of return of Palestinian refugees who fled. There is no third solution. The nature of the binational state would have to be determined by a joint Israeli-Palestinian plebiscite. The chance of this happening is very remote indeed under the present circumstances and even in the near future. Nevertheless it has to be considered given the impossibility of achieving a two-state solution.

Israel had also adopted a divide and rule policy which also pushed the idea of a two-state solution onto the backburner if not making it impossible to achieve. Israel was instrumental in strengthening Hamas in order to weaken the PLO. Today Palestine is divided into two entities, Gaza ruled by Hamas and the West Bank ruled by the Fatah affiliated Palestinian Authority. These two entities are at severe loggerheads with one another. The US, EU, UN and Russia are delegitimizing Hamas which they view as a terrorist organization. However, the reality is that without Hamas no peace will ever be achieved. This is an irrefutable fact! At the same time, Hamas has suggested a tahida – a period of calm. The main problem with this is the possibility of Hamas using this calm to re-arm and attack Israel when it feels strong enough to do so. This could be prevented by a serious and neutral third party monitoring the situation to prevent both sides from acts of aggression and arms build up. After all, there is no sign that Hamas is prepared to negotiate with Israel or cease its terror activity. The success of a cease-fire that moves in the direction of a peaceful solution is dependent on the desire of both sides to negotiate a peace agreement. Both sides must share a common interest to make peace. Without this the violence will continue unabated. Mahmoud Abbas is despised by his own people and is very weak. Yet, he is being artificially propped up by Israel and the US.

“Unfortunately, throughout its history, Israel has acted as though its definition as a Jewish state provides it with a license for favoring the country's Jews over its Arab-Palestinian citizens. This democratically unacceptable favoritism has dictated a policy of institutionalized discrimination toward the country's Arab- Palestinian citizens in all areas of life: community infrastructures, access to health services, education, use of land, water and other natural resources, lack of equal job opportunities, and more.

As a result, there are today wide discrepancies between the country's Jewish and Arab communities, and these gaps constitute a powder keg in the relations between Israel's majority and its minority. We all know that there are those who claim that discrimination is inherent in Zionism, but this was never a principle of the movement, nor does the idea appear in Herzl's writings. On the contrary: Herzl pointedly related to the Arabs in his ideas and plans in an inclusive manner”. From Haaretz, 02/05/08, “The 'nations test'”.

Despite these problems, Israel has made great advances in technology, science and medicine. All this was achieved while fighting for its survival. The price was heavy and no real progress was made for a true peace between Israel and its Arab neighbours and of course the Palestinian people.

So much more could be achieved had both the Palestinians and Israelis ceased their hostilities against each other and worked towards achieving a true peace which would guarantee justice, democracy and prosperity for both sides. For each person killed, whether Palestinian or Israeli, results in more hate, more violence and revenge.

Only two Arab states have a peace treaty with Israel – Egypt and Jordan. Other Arab states in the Gulf such as Qatar have hosted Israelis. However, progress on all the fronts depends very much on solving the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

Israel has failed to integrate its Arab citizens into Israeli society. While the situation in Israel is still very distant from apartheid South Africa and there is no resemblance at all to the situation prior to black majority rule, Arab citizens do not feel an integral part of Israel. The emphasis of Israel as a Jewish state alienates the Arab sector. An example of this is the national anthem, which is not all-embracing and Arab Israelis are unable to identify with it.

Israeli society has ceased to be the caring society that it once was. The behaviour in the streets, abrasiveness, impoliteness and lack of consideration for others has become a national way of life. Educational standards are dropping and so are the achievement rates. This loutish behaviour is evident on the roads where road manners are severely lacking. This results in very high accident rates. Family violence is on the increase and so is violent crime.

It is also becoming increasingly more difficult for young, qualified people to find jobs. Those that do are poorly paid. Many youngsters have to undergo a battery of pathetic psychometric examinations before being admitted to university. This results in many potentially good students being beaten by the system before they even start. However, if the parents happen to know the right people in the right places at the right time, many potential students somehow have their futures assured - very different from meritocracy.

