Israel's War against Hezbollah

The War between Israel and Hezbollah has reached the front pages of all the newspapers in the world as well as made headlines on TV and radio – not to mention the online newspapers on the internet. This is a war foisted onto Israel by Hezbollah. After the Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon in 2000, Hezbollah seized the opportunity to build up its weaponry and train its terrorists to carry out periodic raids into Israel and kidnap soldiers within Israel’s borders. Even the UN acted with expediency towards Hezbollah in the past by quashing investigations into the kidnappings of Israeli soldiers. Over the last six years, they built a formidable army that is no walk over for Israel. Hezbollah, theoretically, does not have an argument with Israel over territory. It is different from the Palestinians in that respect.

Hezbollah is the proxy of Iran under the rabid Iranian anti-Semite, Mahmoud Ahmadinajad, whose hate for Israel and the Jewish people is uncompromising. Israel aims for the goal of achieving a Hezbollah-free zone until the Litani River in Lebanon. Another problem is that despite the progress of the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) towards that goal, there does not seem to be any abatement in the capability of Hezbollah to launch over 200 hundred rockets and mortars into Israel daily. Two rockets reached as far as the area of Hadera (I heard the rumbling explosions from my home). Sheik Hassan Nasrallah is even threatening to fire rockets as far as Tel Aviv. In other words, the area of Hezbollah rocket capability across Israel is extensive and in practical terms shows no signs of decreasing despite the heavy losses that Israel has inflicted upon Hezbollah.

There are meetings in the UN to pressure Israel to reach a cease-fire agreement with Hezbollah. Even the US is working together with France and England to engineer an agreement. The wide-ranging support that Israel received from the US is showing signs of diminishing. Israel does not want a cease-fire at this stage, as it has not reached its goal of removing the Hezbollah terrorist threat from her northern border. Evidence of that is still there with the increasing number of soldier and civilian casualties.
It should be clear that the main goals of Hezbollah are two fold:

1. They wish to destroy Israel and the Jewish People. As far as they are concerned, Israel has no right to exist. Their supreme commander, Mahmoud Ahmadinajad, has clarified this on almost every occasion.


2. There is also a wider goal and that is the replacement of Israel with an Islamic state faithful to sharia or Moslem religious law and the conversion of non-Moslems to Islam.

They wish to accomplish this by “the sword” which is God’s Will in their eyes. It is absurd considering a cease-fire as was suggested by Ahmadinajad. He stated that there must be a cease-fire between Israel and Lebanon and, in the same breath; he continues his statements that they must destroy Israel. This is idiotic! How could Israel accept such a condition? How can Israel negotiate with Hezbollah if its main goal is Israel’s destruction? It does not make sense.

The European Union is rather expedient. Do they realize that Israel’s fight against the terrorist Hezbollah is in their interests as well? The increase in world terrorism, whether it is Al Qaeda, Hezbollah and their various cells waiting in the shadows all over the world to commit a mega terrorist act is a result of European appeasement of Islamist extremists. Every time the UN and the European Union capitulate to Islamist terror, these notorious terrorist organizations regard it as a victory. Instead of boycotting countries that harbor these terrorists, they choose the path of negotiation. They are even talking about negotiating with the evil Iranian regime by requesting them politely to cease their nuclear facility development or else! Or else what? Will they organize an ineffectual boycott of Iran?

Because of Ahmadinajad and his proxy Hezbollah’s stand, there is no room for a cease-fire! If a cease-fire is declared, Hezbollah would re-arm in a very short time and hostilities between Israel and Iran’s proxy will reoccur. The EU, by its weak and conciliatory attitude towards Iran will not render them free from terrorist attacks! Weakness towards Islamist fundamentalism is capitulation and legitimizing “conversion by the sword” to a radical Islam in the eyes of the Islamist terrorist organizations.

Hezbollah is making very effective use of human shields in their fight against Israel. They threaten innocent Lebanese civilians into allowing them to stockpile their weaponry in their homes at gunpoint. This explains the high casualty figures when Israel bombs Hezbollah weapon stores (which are private homes). Why does the world not condemn Hezbollah for using these cruel tactics? The blame for the cynical use of the sufferings of innocent Lebanese people must be laid on Hezbollah. The propaganda use of this immense tragedy bears fruit. The brutality and the scenes witnessed plays into the hands of Hezbollah and they use this cruel tactic to their advantage. It is also against the Geneva Convention, but then Hezbollah is not a state army but a terrorist organization not bound by any conventions or treaties. Israel has suffered far less casualties than Lebanon. The reason for this is that Israel’s citizens are living in bomb shelters or have moved out of the war zones in the north to safer havens in the south of the country.

It looks as if Hezbollah and Hassan Nasrallah have plenty time and will embark on a war of attrition if the fighting continues. It will be retaliation style warfare. If Israel bombs central Beirut then Hezbollah will bomb Tel Aviv. This could go on for a long time and could result in Israel becoming embroiled in a war similar to the Lebanese fiasco that lasted from 1982 until 2000. Apart from that, the Hezbollah will lay down conditions for a cease-fire.The cease-fire will consists of three components - stopping Israel's attacks, removing all Israeli troops from Lebanese soil, and returning the Lebanese refugees to the villages they fled from in the south of the country; in other words, restoring the pre-July 12 situation. With such conditions, Hezbollah wishes to clarify not only what it would consider an achievement, but also that from its own point of view, the fighting could go on. Israel would never accept this! At the emergency convention of Moslem states in Malaysia on 2nd August 2006, Nasrallah has effectively portrayed the war as a war against Lebanon rather than a war against Hezbollah. They (Hezbollah) make cynical use of the suffering of the Lebanese People, for which they are entirely accountable, as proof of that.

Meanwhile Israel has to come to terms with its Lebanese neighbours without the Hezbollah threat to its existence. It is easy for the EU and other countries far from the conflict to pressurize Israel in accepting a cease-fire. The consequences of a weak cease-fire agreement that will not be watertight and protect Israel from Hezbollah terrorist attacks do not affect the EU or the rest of the world directly in the short term. In the end, it could render the non-Moslem world more vulnerable to terrorist attacks as the Islamist terror organizations (who have established dormant terrorist cells all over Europe) see this as a victory in their militancy and desire to destroy western civilization.

The Dilemmas of War between Israel and Hezbollah

The war has now entered a very crucial phase. Press and horrifying TV reports of injuries, death and indescribable suffering are occurring to innocent Lebanese citizens, who are in the areas where tough battles between Israeli Forces and Hezbollah are raging. It does not matter who one supports, but the heart-rending scenes of suffering that innocent Lebanese people are undergoing cannot fail to leave one unmoved. Israelis are also suffering from the volleys of Katyusha rockets. The destruction and suffering of Israelis is no less!(See below)

At the start of the war, there was support for Israel’s cause in trying to push the murderous Hezbollah from Israel’s northern border after its kidnapping of two Israeli soldiers. Many people say that Israel’s reaction was “disproportionate”. The description “disproportionate” has been bandied about so much that it has lost any relevance. The kidnappings are not the sole reason for Israel’s reaction! The continuous Hezbollah provocations on the northern borders eroded Israel’s patience! Can one say that the constant hostile incidents on Israel’s northern border with Lebanon, initiated by Hezbollah since Israel’s unilateral pullout from Lebanon in 2000 is not sufficient reason for Israel to open fire on them? The Hezbollah did not invent kidnappings on 12 July 2006. There had been previous kidnappings over the years and negotiations for release. This latest kidnapping was the last straw that broke the camel’s back.

Hezbollah is an evil, terrorist organization. They are well trained and organized. It is possible that Israel’s intelligence underestimated their tenacity, prowess and motivation. Iran and Syria are supporting Hezbollah and are arming this organization to carry on the fight against Israel. Hezbollah hides behind civilians, threatening them at gunpoint to provide them with shelter in the areas where they live. Some Lebanese homes have become armament stores and command headquarters for Hezbollah. It would not be surprising if Hezbollah ordered innocent civilians to remain in their homes and not heed IDF (Israel Defense Force) warnings to vacate in preparation for the battles ahead. Hezbollah did this in order to achieve three basic goals:

1. Lebanese suffering will receive increased coverage by the media that will work in Hezbollah’s favor.


2. The Arab states and other powerful terrorist organizations, including Al Qaeda, will support Hezbollah in their fight against Israel.


3. The UN will come under pressure from the ineffectual Lebanese Government and the Arab states to get support for a cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah.

Hezbollah and Al Qaeda are not allies but it is a matter of “the enemy of my enemy is my friend” in this case. Hezbollah will try to gain support from any quarter for its cause of the destruction of Israel.

