OPINION & EDITORIAL
Israel, not Palestine, wants war to continue
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Also by Natalie Mikhail:
- No more excuses for Israel (November 12, 2004)
- Bush appears poised to claim 2nd term (part one) (November 3, 2004)
- A messy situation in Haiti cries for international help (October 21, 2004)
- Saudi women barred from voting in upcoming election (October 14, 2004)
- Darfur genocide needs end (September 23, 2004)
Related Stories:
- War is Arafat's choice (February 21, 2002)
- Palestinian leaders need to stiffle terror (March 1, 2005)
- Violence has consequences (December 6, 2006)
- The killing needs to stop (April 11, 2002)
- Israel Must End Its Illegal Occupation of the Palestinian Territories (April 11, 2002)
by Natalie Mikhail
Thursday, March 7, 2002
It is often argued that the ultimate blame for the continuation of violence in the Middle East is on the Palestinians. But it is Israel that must end the cycle of violence by resuming peace talks without the precondition that Yasser Arafat put an end to Palestinian attacks on Israelis.
The root cause of Palestinian frustration, despair and resulting violence is the illegal Israeli occupation of Arab land. A distinction must be made between the targeting of innocent civilians by militant groups like Hamas and legitimate resistance to occupation. Israel calls children who throw stones at tanks “terrorists.”
Expecting and demanding that a population under siege and suffering a ruthless occupation stop resisting the occupier turns all notions of logic, justice and international law on their heads. Sharon’s intractable position that even resistance to Israeli troops on Palestinian land must stop before he will negotiate is an impossible demand clearly designed to give Israel a pretext not to withdraw from the territories and allow the establishment of a Palestinian state. One negotiates to end violence.
Israel and its chorus of sympathizers claim that Arafat has the power to control all Palestinian factions and to stop suicide bombings. But they conveniently forget that a main reason Israel made a deal with Arafat over a decade ago — which allowed him to set up the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank and Gaza — is Israel’s inability to control the violence despite its massive military might and sophisticated intelligence.
And one must remember that suicide bombers are entering and detonating themselves inside Israel’s borders. Sharon insists that Arafat do what Israel’s own security forces are failing to prevent. If Israel truly wants Arafat to succeed, it should comply with U.N. resolutions by dismantling the settlements — which are illegal and an obstacle to peace — and withdrawing from the occupied territories without further delay.
Israel should then assist Arafat in combating terror. Imprisoning him in Ramallah and destroying the very police force it wants him to use to fight the militants makes no sense. Previous events have shown such policies to be counterproductive.
It is not useful to blame either side for the violence; both have innocents’ blood on their hands. What is needed is bold action by the Israeli government.
Sharon is on the wrong side of history. Israel cannot claim the moral high ground in the fight against terrorism and at the same time subjugate and brutalize an entire people yearning for freedom and independence. Israelis need to look only to their own history for proof.
Anonymous (September 24, 2004 @ 8:26pm):
Wrong, wrong, and more wrong! Several times in its history, Israel has offered peace to the Palestinians and the other surrounding Arab nations. In each and every case, the Arabs have responded with violence. If the Palestinians really wanted a state of their own, they would have had it by now. What they really want is the death of every Israeli.
Natalie's assertion that Israel should "assist Arafat in combating terror" is laughable, considering that Arafat has consistently funded all the leading Palestinian terrorist organizations. Perhaps the best way to "assist" Arafat would be by firing one of his own Qassam rockets up his ass.