What society and future can we promise to our children? Zionism has ceased to be relevant. It achieved its objective of establishing a homeland for the Jewish People who have been a persecuted minority for generations in the Diaspora. This objective was achieved but at a very heavy price. It resulted in the displacement of about 700 000 Palestinians from their homeland and a severe Palestinian refugee problem which remains unsolved to this day. We have to look at the future and realize that time is running out. The core of the conflict here is the refugee problem and repatriation of the refugees as well as compensation.

If this problem is not addressed in a serious manner, the whole area will be involved in violence for many years. All the negotiations that have been conducted with the Palestinians in the past have been futile as this problem has never been addressed in a serious manner so that a just solution could be found with which both Israelis and Palestinians can live. The situation is so complex and bound with strong emotions on both sides that objectivity can result in accusations of cooperation with one side or the other to the detriment of both sides. The mindset of many Palestinians is that Israel is stolen Palestinian land and these lands have to be returned to the Palestinian people which could spell the end of Israel’s existence.

Another source of concern is the cynical use that Hamas has made of the Holocaust in describing the plight of the Palestinians. It wishes to portray Israel as committing genocide against them. This exercise is futile as much as it is false. They believe that if one delves on this ad nauseam it becomes truth.

Where is Israel heading in the next 60 years? There will be deterioration in the situation and Israel will find itself in an untenable situation arming itself to the teeth. This will exact a high cost in lives as the Palestinians will also become stronger and more resilient.

As the two-state solution is showing signs of not being practical because of territorial expansion of illegal settlements in the so-called future Palestinian state, it will lose support due to it not being a viable option. The binational state solution will once again return to the drawing boards for serious debate. The nature of this option is not clear at this stage. Suffice it to say that the possibility of a federal solution which would take into serious consideration a solution to the refugee problem as well as the illegal settler problem. This state will have to be secular and democratic in nature so that there is no religious domination of one group by another. The chance of this solution being acceptable by both sides remains very remote indeed.

Jimmy Carter’s Visit to the Middle East

Source: Al-Bayan, UAE, April 20, 2008

The ex-President of the US, Jimmy Carter, should be judged by his deeds and achievements in making peace in the Middle East and not by his book “Palestine: Peace or Apartheid”. The agreement that he organized between Egypt and Israel was one of his greatest achievements. Memories here are short and we forget that Egypt was the main decision maker when it came to declaring war on Israel.

OK, so he wrote a book (Palestine: Peace not Apartheid) that was “not so nice” from Israel’s point of view. Israel has not kept its word on the agreements and understandings that it signed in the past. Israel's control over Palestinian lands and their confiscation, and especially the continued settlement activity, contravened all promises Israel made and signed with the Palestinians. Israel’s policies in the occupied territories resemble apartheid. There have also been human rights abuses in the occupied territories that gave impetus to the development of Hamas and other groups hostile to Israel’s existence. Carter’s book must be viewed within this context. In the eyes of the Israeli government, Israel is right and the Palestinians are not. Those who criticize Israel’s expansionist policies and behaviour are accused of anti-Semitism! Surely this is indicative of irrelevant Zionists becoming paranoiac whenever Israel is criticized. They seek anti-Semitism under every nook and cranny in order to resuscitate their dying and irrelevant ideology. If they do not find it, they create it!

After all, ex-President Carter had achieved far more for peace in the Middle East than all the presidents of the US. President Bush has done very little and far too late. His policies on Iraq were and still are a total disaster. Jimmy Carter has been snubbed and boycotted by PM Ehud Olmert and his government. He is not deserving of this treatment! All the roads to peace have failed. Surely a man of Jimmy Carter’s stature should be given carte blanche by Israel to try to mediate, even with Hamas. What is so dangerous about him talking to Khalid Mash’al, the Hamas leader in Damascus, Syria? Carter believes that the only way to make peace is to speak to one’s enemies even though their views are poles apart. Carter does view himself as a troubleshooter and he has adopted a different path that has never been tried.

Jimmy Carter’s intentions are genuine. It is questionable whether Israel’s intentions are as well. If their intentions are genuine then they would freeze settlements instead of making cosmetic changes which does not indicate any real change in their illegal settlement policies in the occupied lands.