The accidental shooting of four UN personnel who were part of UNIFIL was an unfortunate incident. One should view this in the same light as “friendly fire” on Israel soldiers by their own. In wars, unintentional accidents occur due to incorrect judgment. The UN secretary-general, Kofi Anan’s rash statements blaming Israel for this unfortunate incident was not constructive. It somehow casts a deep suspicion as to his fairness of judgment in this situation.

Hezbollah must bear the responsibility for the suffering of the Lebanese People. They have made cynical use of their defenselessness for their own crooked propaganda purposes.

United Nations humanitarian chief, Jan Egeland, accused Israel on Wednesday 26th July of committing "catastrophic mistakes" in its attack on Hezbollah, which have caused civilian casualties and alienated the Lebanese public. Israel has not alienated the Lebanese People! It is Hezbollah! They provoked Israel into defending itself from their terror. They used the Lebanese people cruelly for the aims of personal aggrandizement in their hate for Israel. Israel has often stated that it does not intend to occupy Lebanon. Israel’s aim is clear – to remove the Hezbollah terror threat from its border! If this “alienates” the Lebanese people according to Jan Egeland, then maybe the UN should leave Hezbollah to its own devices undeterred! Israel has no argument with the Lebanese People. They are not part of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict.

There are calls for a cease-fire. If the warring parties declare a cease-fire prematurely, Hezbollah will view this as a victory – not even a Pyrrhic victory, but a total one. They would adopt a cease-fire for one purpose only – to re-arm and attack Israel at a later opportunity of their choosing. After all, one declares a cease-fire with states and not terrorist organizations. If Lebanon were to declare a cease-fire and one of the conditions would be the reining in of Hezbollah and its demise including its total disarmament in accordance with Security Council Resolution 1559 (2004) then it would be worthy of support. Naturally, the return of the two Israeli soldiers and possible prisoner exchanges could be part of a watertight agreement in cessation of hostilities.

Unfortunately, a weak government runs Lebanon, which has no power to replace Hezbollah with the Lebanese Army on Israel’s border to ensure peace or to negotiate an end to the war. In this respect, it resembles President Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority. The latter also has no power to negotiate the release of the soldier, Gilad Shalit in Gaza. Terrorist organizations – Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza run both entities.

http://www.zionism-israel.com/maps/beirutbombing.htm

Israel and Apartheid South Africa

Israel is involved in a war against terrorism directed from the south (Hamas in Gaza) and the north (Hezbollah in Lebanon). As the war on both fronts goes on, there are Islamist fundamentalist sympathizers who compare Israel to apartheid South Africa ad nauseam. As I had mentioned, in a previous post that I wrote on my blog site about a year ago, nothing could be further from the truth. Those who wish Israel’s destruction make the comparison.

I had lived in South Africa during the height of the apartheid period. We had experienced a Special Branch search in our home because of purchasing a book on South Africa’s Third Reich written by Brian Bunting. Some friends, living in London during the 1960s, sent the book to us in a plain cover. The book was published in 1964. The South African Police hounded those who opposed the apartheid government without mercy. I remember my late father, Chaim Eli Klein, burning many banned political books because of fears of police raids that could occur at any time.

Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu are great people and they both had achieved very much in the liberation of South Africa from fascism and apartheid. Both these leaders made a tremendous contribution to uniting all South Africans irrespective of their skin colour, race or creed. They found a common denominator in all South Africans who share a common homeland and destiny. All South Africans owe a tremendous amount of gratitude towards these incredible leaders.

The frivolous use of the term “ethnic cleansing” of the Palestinians when referring to Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians shows total ignorance of the situation. If anything, there is an attempt by Hezbollah and Hamas (had they been stronger) to ethnically cleanse Israel of the Jews. Sheik Nasrallah has made this more than clear in his rabble-rousing addresses to his supporters and in his terrorist activities against the Jews even beyond the borders of Israel.

Archbishop Desmond Tutu established the Truth and Reconciliation Commission to give a chance to those with authority vested in them by the apartheid SA regime, who abused human rights, to obtain forgiveness from those who had suffered under white rule. Many whites who were involved in suppressing blacks came out of the cupboard and confessed the cruelties that they had committed against their black victims. This commission was highly successful and played a part in the healing process to unite South Africans in a common destiny. All races, despite the terrible bloody history of white supremacy, were prepared to forgive and rebuild the new South Africa from scratch.

As great as these two leaders are, they had one failing. Their knowledge of the Israeli-Palestinian problem is poor and inadequate. Their intentions are good but they fail to understand the major difference between Israel’s problems with the Palestinians and with the fundamentalist Islamist terrorist groups who are committed to Israel’s total destruction. These Islamist terrorists are highly motivated in wreaking havoc and terror on innocent Israelis irrespective of their creed.

I had witnessed cruelty to blacks who happened to be in “white areas” at the wrong time and who never had their passbooks (reference books or identity document “dompas”) on their person. The police arrested them and their white employers bailed them out the following day when they showed the police the relevant papers proving that they were under their employment.

Under Apartheid South Africa, Blacks, Coloureds (people of mixed race), Moslems and Indians had very few basic human rights. There were so many draconian laws that prevented these people from competing in the employment market. There was the Job Reservation Act that reserved professional jobs for whites. There was the Groups Areas Act, the Mixed Marriages Act that prevented people of a different colour from living in select White areas. Whites and blacks were forbidden to marry and if they did, they were sentenced to prison.

There was a total separation between whites and blacks. Law enforced this. Despite all these travesties of justice, goodwill between the various races in South Africa remained a uniting factor. The desire to end apartheid by all races won the day. South Africa was fortunate that they had Nelson Mandela as the leader. He had served so many years in prison and came out without any malice towards anybody. He even hosted his former adversaries who imprisoned him when he became President of South Africa. This proves his greatness.

South Africa’s new leaders are unable to accept the fact that Israel’s problem with her Palestinian neighbours is existential. There are not even the basic ingredients for some kind of rapprochement with the Palestinians. The ruling ANC (African National Congress) never had a manifesto that promoted the destruction of the whites like Hamas and Hezbollah that has the destruction of the Jews and Israel as an essential goal (genocide). Their manifesto is filled with hate for Israel and there is nothing even hinting at recognizing Israel’s right to exist let alone making peace with Israel. Where are the parallels between apartheid South Africa and Israel? Only a wild imagination of the likes of Israel-bashers could find a perverse parallel. There is no racism in the ANC manifesto in contrast to the Islamist terrorist groups’ manifestos.

Much has been written about the rights of Arab citizens in Israel in previous posts and I shall not repeat that again. Suffice it to say, Israel’s Arabs have equal rights, have representation in the Knesset and there are no separate facilities such as for “Jews Only” or signs such as “Arabs not allowed”. In apartheid, South Africa signs such us “Europeans or Whites only” on park benches and public facilities was commonplace. Every public place, including public telephone booths, was segregated. The list was endless. Apartheid signs on buses insured very little seating accommodation for blacks.

Much remains to be achieved in Arab human rights in Israel. It is not one hundred per cent perfect. However, there is no discriminatory legislation on the statute books preventing Israeli Arabs from competing in the job market or any professional spheres.

Israel is fighting a war for its survival. This has been the case since Israel’s establishment in 1948. Those who use the apartheid South African parallel are delegitimizing Israel’s right to exist. There is no parallel whatsoever. The South African experience is not applicable to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The basic ingredient – the desire for coexistence and an end to the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians is not there. There is no desire from Hamas to recognize Israel’s right to exist. The suffering of the Palestinian People is due to the desire of their Hamas leadership to carry on terror against Israel’s citizens. The rain of Qassam rockets in the south and Katyushas in the north is not a fight against “the occupation” but an attempt to bring Israel to her knees.
The ANC never used violence against innocent people to promote their liberation struggle against apartheid. Suicide bombings, kidnappings, murders and blowing up people in their daily business was never part of their manifesto to achieve human rights. The “brutal oppression” of the Palestinian people is a result of the violence that the Palestinians have wrought on Israel. Israel has a right to protect herself from Palestinian violence against her citizens. Hezbollah in the north in Lebanon and Hamas in the south in Gaza are responsible for the retaliation that Israel has wrought on their respective peoples.

Even if Israel carries out further disengagements without any watertight peace treaties with the Palestinians, the vacuum created will result in the rearmament of the Palestinians with Qassams and Hezbollah Katyushas in their quest to destroy Israel. It is not a matter of “liberation from the occupation” anymore. Their purpose is to establish an undemocratic caliphate or fundamentalist Islamic state replacing Israel. How does this compare with apartheid South Africa?