The history of Israel’s establishment in 1948 from the Palestinian point of view is a total tragedy. Israel must recognize this and empathize with it in the same way that Israel expects the world never to forget the Holocaust and correctly so. Palestinians should not be expected to forget Al Naqba (the catastrophe, as they view Israel’s establishment) in the same context that Israelis would never forget the Holocaust. This is the basis of the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict. Everything else stems from this fact.

Jimmy Carter, whose energy and motivation to find a way to end the bloodshed between Israelis and Palestinians, should have been encouraged and supported. Instead, the US and Israel condemned his efforts at troubleshooting and he was snubbed by the Israeli Government who refused to meet him. Israel does not have anything to lose and may have something to gain. Hamas is considered a terrorist organization by Israel and the US. However, it also has great support from the Palestinians which must be taken into account. Adopting a policy of divide and rule will never isolate Hamas. Negotiations for peace will only succeed if Hamas and Fatah reach an agreement. Gaza and the West Bank must be treated as a single entity for peace negotiations.

According to Maan News report 22^nd April 2008, Hamas agrees to the establishment of a Palestinian state on the Palestinian territories which Israel occupied in 1967 if the Palestinian people accept this in a referendum. However, Hamas will not recognize Israel, Khalid Mash'al, chief of Hamas politburo, said on Monday, 21^st April 2008.

"We accept a Palestinian state within the borders of June 4 1967 with Jerusalem as its capital, and with real sovereignty free of any Israeli settlements and including the right of return for Palestinian refugees in Diaspora, but without recognizing Israel," Mash'al told a press conference in Damascus.

However, if one were to examine the statements that came out of the Carter-Mash’al meeting one could sense a very small change of heart on the part of Mash’al. Perhaps it is a microscopic hint that there is a desire to reach an understanding with Israel even though at this point it does not necessarily mean recognition of Israel. That will come later when Israel agrees to Hamas’s conditions. It does appear one-sided but one must bear in mind that Israel is the occupier of Palestinian lands and its credibility is poor. Evidence of this is the constant enlargement of settlements in the territories as well as the building of new settlements and claiming that it is legal. Israel has also been building roads for the comfort of settlers while the Palestinians are not allowed to use these roads and are limited in their travel because of road blocks and humiliating army body searches.

According to an Haaretz Report, 23^rd April 2008, Mash’al offers a 10 year truce for a Palestinian state beyond the pre-1967 borders. This, in effect, gives Israel implicit recognition by Hamas. Once Israel has received this recognition, it cannot be reversed. Perhaps here lies the key to an eventual solution to the conflict. It does seem rather remote at this stage.

Mesh’al's comments were one of the clearest statements Hamas has given for what it would do if Israel withdrew from the territories it captured in the 1967 Six Day War. He suggested Hamas would accept Israel's existence alongside a Palestinian state on the rest of the lands Israel has held since 1948. However, he did say that Hamas would not formally recognize Israel. However, if one were to examine his statement, informally he would recognize Israel. This in itself is significant. It is illustrating a certain direction that should be watched closely. "We agree to a [Palestinian] state on pre-67 borders, with Jerusalem as its capital with genuine sovereignty without settlements but without recognizing Israel," Meshaal said.

"We have offered a truce if Israel withdraws to the 1967 borders, a truce of 10 years as a proof of recognition," he said. He said he made the offer to former U.S. President Jimmy Carter during talks Friday and Saturday in the Syrian capital.

This development may not impress the Israeli government who will ignore it in the same way that it ignored Carter’s efforts. Nevertheless, apart from the statements, Mash’al should be judged by his deeds. According to Carter, Hamas is prepared to accept Israel’s right to exist in peace within the pre-1967 borders. Nothing was mentioned about Israel’s total destruction. Surely this does indicate that Hamas is beginning to climb down from the tree of non-recognition of Israel even though its efforts are very tentative and uncertain at this stage. There is also a vague hint at supporting a two-state solution if this is the will of the Palestinian people by referendum.

Naturally there is still a long way to go and it does seem that attempts are being made by Hamas to gain credibility. It is now up to the Arab world to encourage this. The Palestinian people are in a crisis and a period of calm does serve their interests in helping to solve this conflict.