War on Two Fronts

Hezbollah, under the leadership of Sheik Nasralla, the Lebanese Shiite self-styled demagogue, decided to attack an Israeli Army patrol in the north of Israel near the Lebanese border. On July 12, 2006, Hezbollah carried out the most serious terrorist attack against IDF forces and Israeli communities along the Israeli-Lebanese border since the IDF withdrew from Lebanon in May 2000. During the attack two Israeli soldiers were abducted, eight soldiers and one civilian woman were killed and approximately 54 soldiers and civilians were wounded (as of noon on July 13). Hezbollah did this in order to relieve Hamas from Israeli Army pressure in Gaza. There is cooperation between Hezbollah and Hamas. As a result, Israel is now fighting an enemy on two fronts. Both organizations have much in common. Both organizations are terror organizations who wish to destroy Israel.

Examination of Hezbollah’s goals leaves one in no doubt that this terrorist organization is stronger than Hamas and will be a problem to destroy. Their hate for Israel, Jews and the West is irreconcilable.

Renewal of hostilities between Israel and Lebanon with Hezbollah as the main player and the provoker was a matter of time. This evil man, Sheik Nasrallah, is a gifted rabble-rouser who has great charisma. He has formed a terrorist apparatus in Lebanon that the formal Lebanese Government does not dare to hinder. In this respect, Hezbollah is similar to Hamas with one big difference – the Palestinians elected Hamas to rule them. The Lebanese People did not elect Hezbollah.

Hezbollah made an unprovoked attack on Israel’s sovereign territory. There was no reason for them to do this. They behaved in a barbaric fashion by making demands on Israel to release prisoners in exchange for kidnapped soldiers. This is unaccetable! Israel has every right to react. What country would allow itself to be blackmailed by a group of armed terrorists in this manner? The terrorist Hezbollah organization is the responsibility of the Lebanese Government who has turned a blind eye on their terrorist activities against Israel. Israel is correct in holding Lebanon responsible for Hezbollah’s activities.  

UN Security Council resolutions 1559 and 1680, call for disarming and cessation of support for Hezbollah. The Lebanese Government had done nothing to disarm Hezbollah. Today Hezbollah is part of the Lebanese Government, which is further proof that while they are not in the majority they add a measure of responsibility to the Lebanese Government for the act of war against Israel - a neighboring sovereign state. 

Remember what Prime Minister Olmert said in answer to a question: "How do you measure “justified response”, especially when your own civilian infrastructure is under constant threat?” A “justified response” is in the eye of the beholder. This response should be severe enough to prevent terrorist groups from carrying out their bloody acts. If it does not succeed in its goal then the response is a failure. If it succeeds then it is justified.

Syria, Iran and Lebanon (because of the latter’s indifference to Hezbollah which gets its financial support from Iran) can now be viewed as “the axis of evil.”
Israel’s attitude and response to Hezbollah terror can best be summed up by Foreign Ministry Deputy Director-General for Public Affairs Ambassador Gideon Meir's opening statement from his press conference on Thursday 13th July 2006 with Brig,-Gen. Ido Nehushtan:
"Israel has suffered an unprovoked cross-border attack from Lebanese territory. The Hezbollah carried out the attack, which is a party to the Government of Lebanon. They attacked Israelis, soldiers and civilians, while on sovereign Israeli soil. In these circumstances, Israel has no alternative but to defend itself and its citizens.
For this reason, Israel is now reacting to an act of war by a neighboring sovereign state. Israel views Lebanon as responsible for the present situation, and it shall bear the consequences for this act.
However, Lebanon is not the only responsible party. Syria hosts in its capital, Damascus, the headquarters of a number of Palestinian Jihadist terrorist groups, including Hamas. They provide shelter and logistical support for Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal, who has been living there for a number of years. From Damascus, Mashaal commands terrorists within the Palestinian territories who carry out ongoing attacks against Israel and its citizens, including the bombardment of southern Israel with Kassam missiles and the recent terrorist infiltration and kidnapping of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. Syria also provides support to the Hizbullah, including the transfer of arms, munitions and operatives through the Damascus airport and border crossings into Lebanon. The Hezbollah would not be able to operate in Lebanon without clear Syrian sponsorship.
Iran is the main benefactor of the Hezbollah. It provides funding, weapons and directives for this terrorist organization. For all practical purposes, Hezbollah is merely an arm of the Teheran Jihadist regime. Iran has also made considerable inroads of influence into Palestinian terrorist organization, including Fatah’s al-Aqsa Brigade and Hamas’ Iz a-Din al-Kassam group.  It provides their terror cells with funding, technical instruction and operational directives.
Hamas and Hezbollah are driven by an extremist Jihadist ideology that calls for the destruction of the State of Israel – as part of an international effort to wage ‘Holy War’ against the ‘infidel’.        
Syria and Iran support these groups, not only because they support their ideology, but also because they provide Damascus and Teheran with a tool to strengthen the influence of their own regimes and to divert attention from other issues which have exposed them lately to international pressure. We also have specific information that Hezbollah is planning to transfer the kidnapped soldiers to Iran.
Consequently, Israel views Hamas, Hezbollah, Syria and Iran as primary elements in the Axis of Terror and Hate threatening not only Israel but also the entire world.
There is a widening consensus in the international arena that Jihadist terror is a global threat that must be confronted with determination and resolve. Israel has been in intensive contact with foreign governments and world organizations, in order to coordinate pressure on these regimes, ensuring they understand that the price that they will pay internationally for their support of terrorism will be unbearably high.
With regard to our expectations from Lebanon, it is the responsibility of the Government of Lebanon to fulfill its obligations as a sovereign state to extend its control over its own territory, as called for by Security Council resolutions 425 and 1559. Through our operations, Israel expects both to pressure the Beirut government to take action, and to facilitate this action by providing the international encouragement and the operational conditions favorable to the disarming of Hezbollah and the effective deployment of the Lebanese army southward to the Israel-Lebanon border. This is not only Israel's interest, but that of the Lebanese people and the region as a whole."
Hezbollah is leading the Lebanese People down the path of destruction. Naturally, the “evil axis” goes screaming to the United Nations to condemn Israel for its “aggression”. The United States who has also bared the brunt of terror in the Trade Centre Tragedy of 11 September 2001 used the veto to prevent the passing of one-sided resolutions against Israel. There are even signs that Arab States such as Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Egypt are not supporting Hezbollah.
Lebanon, who had experienced a “boom” economically, will now suffer a very severe set back. She will have to do more to disarm the terrorist Hezbollah who will re-arm within a few months once this campaign is completed.  

The War against Hamas

The military situation between Israel and the Palestinians has caused much suffering to the Palestinian population. Many have abandoned their homes and have nowhere to go. The suffering is horrendous as army bulldozers and tractors destroy and level the terrain. A mother and two children were killed in Gaza during this operation. We are all upset when innocent Palestinians lose their lives and their intense suffering because of this operation. It is doubtful if the Palestinian Hamas leadership has pangs of conscience when their terrorist wing deliberately kills innocent Israelis!

Despite the stepping up of Israeli Security Forces operations against the Palestinians, there are still no signs that the Palestinians wish to negotiate an end to the Qassam Rocket fire into Sderot and Ashkelon or release the kidnapped Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit.
There are reports that Ismail Haniyeh the Hamas prime minister has called for a cease-fire, but Israel has refused to accept the terms of the cease-fire. Therefore, the fighting goes on and it seems as if it will last for quite some time.

The Palestinians have achieved nothing by their attitude. It is doubtful even if Haniyeh has any influence on the Hamas terrorist groups. The Palestinian Authority under PM Haniyeh is losing control over the situation and it seems highly unlikely that the Palestinian terrorists will agree to cease their terror despite the appeals of their so-called political leadership. Hamas is leading the Palestinian People to total disaster and untold suffering. They lost the opportunity after the withdrawal of Israel from Gaza. The choice was in their hands whether to establish responsible government to improve the lot of their people or to continue the bloody path of terrorism against Israel by allowing their Islamist fantasies to dictate their future tactics. They chose the latter and therefore they shall pay a heavy price for their folly.

Many of us who are in the peace camp now believe that the Palestinian leadership has no desire to come to terms with Israel’s existence. The Palestinian violence since October 2000 has brought this message home. Our dreams of a two state solution, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace, security and dignity have been shattered. Continuing Palestinian violence against Israel has divided and destroyed the Israeli peace camp. If there were any doubts as to the ruling Hamas intentions, it would be a good idea to refresh one’s memory by reading the Hamas Charter that leaves one without any doubt as to what the Palestinian leadership wishes to achieve. The Hamas Charter promotes genocide of the Jewish people in Israel! It is difficult to engage in negotiations with a Hamas leadership that does not recognize Israel’s right to exist and justifies her destruction.


The basic problem between Israel and the Palestinians is the eternal fight over the same piece of land. Both sides are adamant in their claim for their right to the land that is Israel. Many of us do have certain pangs of conscience over the refugee problem created by Israel’s War of Independence of 1948. Unfortunately, over the years this problem became more complex because of extremist Islamic overtones in the claims for the right of return of the 1948 refugees. Moslem fanatics refuse to allow the establishment of a non-Moslem country on land that they considered Moslem land. While this attitude remains, there will never be peace between Israel and the Palestinians. It would be a futile exercise if there would be any future unilateral withdrawals. Further withdrawals would result in future terrorist incursions into Israel in the form of further Qassam rocket fire, kidnappings, suicide bombings and who knows what else as is evidenced in Gaza.

The blame for Palestinian suffering is the Hamas leadership who has declared war on Israel. In wars, innocent people suffer casualties and it is no different in this war. The Hamas terrorists have killed innocent Israelis on purpose.

Meanwhile UN agencies blame Israel for the situation in Gaza. The situation in Gaza has reached a new low with tremendous suffering to the Palestinian People. They do not blame Hamas for the crisis of the Palestinians. They accuse Israel of human rights violations against the Palestinians. As usual, the accusations are one-sided against Israel. No condemnation comes from the UN agencies against Hamas for initiating terror against Israel’s citizens and thus triggering Israeli Army action against them. Israel is always under fire from the UN in her attempt to safeguard the security of her citizens that is her basic right as it is the right of all countries in the world to protect their citizens from terror. The US went into Afghanistan to fight terror against US citizens as well as Iraq and to ensure her interests there. Yet the world blames Israel who has been subjected to Palestinian terror of the worst kind over the last six years especially.

There is no doubt that the ball lies in the Palestinian court for the suffering of the Palestinian People! The UN agencies should be laying the blame on Hamas and its allied terror groups who have declared war on Israel by their actions of terror. While the UN remains soft on terror, Islamist terrorists will use this means increasingly in order to achieve their aims of destroying Israel.

Hamas is declaring War on Israel

The kidnapping of the soldier, Gilad Shalit, and the non-cessation of Qassam rocket fire into Israel despite the “Summer Rain” Israel Army operation into Gaza, proves once again the intransigence of Hamas to come to terms with Israel. Declaration of deadline to free Palestinian prisoners in exchange for Gilad Shalit is part of the psychological warfare these thugs wage in order to achieve their objective. The firing of a Qassam rocket into a school in Ashkelon is another example of a signal that the Hamas terrorists are sending that they have the capability of causing havoc to Israeli citizens.

The Hamas military wing of terrorists is operating in cells many of whom are unknown entities even to the Hamas organization that cultivates them. There are the Fatah terrorist wings as well that also operate independently. What are the objectives of Hamas in carrying out these terrorist operations against Israel? It is all part of an ongoing war between Israel and the Palestinians since Israel’s establishment in 1948. There have been attempts over the years to negotiate peace between Israel and the Palestinians but to no avail. The Palestinians have been harping on the occupation after the June War of 1967 as a reason for the violence. They have been declaring the illegality of the occupation and the population of the occupied territories with Israeli settlers. Unfortunately, the problem is more than that. It is existential, as all the wars prior to 1967 have proved that Israel is an unwanted entity in the midst of Arab States. The occupation is a catalyst for the ongoing violence. Apart from that, the situation has become more complex as there are other rogue states involved more than ever before. The major rogue players are Iran and Syria. The former under the Achmadinajad regime has engaged in much anti-Israel rhetoric and is financing terrorist operations against Israelis. The latter is harbouring Khaled Mashaal, the Hamas leader, who has much influence in the direction that Hamas chooses in the war against Israel.

Hamas is behaving in an irresponsible manner towards the electorate that voted them into power. In August 2005 when Israel disengaged from Gaza, Hamas managed to cultivate trust and credibility in Palestinian street to such an extent that an overwhelming majority elected them into power. Perhaps the Palestinians believed that after the corrupt Fatah regime and the so-called clean slate of Hamas rendered them capable of getting the Palestinian house in order. The Palestinians received Gaza unilaterally and there was hope that Hamas would rebuild the infra structure that the Israel Army had destroyed. Time proved that this was far from the reality. Hamas has no intentions of rebuilding Gaza or improving the poor economic situation of the Palestinians. Hamas has joined the increasing ring of fundamental Islamist terrorists whose philosophy is that of plunder and killing the infidels. They will wage their fantasy wars for eventual victory that means the destruction of Israel and the establishment of an Islamic state whose laws are based on Sharia. They are using the “occupation” to portray the injustices perpetrated by Israel against the Palestinians. Today it is more than that. A non-Moslem entity (Israel) in the midst of Moslem Arab States is unacceptable to Hamas and its terrorist allies irrespective of the “occupation”.

Another step towards the establishment of a Palestinian state alongside Israel has evaporated into the mists of a long list of missed opportunities. Despite all this, PM of Gaza, Ismail Haniyeh, appealed to the terrorists holding Gilad Shalit not to harm him in any way. He is realistic enough to realize that Israel will wreak havoc the likes of which are unknown in Gaza if the Hamas terrorists harm Gilad. The Hamas political wing does not control the military wing and it is possible that Haniyeh is not in the picture directly.

Hamas terrorist thugs who are leading the Palestinians on the road to disaster now run the Palestinian Authority. President Mahmoud Abbas even stated that there is nobody to talk to on the release of the kidnapped soldier. This is an incredible admission on his part. He is no player at all in the workings of the Palestinian Authority that is on the verge of total anarchy. The Hamas military wing of terrorists now rules the Palestinians. This wing consists of groups of terrorist militias operating independently of one another. The situation resembles Lebanon of the 1980s even more than before. The Qassam rocket fire into Sderot and Ashkelon will continue for a long time to come. There is no desire on the Hamas camp to try to stop the violence.

The Israeli withdrawal from Gaza in August 2005 created a vacuum that the various highly motivated terrorist groups filled. Teams of highly motivated terrorist cells probably began building tunnels that the security fence for the purposes of infiltrating Israel. It is very likely there are many tunnels along the Gaza border with Israel that are undiscovered.

The situation is becoming very complex and Israel faces a situation that defies any form of solution. Whatever decision Israel takes will be fraught with dangers of retaliation, which could also harm the kidnapped soldier.

The Kidnapping of an Israeli Soldier

The Palestinians have moved towards a path of potential self-destruction. What is it that drives the Palestinians into a situation that will not achieve anything – not independence, not peace and peaceful coexistence, recognition of Israel and the improvement of their socio-economic situation? Perhaps one can view this problem from a number of aspects. The main aspect is the failure of the Palestinian leadership to come to terms with Israel’s existence. This has now received a fundamentalist Islamic slant with extremism and hate for Israel taking the upper hand. The moment Israel disengaged from Gaza unilaterally in August 2005; this resulted in a power vacuum with many opposing terrorist militias running wild. There are so many of these terrorist para-military militias fighting amongst themselves and uniting when it comes to the common enemy – Israel. They all seem to operate under the Hamas umbrella. The building of the Security Fence on the Gaza Strip border has created new Palestinian tactics. The Palestinian terror groups have now built tunnels under the fence that allows infiltration into Israel. Who knows how many of these tunnels exist undiscovered? The object is to kidnap Israelis – soldiers and civilians. Suicide terrorism has decreased because the Israeli Security forces are successful in curtailing these attacks. The terrorists are seeking other means to achieve their goal of liberation from the “Israeli occupation” that means destruction of Israel. These extremists are not interested in a two state solution.

The Hamas terrorist organizations (Izzadin al Qassam, the Popular Resistance Committees, and a group calling itself the Army of Islam), kidnapped the Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit on 26 June 2006. The well-coordinated attack on Kibbutz Kerem Shalom, where the kidnapping occurred, proves the capability of Hamas’s military (terrorist) wing to carry our successful attacks. The whereabouts of Gilad Shalit is unknown and surrounded by much speculation.

The use of the kidnapping tactic seems to be rather successful in the short run. It gives the terrorists breathing space to seek the upper hand by trying to bargain for the release of female Palestinian security prisoners including those who are under 18 years of age in Israeli prisons. It is doubtful if Israel will succumb to this kind of blackmail. Any military move on Israel’s side to gain the release of Gilad Shalit could result in a terrible tragedy. Meanwhile there has been another kidnapping in the occupied territories. The youngster is Eliyahu Yitschak Asheri of Ittamar. The kidnappers have threatened to kill him if the Israeli Army goes into Gaza to liberate the soldier.