Another interesting development, according to Carter, is Syria’s attitude towards Israel which is showing signs of change.

According to the International Herald Tribune 22^nd April 2008, Jimmy Carter said that he had obtained a significant concession from the Palestinian group Hamas regarding Israeli-Palestinian peace and had found the Syrian leadership eager for a full peace treaty with Israel.

Carter, who spoke in Jerusalem after several days of talks in the Syrian capital, Damascus, said he had extracted from Hamas a promise to respect the creation of a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip if it were ratified by a referendum of the Palestinian people.

He said further that Syria believed "about 85 percent" of the issues between it and Israel had been resolved in prior negotiations and it wanted a peace deal "as soon as possible."

It is unfortunate that Israel is not enthusiastic about these developments which somehow prove that its interests in finding a way to a true peace and a just solution to the conflict are not as genuine.

However, if Israel carries on the policies of collective punishment by closing off Gaza and the West Bank making it impossible for the Palestinian people to carry on with their normal lives, the hate and extremism against Israel will only intensify and this would result in further bloodshed and violence.

Pesach (Passover) – the Festival of “Freedom”

The season of Pesach (Passover) is round the corner. It is a time for reflection for many people, though by no means all. It is a festival filled with ritual and the usual arguments of “Kosher for Pesach” and the fines for selling “non-Kosher for Pesach” or chametz foods in public places has yet to begin. This festival is the commemoration of the liberation of the Israelites from Egyptian bondage.Today it has lost its relevance for many of us.

It is a time when rabbis of all shapes and sizes come out with halakhic rules as to what is “Kosher for Pesach” and what is not. The list is becoming more and more exotic and at the same time more   Those people who live in Israel and do not have deep roots here feel more and more estranged and isolated. This applies to many people who were not born here and have no family. It is a time of depression as many of us do not have any identification for this festival at all. Homes are turned inside out – an added stress searching for leaven (chametz). There is the pressure and stress that culminates in the grand climax of the Seder night when the Haggadah is read relating the story of the Israelites’ bondage in Egypt and their liberation from the Egyptian oppression.

The preparation for this festival is onerous and the family pressures where to spend Seder night is stressful. Those who have nowhere to go are under the most stress. There are families who invite people who have no relatives in Israel to spend Seder night with them. This is considered a mitzvah or good deed that is looked on favorably by God. 

Housewives, who barely exercise, get a spurt of energy to clean every nook and cranny in their homes. This involves climbing ladders and almost acrobatic movements to reach hard-to-get places in the home. Household accidents result as rather overweight housewives miss a step and tumble down from the top of the ladder inevitably landing up in the casualty department of the hospital closest to home with broken limbs. This Pesach-cleansing ritual is a seasonal obsession.

The relevance of Pesach as a festival of freedom is lost for many reasons. It is a festival that conjures up obsessions for the “Kosher for Pesach” foods that result in the annual hair-splitting arguments between the secular and religious. The losers are inevitably the secular who have to kowtow to the whims of the religious who have the law on their side. What is free about that? Religious coercion reaches a climax during the Pesach week.

Another aspect and one that very few people give a thought is the plight of the Palestinians under occupation. Their limited freedom is even further curtailed. Road-blocks, closures and checkpoints are stricter. The reason is always security. However, the difficulties that innocent Palestinians have to endure are further increased by this “Festival of Freedom”. The Israeli soldiers who are on duty in the occupied territories are even more abusive and insensitive to Palestinians to ensure that the “Festival of Freedom” is not “interrupted” by Palestinians.

It is difficult and even hypocritical to celebrate a festival of freedom while denying another people basic human rights. The settlers in the occupied territories show their presence during this “Festival of Freedom” when they trespass on Palestinian lands. At the same time the Israeli government is still expanding settlements on Palestinian land. Racist rabbis continue their anti-Arab diatribes and this does have much influence for the celebration of Pesach.

Several rabbis have used the excuse of "security" in the wake of the Mercaz HaRav shooting to issue racist halakhic (religious) rulings against Arabs. Haaretz reports Rabbi Dov Lior, chairman of the rabbinical council for settlers in "Judea and Samaria" (the West Bank), decreed "It is completely forbidden to employ [Arabs] and rent houses to them in Israel. Their employment is forbidden, not only at yeshivas, but at factories, hotels and everywhere."

Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky, considered a world-wide Orthodox authority on Jewish law, held "that it is completely forbidden to hire Arabs, especially in yeshivas; there is a concern for endangering lives." Indicating that security might not be the only motivation for this ruling, Kanievsky added that Jews should refrain from hiring any non-Jews, "unless there exists a huge disparity between the costs of the labor," in which case non-Jews could be hired.

While these are recent examples, Mossawa, an Arab civil rights advocacy group in Israel, documented dozens of instances of racist declarations by public figures and thousands of examples of incitement on the Internet in 2007 alone. From The Jerusalem Fund Information Brief

This article continues. In its 2007 Israeli Democracy Index, the Israel Democracy Institute found that 87 percent of all Israeli citizens rated Jewish-Arab relations in the country as being "poor" or "very poor."²⁸

In addition:

· 78 percent of Israeli Jews opposed having Arab parties or ministers join Israel's government.²⁹

· Just 56 percent of Israeli Jews support full equality for Palestinian citizens of Israel and an identical number agreed that "Arabs cannot attain the Jews' level of cultural development."³⁰

· 75 percent of Israeli Jews agreed with the statement that "Arabs are inclined to violent behavior" (as compared with 54 percent of Palestinian citizens of Israel who had an equivalent view of Israeli Jews).³¹

· 43 percent of Israeli Jews agreed that "Arabs are not intelligent" and 55 percent agreed that "the government should encourage Arab emigration from the country."³²

A recent Haifa University survey found that half of Israeli Jews object to Arabs living in their neighborhoods (56 percent of Arabs supported residential integration with Jews).³³ Similarly, ACRI reported that 75 percent of Israeli Jews surveyed said they would not agree to live in the same building as Arabs. The same survey found that more than half of Israeli Jews felt that Arabs and Jews should have separate recreational facilities.³⁴

There are two consistent trends among all these surveys: both Palestinian citizens of Israel and Israeli Jews hold some prejudices towards each other, but on almost every measure, Israeli Jewish views of Arabs are more negative and extreme than Arab views of Jews; second, the negative trends have risen markedly in recent years as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has intensified. Between 2005 and 2006, there was a 26 percent rise in racist incidents targeting Arabs, and the number of Israeli Jews reporting they felt "hatred" towards Arabs doubled to 30 %. ⁵

While many right wing rabbis remain at the helm of decision making in this country, those citizens, who are liberal and tolerant, find it more difficult to view Pesach as the “Festival of Freedom”.

The Binational State Solution to the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

Many Israelis view this solution as an anti-Semitic attempt to destroy Israel. However, as I have mentioned in a previous article on my blog, this is not a new idea at all. The idea was entertained by the well-known Jewish philosophers, Martin Buber and Judah Magnes in the 1920’s. The history of the establishment of the State of Israel is a tragic one. It provided hope for the Jewish people and the survivors of the Nazi holocaust while resulting in the displacement of the indigenous Palestinian population and the creation of a Palestinian refugee problem which remains unsolved to this day. The two state solution as the result of the partition vote in the UN of 29^th November 1947 was rejected by the Arab states but was accepted by the majority of UN members.

The conflict has reached a total stalemate as Israel approaches its 60^th Anniversary .The attempts at reaching a two-state solution has not yielded any results. The whole situation in this area has to return to the drawing board for new, imaginative solutions that would be acceptable to both Israelis and Palestinians. The numerous wars since Israel was established had taken a severe toll on all sides to the conflict. It is not the purpose of this article to discuss these wars except to mention that it never brought the conflict any closer to a solution. Apart from Egypt and Jordan, no additional Arab states have diplomatic relations with Israel. The Oslo Accords of September 13, 1993, did give some hope for a settlement but this hope was short-lived and time proved the Oslo Accords a total failure. The second intifada broke out in October 2000 and the Palestinian Authority was further weakened by it as Hamas, the extremist terrorist organization, became stronger and intensified its suicide terrorist attacks against Israelis in all public places. Communications between Israel and the Palestinians virtually broke down only to be replaced by violence and Israeli military retaliatory actions. The small amount of trust between Israel and the Palestinians ceased to exist.