The situation is becoming more complex. The Hamas leadership under Ismail Haniya has no control over the release of the soldier. Mahmoud Abbas has even less influence over the captors. Gaza is in a state of total anarchy.This means that the Hamas military wing operates very much on its own and receives order from other sources. There are reports that Khaled Mashal, the Hamas leader resident in Damascus Syria, issued orders for the kidnapping operation. This individual is uncompromising in his attitude towards Israel. He wields much influence on Hamas terrorists. There seems to be a similarity in his methods of operation and that of Osama bin Laden of Al Qaeda. Both leaders are in exile and pull the strings on the terrorist cells under their direct or indirect control.

Israel is on the horns of a dilemma. The Israeli Defense Forces have entered the Gaza Strip in order to pressure the Hamas leadership to release Gilad. The military operation “Summer Rain” is under way. The Hamas led Palestinian Authority is impotent in its influence on their ultra extremist hate-filled terrorist militias. Had they had influence, the scenario would have ceased by now. Now that military operations have started, it remains to be seen as to whether it will achieve their objective. It could force the Hamas militias into taking desperate steps to save face. A tragedy could occur because of this operation.

The Palestinian terror groups have changed tactics. They are now using the “kidnapping weapon” increasingly instead of the “suicide-bombing weapon”. We can expect kidnappings to become more commonplace in the Palestinian terrorist lexicon. This tactic will gain more popularity because it will invite Israeli retaliation in populated Palestinian areas where the kidnappers hide their victims. Loss of innocent Palestinian lives in Israeli rescue operations will be difficult to avoid. This will add grist to the Palestinian terrorist propaganda machine to portray for the umpteenth time how the cruel Israeli Army kills innocent Palestinians intentionally. Palestinian sympathizers and ultra-left wing groups will swallow the bait and condemn Israel in every world forum possible including the United Nations. The rescue operations will cause havoc amongst innocent Palestinians and increased suffering.

Despite all these misgivings about the Israeli military operation in the Gaza Strip, Israel really has no alternative. The terrorists are not prepared to enter negotiations to release the kidnapped soldier or at the least, negotiate impossible conditions that Israel will never accept.

No country in the world would allow terrorists to kidnap their citizens. They would also attempt to rescue their captured citizens if negotiations fail. Israel is now exercising that right as difficult as it is. Many innocent people are going to lose their lives. A successful outcome to this military operation is far from clear at this stage let alone achieving the release of Gilad Shalit.



  

  

    

  

"Slavery" in Israel

The establishment of the State of Israel in 1948 was based on noble ideas of the Declaration of Independence whereby equality of all was stated clearly. Israel declared that she would uphold human rights and principles of democracy. There would be no discrimination based on colour, creed or religion. The Jewish People had suffered persecution in the Diaspora for centuries. This reached its culmination in Nazi Germany when 6 million were murdered because they were Jews. Israel rose from the ashes of the Holocaust when the majority of the members of the newly established UN voted in favour of partition of the British Mandate of Palestine. The Jews found a new home, free from persecution that welcomed every Jew who wished to make Israel his or her home no matter from where he or she came. One would expect that Israel would be a special country upholding these principles because of the tragic history of the Jewish People. Is this true today?

Israel has fought many wars for her survival and this has taken its toll in lives and in outlook. One would expect more respect for the rule of law and more sensitivity towards those who are different, including migrant workers, Arab Israelis, innocent Palestinians and Israelis who are poor and work for minimum wages with no hope for their future or that of their children.

Many migrant workers go to Israel because future contractors promised them a job, and discover upon arrival that no such job exists. Workers who do not have any work or identification documents usually remain in Israel, because they cannot afford to go home. Such people are liable to arrest and detention at any moment, and ultimately to deportation. Because of their situation, the fundamental rights of migrant workers – both legal and illegal - are not respected.  They receive no days off (or fewer than agreed in the contract), low wages, poor working conditions and are liable to confiscation of passports. The migrant workers are mainly from the Philippines, Thailand, China and other Asian countries, Romania and other Eastern European countries, and a number of African and Latin American countries.

The business of recruiting foreign workers is very lucrative for the employers. Employers’ pressure groups in Israel and their contacts in government and Parliament have been promoting the recruitment of migrant workers. The Chinese migrants, mainly construction workers, are often the worst affected. They have paid U.S. $ 6,000-10,000 each to come to Israel. This sum is divided between the Chinese Government, the Israeli employers or their agency, the Israeli Government (for visa and other fees) and travel costs. Because of the downturn in economic growth in Israel, particularly in the construction industry, many Chinese workers arrive to find there is no work. Many end upon the street, jobless, and illegally resident in Israel.

Although the Israeli Government insisted it has stopped issuing visas for Chinese construction workers, a number of Israeli employers were still holding a batch of visas valid for the next few months, and were continuing to recruit Chinese workers, because they are reluctant to relinquish such a lucrative business. The situation is similar for migrant workers in the areas of agriculture, catering and domestic help. Much of the work now done by migrant workers used to be done by Palestinians from the Occupied Palestinian Territories (O.T.), and by Palestinian Israeli citizens. However, due to the closures of the crossing points from the O.T. into Israel, most Palestinians can no longer travel to and work in Israel, and some Palestinian Israeli citizens have lost their jobs following the Intifada; this situation has been worsened by Israel’s economic decline and the resulting polarization of society.

Meanwhile the legal or documented migrant workers are under the total control of their Israeli employers, most of who hold on to the workers’ passports illegally. If the workers complain, they are liable to be dismissed, in which case they immediately lose their work permits and become illegal residents. The police have begun a campaign rewarding people who inform the police of illegal foreign workers. A new police unit has been set up to deal with the problem in a more sympathetic manner, but it is too early to determine if it will work. (See MIGRANT WORKERS IN ISRAEL- A Contemporary Form of Slavery - Executive Summary p7 and 8).

A no less macabre situation exists for those poor Israelis - Jews as well as Arabs who work for contractors of all kinds and sorts. Various contractors who employ cleaners for public institutions such as hospitals, businesses and day clinics use a well-known source of contractual labour. “Contracted labour” in Israel is a euphemism for almost slavery. Here the worker earns minimum wage with no chance of promotion or rises in salary apart from cost of living rises that are declared by law. These employees have no recourse to basic employment rights. If they take a lunch break, the time that they take is deducted from their salaries, which decreases the pittance that they earn even more. They have no paid annual leave benefits nor do they have maternal or sick leave. The days that the worker is absent for whatever reason is deducted from his salary. They do not have pension schemes or any form of employment benefits apart from the miserable pittance that National Insurance (Bituach Leumi) pays them on their retirement. Many retire because of ill health and the contractor bosses turf them out without any benefits, as there is none. I once asked a contracted laborer if she has address when she feels that she has been exploited. The answer I received was in the negative. She does not even know who her employer is. Her miserable paycheck does not give any hint by whom she is paid and to whom she is responsible. The Knesset passed many laws in the past to protect the worker but somehow contracted labour fell between the chairs. The Israel Labour Federation overlooks the contracted worker.

The situation with legal Palestinian workers in Israel is no better. Israel embarks on an exercise of public relations to highlight her problems with the Palestinians and Palestinian terror, but in the social field of employment, the situation is drawing close to being inhuman! The Histadrut – the Israeli Labour Federation – does not protect the rights of contracted workers. The Histadrut is impotent and ineffectual and is only affective in declaring strikes of workers who are members of strong unions such as the Airports and Harbour Workers Union, Internal ministries and other strong public sectors that are Histadrut affiliated. The law enforcement agencies have forgotten the contract worker. The contracted laborers of the Dead Sea Works suffer a similar fate. Justice for the workers is limited to those represented by strong unions.

If there is a parallel between Israel and apartheid South Africa of the past, this is it and not the Security Fence. Black contracted labourers suffered a similar fate in apartheid South Africa.

The Tragedy on Gaza Beach and Retaliation

The tragedy on Gaza Beach has filled us all with horror. Hamas and its ilk use this tragedy as an excuse to continue their Qassam rocket attacks on the people of Sderot almost unabated. Conclusions as to who was responsible for the unfortunate killing of seven members of the Ghalia family are controversial. Israel carried out an investigation into this tragic incident and stated that a shell unaccounted for by the Israeli Army caused the explosion. According to their investigation findings, they have apportioned the blame on the Palestinians for leaving an unexploded shell in the vicinity. Investigations of this nature, carried out by involved parties are suspect to be biased and inaccurate. The Hamas leadership decided to abandon the cease-fire (which was fragile to non-existent anyway) and sent a volley of Qassam rockets into Sderot. Following these incidents, Israel has adopted a more aggressive stance towards the Hamas leadership and has carried out retaliatory action resulting in further loss of life on the Palestinian side. Unfortunately, seven Palestinian civilians were killed and dozens wounded in the IAF strike on a Katyusha-launching cell in Gaza City. Two of those killed were civilians, another three were medical personnel, as well as two Islamic Jihad terrorists.