The two-state solution which gained world support, even in Israel, became moribund. One of the reasons for this is the settlement policies of successive Israeli governments. The occupation of Palestinian lands by right wing settlers and the continuous building and enlarging of existing settlements in occupied territories in practice has destroyed the two-state solution. One does not have to use much imagination to realize that the future, independent Palestinian state would be in the West Bank and Gaza with East Jerusalem as its capital. The right wing Zionist settler movements have rekindled the binational state solution by default. It is not the idea of anti-Semites and those who wish to destroy Israel as we are made to believe. The expansion of settlements in Palestinian occupied territory made it very difficult to ascertain where the future Palestinian state will be. Would settlers vacate their homes in the occupied territories and return to Israel or would they remain under Palestinian rule? It is highly unlikely that the settlers would agree to this.

The only alternative to the two-state solution is a binational state solution which could be a federation of Israel and Palestine with a central government represented by both Israelis and Palestinians. In order for this to be achieved both Palestinians and Israelis must make revolutionary changes in their attitudes towards one another. Both parties to the conflict must agree to a binational solution. The chance of this happening is zero when the hate between the two sides runs so deep. Both sides have strong national aspirations which under the present circumstances run contrary to each other’s interests. There does not seem to be any sign that attitudes of Palestinian and Israelis will change. The hate and mistrust run so deep that it seems that either the binational state or the two-state solutions will not be achieved for many years.

Both sides are intransigent and extremism is gaining the upper hand. The misery, squalor, check posts and lack of economic development in the Palestinian areas will continue. The Israeli Security Forces will remain on its guard for terrorist activity and will continue to enhance the status quo of no progress, no direction and no peace.

On the Palestinian side there is the moderate Fatah who are prepared to negotiate a peace treaty but their strength is being eroded at a rapid pace while the extremist Hamas and its Islamic Jihad ally are becoming stronger and gaining more Palestinian support. They have no intention of coming to terms with Israel’s existence. Hamas is not even in favour of a two-state or binational state solution as it runs contrary to their charter. They wish to destroy Israel and drive the Jews into the sea. Both extremist organizations believe in genocide and ethnic cleansing of the Jewish People. Unless they become pragmatic and are prepared to negotiate with Israel on any form of solution they must change their attitude towards coexistence which is at present not part of their lexicon.

Israel must be more accommodating and show its readiness to negotiate with Hamas if the latter is prepared to negotiate even if it does not officially change its attitude towards Israel’s existence. The fact that it would be prepared to negotiate with Israel does grant de facto recognition of Israel despite its claims to the contrary. At the same time, Israel should show willingness to negotiate the release of Palestinian prisoners including Marwan Barghouti. Settlement activity beyond the green line should be frozen including existing settlement expansion. Israel has not ceased its settlement activity beyond the green line. Israel has also not ceased demolishing Palestinian homes not because of terrorism but because these homes are “illegal”. Why illegal? The reason for that is to make way for further settlement activity in Palestinian lands.

Both sides to the conflict must show readiness to negotiate seriously. Israel and its US ally cannot ignore Gaza as part of the solution even though it is under Hamas rule. Bolstering the Palestinian Authority under Mahmoud Abbas will not lead to any serious negotiations because of lack of Palestinian support.

According to Meron Benvenisti, binationalism is apparently inevitable. Israel and the Palestinians are sinking together into the mud of the "one state." The question is not whether it will be binational state, but which model to choose.

Religious Right Wing Ideology in Zionism

The terrible tragedy that occurred at Mercaz Harav in Jerusalem has aroused strong emotions amongst adherents of right wing religious Zionism. They blame the left wing in Israel for the murder. This message was so clear because of the rough treatment given to Prof Yuli Tamir the Minister of Education, when she arrived at the institution on a condolence visit. The scorn and the violence that came from this sector with the tacit support of the rabbis that graduated at this institution leaves us with no doubt about the direction of education in this “holy of holies”. Mercaz Harav, the right wing religious Zionist institution, has produced graduates that are illegal settler oriented as well as strong supporters of the occupation on religious grounds. It is a disgrace! Why must it take a heinous terrorist act to bring out true barbarism, racial hatred for others and hatred for a large left oriented non-religious section of the Israeli population? I had a feeling of déjà vu. A similar situation existed a few weeks before PM Yitschak Rabin’s assassination in November 1995.