The ongoing retaliation violence continues. While it is true, that Israel does not intend to carry out violence against innocent Palestinian civilians, the same is not true of Hamas that controls the Palestinian Authority. When they attack Israelis, they must expect a reaction and if innocent Palestinians happen to be in the field where launching of Qassam rockets occur, it is an unfortunate reality that these innocent people will be harmed as well. This does not make the Israeli Army “humane” as claimed by P. M. Ehud Olmert. Armies are not humane by nature! If they were humane then they would not be able to wage wars or serve their countries. There will always be abuses of human rights by the army in carrying out their duty. The U.S. Army has not been over humane in Iraq or in Afghanistan.

The endless cycle of violence continues and there is no sign on the Palestinian side of any desire to come to terms with Israel’s existence or to cease their terror activity. The sickening comparison of Israel to apartheid South Africa remains a tactic used by the Hamas leadership and their allies ad nauseam. The shadow of the cynical “anti-racist” Durban Conference of 2001 remains a standard by which to judge Israel.

While Israel carries on with her duty to defend her citizens against terrorist attacks, the terror apologists will continue to accuse Israel of carrying out genocide against the Palestinians who are engaged in a legitimate struggle against the occupation. All means at their disposal to achieve that end, according to these apologists, is legitimate and this includes the use of the suicide bomber. The futility and results of their cruel tactics is well known and yet the fantasies of these perpetrators, which colour their aims, motivate them on this path of blood and hate.

There are journalists who write about “trying times for the Palestinians”. They overlook the fact that much of the Palestinian suffering was brought upon the Palestinians by their leadership in the past and present. The past Arafat leadership with its corruption and inability to come to terms with Israel by negotiation and the present Hamas leadership elected by default must bear the blame for much of the violence and Israel’s retaliation to it. All these apologists express their support for the Palestinian cause of achieving independence. They do not condemn the terror tactics used against Israel or at best, they overlook the terror that Palestinian terrorists had committed against innocent Israelis. They fail to realize (or do not wish to come to terms with) the fact that all the restrictions that the Palestinians suffer is because of the terror activity against Israel. Had there been no restrictions, road barriers or security fence, Israel’s citizens of all creeds would be subjected to further suicide bombings and bloodshed on a daily basis. What has this to do with genocide, apartheid fence or call it what you will? If anything, the attempt at genocide comes from the Palestinian Hamas leadership. It is not the struggle against the occupation but a desire to destroy Israel.  Hamas and company have been uncompromising in their attitude towards Israel. This is an indisputable fact!

Most of us are against the occupation and we support a Palestinian state living alongside Israel in dignity. Both Palestinians and Israelis could achieve so much by embarking on joint projects for the good of both peoples. Why is the Palestinian leadership so intransigent in coming to terms with Israel’s existence? Why do they not wish to negotiate a fair and just settlement with Israel so that both peoples can exist together in peace, dignity and respect? Unfortunately, these questions will remain rhetorical questions for many years to come. So many lives on both sides have been lost because of this intransigent hate and lack of trust. There are no optimistic signs of any change in the Hamas Palestinian attitude towards Israel!

There does not seem to be any way out of this total stalemate of violence between Israel and the Palestinians while the problem remains an existential one with both sides unable to realize the importance of becoming partners in peace rather than rivals in hate rhetoric and violence.

Boycotting Israel's Universities

Israel’s academics have been through this before. NATFHE (National Association of Teachers in Further and Higher Education), under the influence of the new left, has embarked once again on an Israel-bashing exercise. Only this time they have funneled it into a boycott of Israel’s institutions of higher learning. The grounds for this are so shaky and shallow. The new left once again compares the situation in Israel to that of apartheid South Africa of old by referring to the security fence as the “apartheid wall”. The Union is prepared to rescind the boycott if Israeli Academics actively renounce what the group calls Israel's "apartheid policies" in the territories. How can anybody, let alone academics, renounce Israel’s “apartheid policies” in the territories when such an organized fiction of a new left warped imagination does not exist?

Just over a year ago on 22nd April 2005, the AUT (Association of University Teachers) decided to boycott the University of Haifa and Bar Ilan University because of the “illegal occupation policies” of Israel. This boycott was revoked subsequently. Now NATFHE voted to boycott for a different reason - the so-called parallel between Israel and apartheid South Africa. It seems that these so-called associations of British academics will continue to find a reason to boycott Israel’s universities. The likelihood of this latest boycott being rescinded like the previous boycott is possible in the near future. This will occur when these associations come to their senses.

It is unfortunate that these academic bodies do not even bother to try to understand why Israel has adopted so-called “repressive measures” against the Palestinian population. The Palestinian terrorists with their suicide bombing tactics have not even received any mention by these associations let alone condemnation. It seems that the indifference of these associations is a form of support for terrorism against Israel rather than condemnation of terror.

The Israeli Ambassador in Britain Zvi Heifetz denied that universities in his country practiced discrimination against Palestinians. "Israeli universities are open institutions, where students and teachers are selected on merit, regardless of their religious or ethnic backgrounds. As a means of promoting dialogue and coexistence in the Middle East, an academic boycott of Israel is counter-productive in the extreme,'' he said.

The pro-boycott teachers insisted that Israeli academics must be held accountable for their "silence'' over their Government's "repressive'' actions in the occupied Palestinian territories.”The majority of Israeli academics are either complicit or acquiescent in their Government's policies in the occupied territories,'' said Tom Hickey, a philosophy lecturer who proposed the motion. He said that for Israeli academics to ignore all this amounted to "culpable blindness''.

Is it not “culpable blindness” to ignore Palestinian terror against innocent Israelis? Does Israel not have the right to protect its citizens from terrorist acts? After Britain had suffered the terror on their subways, were there not incidents of arrests and interrogation of suspects involved that also went against so-called “human rights”? No country in its war against terrorism behaved “over humanely” towards terror suspects. What about the U.S troop behaviour in Iraq and the establishment of Guantanamo Prison Camp in Cuba where terror suspects are held without much recourse to a lawyer? Why do British academics close their eyes to that?

There are no initiatives for boycotts against other countries: not against Iran, which is denying the Holocaust and threatening to destroy Israel; not against Sudan, which is committing genocide in Darfur; not against Saudi Arabia, where the Saudi Courts execute people for religious infractions, and not against China, which is carrying out oppression in Tibet and Shenzhen. Nor is the hated United States being boycotted, because this would hurt academics who want to get to Harvard, Yale and Princeton.

As an Israeli, I am opposed to the occupation but am also aware of the fact that it occurred because of aggression by Arab states in their attempt to destroy Israel since its establishment. If there were no Arab attacks on Israel, there would not have been an occupied West Bank, Gaza, East Jerusalem or the Golan Heights.

The use of the boycott weapon against Israel illustrates total ignorance of Israel and Jewish history as well as the holocaust! The Palestinian leadership under Hamas supports terror and the Israeli reaction to this terror is just as legitimate as Britain’s hunt for terrorists responsible for blowing up subways in London.

The use of the boycott weapon against Israel by British academics is unfair, unjust and illustrates total ignorance of the Palestinian – Israeli Conflict. The use of the comparison of the situation in apartheid South Africa to Israel is frivolous and is far from knowledge of reality.
The Palestinians have created a situation whereby terror against Israel has become a legitimate weapon against the occupation in the eyes of many British academics. The British academics that support boycotting Israel’s Universities, for reasons of expediency, have ignored Palestinian terrorism, thus condoning it.

The U.S, Israel and The Palestinians

President George Bush and Prime Minister Ehud Olmert have had their first meeting and joint Press Conference since the e lection of Ehud Olmert as prime minister of Israel.  The speeches made by both leaders were encouraging and reflected the U.S. continued support of Israel’s position. However, there is a certain amount of surrealism in this meeting. A certain reality in a vision that will not bear fruit in the very near future as far as peace with the Palestinians is concerned. Olmert.  in his speech to Congress, expressed his readiness to negotiate with Mahmoud Abbas. Both leaders also mentioned the Iranian nuclear threat in the background that threatens stability in the Middle East and the world.

Both leaders emphasized that the Palestinian Leadership must meet three conditions in order to continue on the road to peace:

1. Recognition of Israel’s right to exist.


2. There must be total cessation of terror against Israel.


3. Both sides must observe previous signed agreements between Israel and the Palestinians.

Both Pres. Bush and P.M. Olmert paid lip service to the importance of conducting negotiations with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in order to bring the peace negotiations back on track.

While, there is no objection to negotiating with President Mahmoud Abbas if only he would not be so weak and ineffectual. The constant harping on the relevance of Mahmoud Abbas seems to be overplayed by both the US and Israel. If only he would be more relevant! He is a good person and does have worthy intentions. His statements are compromising, and filled with the “right music” towards peace with Israel.

The truth of the matter is that Mahmoud Abbas’s attitude is contrary to the Hamas dominated Palestinian Authority, which has remained intransigent and unwilling to give up terror or recognize Israel’s right to exist. Negotiations with Abbas are a futile exercise and lacks relevance.
There is not much room for optimism. According to Danny Rubinstein of Haaretz who interviewed Ismail Haniyeh, the Hamas Prime Minister, on 23rd May, told Haaretz that the Hamas government is prepared to agree to an extended cease-fire if Israel withdraws to the 1967 lines. "If Israel withdraws to the 1967 borders, peace will prevail and we will implement a cease-fire [hudna] for many years," Haniyeh said during an interview in his south Gaza office. "Our government is prepared to maintain a long-term cease-fire with Israel." Palestinian Transportation Minister Ziad Zaza described the hudna during the interview as "the cease-fire that will be renewed automatically each time."
On the other hand, President Mahmoud Abbas has made some rather decisive statements concerning Hamas in its attitude towards Israel. It may be an ultimatum. He stated that if Hamas is not prepared to accept the “Prisoners’ Covenant”, then he will call a referendum so that the Palestinian People will decide the issue. It is doubtful if Abbas has the will or power to carry out his threat.
Once again, Hamas is playing a dubious tread water game when it comes to its attitude towards Israel. There are signs of unrest between Hamas and Abbas. It is unlikely that Hamas will accept Abbas’s threat to hold a referendum. Hamas will display its anger in the streets with more civil unrest and extremists will threaten to assassinate Mahmoud Abbas. Despite all denials to the contrary, Palestine is on the threshold of a civil war between Fatah and Hamas.
The E.U. and U.S are tightening screws on the Palestinians by withholding funds to the Hamas led Palestinian Authority. Palestine is on the verge of economic collapse and yet Hamas remains as intransigent as ever in its attitude.  It is very difficult to draw any conclusions as to what Hamas will decide in the very near future in its attitude towards Israel. There is a power struggle between Hamas and Fatah despite the two sides’ attempts to downplay their differences.
The victims of this power struggle will be the Palestinian People. Many government employees have not received their salaries since Hamas won the Palestinian Elections. The Palestinian regime will blame Israel and the United States.
The situation in the Palestinian Camp is hopeless and it will boomerang in an escalation of terror against Israel. Iran will finance Hamas and Co terror. It is doubtful whether Mahmoud Abbas will hold a referendum on the “Prisoner’s Covenant”. The dubious attitude of Hamas and the weakness of Abbas will ensure total anarchy and havoc as well as further suffering for the Palestinians.  

Mr Ronald Kasrils is Wrong

Mr. Ronald Kasrils, the South African Minister of Intelligence, has put his foot in it again as he has done in the past. He is now advocating sanctions against Israel for its "inhumane treatment" of the Palestinians. According to him, Israel ought to be punished for not recognizing the Palestinian right of democratic choice in electing Hamas in the Palestinian Elections. He equates Israel blindly with the South African Apartheid policies of the past. He is resorting to the anti-Israel tactics once again that characterized the notorious Conference on Racism held in Durban in September 2001 that turned out to be an Israel-bashing charade.
 Normally, the world would recognize the Palestinian choice of government in free and democratic elections. However, the world does recognize Hamas in the same way as it recognized Germany’s democratic choice of government in 1933 when the majority of the German People elected Hitler to power. This may seem an oversimplification. The problem began when Hitler, with the support of the German people, adopted a policy of rabid anti-Semitism and murdered six million Jews. Logically, must the world accept that because the German Electorate voted for Hitler and the Nazi Party in democratic elections, this gave him the right to murder innocent people because of their creed?
 Hamas was also the democratic elected choice of the Palestinian People. Nobody is arguing about that. However, when Hamas, does not wish to recognize Israel’s right to exist and embarks on a policy to destroy the Jewish People - surely, this is intent of genocide! This is unacceptable! Hamas has no desire at all to come to terms with Israel’s right to exist. If Hamas would change its attitude to Israel, Israel would be more than accommodating in future peace negotiations. According to Comrade Ronnie, Hamas, (like the Hitler Nazi Party of old) deserves legitimacy because it is the democratic choice of the Palestinian People. Clearly not a deep thinking man is our Ronnie.
 
Ronnie Kasrils, has proved once again, that he is self-servingly insensitive to the Jewish People. Some Jews, during the Hitler terror (the Kapos), had betrayed their own people to save their own skin. It did not work! Comrade Ronnie should heed his history that he forgets so conveniently! He shows no knowledge or sensitivity to the suicide bombings and indiscriminate murder of Jews by Palestinian terrorists. He overlooks the reason why Israel built the Security Fence in order to save lives from the indiscriminate terror that Hamas, Islamic Jihad and Al Aqsa Brigades carry out against innocent Israelis of all creeds. The Security Wall has saved many lives from Palestinian terror.
 Apartheid in South Africa is now confined to the dustbin of history and we are pleased about that. As an ex-South African Jew who had lived in South Africa during the apartheid era and loathed the injustices committed against the black majority only because of their skin colour, I welcomed the democratic change in South Africa. Today, living in Israel, seeing and experiencing what happens in this country, with all due respect to Comrade Ronnie Kasrils, I think that I am in a better position to pass judgment on his odious comparison of Israel to apartheid South Africa.
Comrade Ronnie attempts to deligitimize Israel. By his attitude, he has made a strange alliance with Mahmoud Ahmadinajad, the anti-Israel president of Iran who advocates the destruction of Israel. Ahmadinajad has expressed the desire to pass a law to differentiate between Moslems, Jews, Christians and other non-Moslem communities by coloured badges on their clothing, reminiscent of the Nazi Era in Germany. South Africa is silent on this matter and does not criticize Iran at all. Comrade Ronnie is so involved in Israel bashing that he overlooks the injustices and human rights abuses in many Moslem countries of the Middle East, including Palestinian violence on Palestinians. When it suits him or his agenda, Kasrils is silent!
Comrade Ronnie does not criticize the human rights abuses of his ally Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe who has carried out horrendous acts against those who oppose him 
South Africa today has the highest crime and AIDS rate in the world. The ANC have become prosperous and undemocratic fat cats, insensitive to the suffering of their electorate! Buying sprees to Qatar by croneys of the ANC are common practices these days. Comrade Ronnie has managed to ingratiate himself very well into this system. People who live in glass houses should not throw stones and this applies to you, Comrade Ronnie!
President Thabo Mbeki views himself as an honest broker who wishes to see the achievement of peace between Israelis and the Palestinians. It is doubtful if you do, Comrade Ronnie. Your actions and regular publishing of your opinions guarantee that South Africa is not an honest broker and has no part to play or contribution to make in attempting to find peace in the Middle East!
 

The Tentative Movement of Hamas towards Recognizing Israel

There are reports in various newspapers of signs of “winds of change” in Hamas in its attitude towards Israel. It all began in an Israeli prison where many Hamas and Fatah people are doing their prison sentences for various activities against Israel. One must not underestimate the influence that these prisoners have on the policy makers in Palestine. Somehow, their ideas come out from behind the prison walls to those who rule Palestine. Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas hold these prisoners in high esteem. They view them as martyrs who have made sacrifices for the Palestinian People by landing in prison.

These prisoners have come out with a proposal suggesting that Hamas recognize Israel’s right to exist and to start negotiating with her. This may seem an almost revolutionary change in attitude towards Israel. These proposals are very tentative at this stage and the Hamas leadership is prepared to study them seriously.

The reason for this possible “change of heart” is the crisis facing the Hamas dominated Palestinian Authority. The European Union and the U.S. have been boycotting negotiations with Hamas and cutting off aid to the Palestinians. Only a trickle of aid is getting through and this is earmarked for humanitarian purposes only. Palestinian workers have not received a salary for months and this will increase the discontent that will boomerang on Hamas eventually.

Time is not on the side of the Palestinians. Essential funds are not getting through at the rate required in order to subsidize the running of Palestinian services for residents. The economic situation in Palestine is desperate with poverty and suffering rising rapidly. The Palestinian infrastructure is destroyed and has to be rebuilt. The main victims of this hopeless situation are the children whose future is uncertain. There are even cases of small children infiltrating into Israel through the breaks in the security fence begging for money to buy food. If the economic situation deteriorates further, Hamas will loose the Palestinian support that they had gained in order to win the Palestinian elections on 25th January 2006. It is unlikely that a starving Palestinian nation will support the non-compromising Hamas attitude towards Israel forever.  