Many rabbis whose views are extreme right wing are graduates of this institution. The yeshiva's well-known graduates include former MK Rabbi Haim Druckman, Rabbi Dov Lior, Rabbi Yaakov Ariel, Rabbi Zfania Drori, Rabbi Moshe Levinger, Rabbi Shlomo Aviner, Rabbi Yoel Bin-Noon and former MK Rabbi Hanan Porat. All these rabbis are religious Zionist firebrands! They believe and fight for “Eretz Yisrael Shleima” (Greater Israel, which includes all the territories occupied in the Six Day War of June 1967). The ideology that these religious leaders hold, according to them, are based on the right of Jews to settle all the occupied territories. This is based on prophecy. The damage that they have done to Israel’s credibility in the world is enormous. It is creating a situation whereby Palestinians are forcibly removed from their lands to make way for Jewish settlement in the territories. At the same time it also makes a two state solution even more complex to achieve. How can Israel claim that it does not wish to occupy another people when the settler movement is given permits to build in disputed areas of Jerusalem? Palatial homes are built for settlers while Palestinian homes are demolished to make way for Jewish settlement. It makes Israel’s claims of being a non-occupying power a complete farce! It also strengthens the case for a binational state solution. There is no place for a Palestinian state other than in the Israeli occupied territories! There are those religious Zionists who still maintain that the future Palestinian state is Jordan where the Palestinians ought to be transferred.

The religious Zionist movement is becoming more right wing and less amenable to any form of negotiations with the Palestinians. They must share a large part of the blame for much of the hate that Israel is receiving. The reaction of the yeshiva students was chants of “Death to the Arabs!” Rabbi David Shalem director of the Institute of Talmud Studies at the school called for the Ehud Olmert government to attack Palestinians “everywhere, in Gaza, and the north and inside.” He issued a thinly veiled call for the extermination of Palestinians by referring to them as present-day Amalekites, who were “indigenous nomads who attacked the Israelites on their flight from Egypt and were annihilated by King David.” (New York Times, March 7). They also called for the destruction of the home where the terrorist and his parents live. It must be made clear that after Rabin was assassinated, there were no calls coming from rabbis or their students in this “holy of holies” of religious Zionism to destroy the home of Yigal Amir the assassin. Nor were there any calls for the destruction of the Kiryat Arba home of Baruch Goldstein the murderer of 29 Arabs in a mosque in Hebron on 29^th February 1994. The deeds of the perpertrators of these crimes were no less evil than that of the terrorist who killed the 8 students in Mercaz Harav.

Mercaz Harav is a hotbed of racist Jewish fundamentalism at its worst. "The Talmud states that...two contrary types of souls exist, a non-Jewish soul comes from the Satanic spheres, while the Jewish soul stems from holiness...Rabbi Kook, the Elder, the revered father of the messianic tendency of Jewish fundamentalism said, "The difference between a Jewish soul and the souls of non-Jews...is greater and deeper than the difference between a human soul and the souls of cattle.' "Israel Shahak and Norton Mezvinsky's "Jewish Fundamentalism in Israel"

It is also the base of Gush Emunim. "Gush Emunim rabbis have continually reiterated that Jews who killed Arabs should not be punished, [e.g.]...Relying on the Code of Maimonides and the Halacha, Rabbi Ariel stated, 'A Jew who killed a non-Jew is exempt from human judgment and has not violated the [religious] prohibition of murder'...The significance here is most striking when the broad support, both direct and indirect, for Gush Emunim is considered. About one-half of Israel's Jewish population supports Gush Emunim." "Israel Shahak and Norton Mezvinsky's "Jewish Fundamentalism in Israel"

Mercaz Harav is the ideological and organizational centre of the Israeli settler movement. They oppose any form of compromise with the Palestinians or the establishment of an independent Palestinian state. Gideon Levy, columnist for Haaretz, the Israeli newspaper of record, wrote on March 10: “From Mercaz Harav emerged the rabbis that led the vilest movement in Zionist history. Most of the delusional right-wing perpetrators and the mongers of hate for Arabs came from this flagship.”