Qassam rockets are still being fired into Israel from Gaza. Many suicide-bombing attempts have been stopped successfully by the Israel Security Forces.  

Dr. Mahmoud Zahar, the Palestinian Foreign Minister, praised an interesting proposal by one of the senior prisoners, Sheik Abdel Halek Natshe of Hebron. He calls for the establishment of a Palestinian state on the lands Israel captured in the 1967 War: the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem.

“The Palestinian people, in the homeland and in the Diaspora, aspires to liberate its land and realize its self-determination, including the establishment of an independent state on all the land occupied in 1967, and to assure the right of return for refugees and the liberation of all prisoners and detainees," reads the first section of the document.

There is no doubt this does represent a possible shift in attitude by Hamas towards recognizing Israel. This proposal will be viewed with a large amount of ambivalence by the Hamas leadership and certainly by Israel. Israel will not have a problem with the establishment of a Palestinian state on land occupied in the 1967 Six Day War. It will be a matter of deciding the exact borders of this Palestinian state. There will be difficulties in establishing East Jerusalem as the capital of Palestine. Then again, it depends on what the definition of East Jerusalem will be in a final settlement. The right of return of Palestinian refugees will never be acceptable by Israel. They have stated that on enumerable occasions. The liberation of prisoners and detainees will be less of a problem. Prisoners “with blood on their hands” will remain in Israeli prisons, but then who knows what decisions will be made in the future regarding their release.

The amazing point about the prisoner proposals is the recognition of Israel. This is in total contrast to the Hamas Manifesto, built on non-recognition of Israel’s right to exist and the establishment of an Islamic state in its place. An important point about this proposal is that Ismail Haniyeh, the Hamas Prime Minister, has even made some positive comments concerning the document and said that it needs to be studied further. He did not reject it out of hand.    

Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas welcomed the document, calling it an "important plan" that constitutes a basis for future Palestinian policy. The accord calls on all the factions in the Palestinian parliament, starting with Hamas and Fatah, to establish a national unity government. However, the Hamas hardliner, Khaled Mashal, who resides in Damascus, Syria, has not shown any signs of changing his stance of non-recognition of Israel. He has called for the unification of Hamas and Fatah in order to destroy Israel. The possibility of a split between the hardliners in Hamas and the pragmatic Hamas members cannot be ruled out in the near future. It is still early days to judge whether this proposal will be widely accepted by Hamas. Nevertheless, it is significant that a moderate stand is coming out from the Hamas prisoners in Israel jails thatw given positive press coverage even from the Arab states. The stand is not moderate enough from Israel’s point of view, nevertheless there are aspects that are worth studying and perhaps it could be a basis for a change in attitude towards Israel by the Hamas leadership.

If Hamas lays down her arms, ceases supporting terror, recognizes Israel’s right to exist and decides to negotiate a peace agreement that is viable and fair to both sides, Israel will be more than forthcoming and progress could be made for the establishment of a Palestinian state alongside Israel.

A fresh start must be made in order to solve this conflict. We must be aware of the tragic history and antagonism between Israelis and Palestinians, but this should not be an obstacle to make a fresh start with new and imaginative ideas to end this tragic conflict. This prisoner proposal, while it still has a long way to go to be accepted, is nevertheless a tentative attempt for a solution to the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict.  

South Africa and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

Thabo Mbeki, the President of South Africa, sees himself as a potential peace broker in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict. He intends to use the South African experience in its weaning the whites from apartheid when the negotiations from white rule to multi-racial rule took place in the 1990’s after the release of Nelson Mandela. He seems to draw a parallel between the two situations and sees this conflict in those terms. This is dangerous and misleading. The situation between Israel and apartheid South Africa is totally different and the methods of solution ought to be viewed from a different perspective entirely.

According to Haaretz of 5 May 2006, Benjamin Pogrund wrote that Thabo Mbeki wishes to pay a visit to the region in order to visit Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president and pay a visit to the Hamas leadership as well. He hopes to include a visit to Israel. This visit will not produce any positive results because of the mindset of Hamas. Apart from that, it is unlikely that Israel will permit him to its shores after meeting with Hamas. Thabo Mbeki claims that he wishes to delve on the South African experience in the hope that he will convince Hamas to change its position vis a vis Israel. One wonders if Israel would reject any world leader who talks with Hamas to a state visit. This remains to be seen.

The official positions of South Africa in its attitude towards this conflict are:

1. Acceptance of the Oslo Accords of 1993.


2. Acceptance of the Road Map that the Quartet had formulated.

There are differences between the South African apartheid regime and the situation between Israel and the Palestinians that Mbeki tends to overlook and oversimplify. The occupation of territory because of the June 1967 Six Day War was a war of defense for Israel’s existence. Israel’s establishment in 1948 was never accepted by the Arab states at the time. Negotiations with Israel were never accepted.

Even after the signing of the Oslo Accords, Arafat continued making provocative and rabble rousing statements against Israel. He never accepted Israel’s right to exist and this became clear over the years through his rhetoric despite the fact that he signed the Oslo Accords. He used the two-tongue approach. One tongue was for international consumption in moving towards peace while the other tongue was rhetoric for his people’s consumption including the marching of martyrs to conquer Jerusalem-Al Quds.

We were all witnesses to the deteriorating situation and the movement towards the use of the suicide bomber and the beginning of the second Intifada of October 2000. The violence catapulted and communications between Israel and the Palestinians had reached a point of almost no return.

Today the situation has reached a new low. The Palestinians elected Hamas to replace the corrupt and inept Palestinian Authority despite the fact that a year before that they had elected Mahmoud Abbas to be their president. This has resulted in the Hamas-dominated Palestinian Authority with its irreconcilable attitude towards Israel and Mahmoud Abbas remaining the president. His attitude towards Israel is pragmatic.

How can Mahmoud Abbas show readiness to negotiate with Israel while his Hamas dominated parliament is opposed to any recognition of Israel’s right to exist? This situation is paradoxical and untenable! The Palestinian Authority is still talking with two voices. In the past, both voices were those of Yasser Arafat. Today these two voices are divided between Mahmoud Abbas (the moderate) and Hamas (uncompromising and extreme). The problem today is the inability of the Hamas regime to come to terms with Israel’s existence and to cease terror against Israel. It is futile negotiating with Mahmoud Abbas while Hamas still supports and carries out terror attacks against Israel. They entertain the fantasy of achieving the destruction of Israel and establishing an Islamist Palestinian state in its place. The most they are prepared to concede is a temporary cessation of terror or hudna for an unspecified period of their choosing.

In South Africa, there was a desire of all of South Africa’s people irrespective of race, colour and creed, to solve her problems peacefully and to reject apartheid outright. Nelson Mandela, the greatest political leader that South Africa had ever produced, had risen from prisoner to president in democratic elections. He had embarked on a programme of uniting all South Africans and he had succeeded in that quest. The reason was that all South Africans showed a desire to solve their problems. This is not the case in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict. There is no negotiating partner for peace between Israel and the Palestinians. This is unfortunate as both sides have much to gain from a peaceful solution to this cruel conflict.

In the not so distant past and present, many countries accused Israel of subjecting the Palestinians to much suffering due to the occupation after the Six Days War of June 1967. The establishment of Israeli settlements in the conquered territories was a grave mistake and resulted in a stalemate. Today the occupation is one of many facets that the Islamist terrorist uses to justify terrorist activity on a worldwide basis. The situation is not in the hands of Hamas alone, but external and evil players have now closed ranks with them. Iran, Syria, Al Qaeda and certain Al Qaeda elements in Iraq under Zarqawi have also made use of vitriolic rhetoric against the State of Israel. Iran is threatening Israel with total destruction and the development of nuclear facilities in Iran is a means towards that end. When it comes to hate of Israel there is unity of ranks between the Shiite and Sunni Islamist extremists. Their hate goes beyond the Israeli occupation of territory captured in the Six Day War.

President Thabo Mbeki has false sense of illusions if he feels that he will be able to bridge this gap of hate by relating it to the South African experience and teaching Hamas and Co the lessons South Africans had learned from the demise of apartheid. The basic ingredients for the promotion of a peace settlement between Israel and the Palestinians are not there.

The desire to achieve peace must come from both sides to the conflict. We all desire an end to the conflict and the establishment of a Palestinian State living at peace with Israel in dignity and respect between both sides. New, imaginative ideas for ending the conflict are now even further from fruition than ever before with the Hamas controlled Palestinian Authority. Abu Mazen is not a factor anymore in this situation, which is a great pity.

Spring in Israel

It is Spring in Israel and the indigenous spring flowers this time of the year are out. Some of these flowers are in our garden in Bat Chefer, such as the Kalaniyot (Poppies), Amaryllus while the Dandelions are scattered all over.