The Vicious Cycle of Violence

A terror victim at Mercaz Harav in Jerusalem (Y-Net)

The past week has been a week of revenge and hate. Qassams and Katyushas fell in Sderot and Ashkelon and caused injury and shock to the people of these towns. The result of these attacks was felt, not by the regular members of Hamas (who celebrated a victory when the Israeli Army withdrew from Gaza). The fact that 165 Palestinians were killed, many of whom were innocent, and not involved in the violence did not seem to make any impression on Hamas and company. The predictable rhetoric based on fantasy and an unrealistic world view was rapid in coming from their spokesmen. The arms caches hidden in private homes under Hamas orders turned many Palestinian women and children into human shields, exposed to the wroth of the Israeli Army in its quest to rout out the Hamas terrorists.

The situation remains tense and the motivation for Hamas terror has increased. The situation has become difficult and any form of sanity is still far from reality. Reports of innocent Palestinian babies and children being killed and injured are coming in. It is shocking that children on both sides have fallen victim to this cycle of violence. Nothing on earth can justify killing of innocent people whether Israeli or Palestinian.

The latest terrorist attack occurred on Merkaz Harav Yeshiva in the Kiryat Moshe neighbourhood of Jerusalem where 8 students were killed and nine others wounded. This attack was despicable and ought to be condemned in the strongest terms! The repercussions resulted in a rallying point for the right wing which makes political capital of this ghastly and tragic act. Various claims of responsibility for the attack were made. An organization calling itself "Galilee Freedom Battalions - the Martyrs of Imad Mughniyeh" claimed responsibility for the attack, according to Hezbollah's Al-Manar television station. This claim has yet to be verified. The terrorist, Ala Abu Dhaim, who was himself shot dead, acted alone. Hamas’s terrorist wing denies any responsibility for the attack. Later reports did state that this terrorist acted alone.

This terrorist attack served the interests of extremists on both sides of the great divide. The celebratory shooting in the air in Gaza that followed the terrorist attack in Jerusalem last night showed that the penetration of Merkaz Harav was viewed as an unusual political and military achievement for the group responsible.

The attack brought something to a wide public in the Gaza Strip that it had been waiting for all week - revenge. The Israeli right wing demonstrations with its spine-chilling chanting of “Death to the Arabs” were reactions that were just as despicable as the reactions of joy in Gaza.

This yeshiva is the spiritual centre of the religious Zionist movement. Many right wing rabbis graduated here. The ideology of the religious Zionist movement is another of many complex factors that are obstacles to any form of negotiated peace settlement. The terrorist who committed this awful deed was killed in a shoot out. The cynical use of political ideologies at a tragedy of this magnitude is disgusting. It reaches a level approaching the level of Hamas’s reaction to killing of Israelis.

The peace process is in shreds. Even resumption of negotiations with President Mahmoud Abbas is a hopeless exercise in achieving peace. Abbas does not represent his people. The division of Palestine into two entities means that Gaza is not part of the overall peace process. Mahmoud Abbas does not have the authority to negotiate on their behalf. The situation is so hopeless and the US is very unrealistic in its approach towards a negotiated settlement. How peace will be achieved before President Bush leaves office at the end of 2008 is anybody’s wild guess.

The cycle of violence – terror and Israeli army retaliation will continue. How much innocent blood needs to be spilt before both sides come to their senses? Both peoples have had enough of this destructive and tragic violence. Al Jazeera’s Odeh said the latest incident could prompt greater willingness to negotiate.

"The political buzz in the Palestinian territory is that this attack has really awakened the politicians on both sides to a reality - the status quo will not work and they need to work on reaching a ceasefire," she said.

"This is the second attack [inside Israel] in one month, something that Israelis haven't seen in a very long time. They don't want to be subjected to that again. The calls for a ceasefire, mutual and reciprocal between Israelis and Palestinians, will be a lot stronger."

A cease-fire and a stop to all violence and terror must be declared!