OPINION & EDITORIAL
Israel’s security measures vital for peace
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by Guest Columnist
Thursday, March 1, 2007
Kyle Szarzynski's Feb. 21 column, "Jimmy Carter confronts fallacies of pro-Israel lobby," is one of the most alarming and worrying student commentaries in recent memory. Mr. Szarzynski's main intent in writing the column was not to commend Jimmy Carter's recent work. Rather, his purpose, made unequivocally clear in the penultimate paragraph, was to support Palestinian terrorism against innocent Israeli civilians. "President Carter paints a bleak picture for the Palestinians, but then strips them of their only method of resistance — 'armed struggle,'" writes Mr. Szarzynski.
Mr. Szarzynski's advice to Palestinians is no different from that of Hamas — a ruling party in the Palestinian government that supports terrorism and refuses to accept Israel's existence — or any other Islamic fundamentalists who believe bombing and rocketing innocent Israeli civilians is the path to statehood. The belief of Mr. Szarzynski and Palestinian terrorists that an "armed struggle" is the only available course of action is precisely the logic that denies a just and lasting peace for Israelis and Palestinians. It is the "armed struggle" which forces the Israeli government to maintain certain security policies to protect its civilians and safeguard the existence of the state.
Not once in his article does Mr. Szarzynski mention an incident of Palestinian terrorism, and of course this is no coincidence. It is a classic argument by an Israeli detractor who attacks Israel's security policies without providing any context. For if he mentioned, according to Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, that 1,129 people have been killed by Palestinian violence and terrorism since September 2000, then readers would understand why the Israeli government has adopted certain measures such as building a security fence to prevent would-be suicide bombers from entering Israel. While the current path of the security fence needs to be altered in certain areas and is undoubtedly detrimental to both Israelis and Palestinians, the actual fence has nonetheless proven largely successful in reducing suicide attacks within Israel proper.
At the same time, the pro-Israel community is deeply saddened that Israeli Defense Forces killed at least 332 Palestinian civilians not engaged in hostilities in 2006 in the disputed territories. B'Tselem, the source of this statistic, is widely respected for its accurate reporting and has been awarded the Carter-Meril award for Human Rights by former President Jimmy Carter's Carter Center. We are reminded, however, that while pursuing terrorists in a hostile region, it is seemingly inevitable that innocent civilians are inadvertently and tragically harmed in the process. Innocent Palestinians are not the intended target of IDF fire, while Palestinian terrorists seek to harm Israeli civilians.
There is no clearer example of Israel's commitment to peace and a two-state solution with the Palestinians than Israel's unilateral withdrawal from the Gaza Strip in 2005. This historic decision by the Israeli government — applauded by countries around the world — was made in an effort to give Palestinians land in exchange for peace and show Israel's commitment to a two-state solution. Instead of accepting this olive branch, Palestinian terrorists and the ruling government, like they have done time and time again, failed their own people by using the Gaza Strip as a launching pad for Kassam rockets which are fired on the people of Israel. The tragic and disappointing result of Israel's withdrawal from Gaza amplifies the need for current security measures to protect the Israeli population.
Ruthless Palestinian terrorists and the governments and people who support them are obstacles to peace between Israel and the Palestinians. We must recognize that the current security measures are maintained to protect Israeli civilians from Palestinian terrorism. Well-meaning Palestinians have every right to complain about their predicament, and any kindhearted observer should empathize for their plight. The Palestinian government, however, by refusing to both renounce terrorism and accept Israel's existence, has tragically failed its people and has every right to be blamed.
David Urman (urman@wisc.edu) is the Madison-Israel Public Affairs Committee president.
Anonymous (March 1, 2007 @ 7:17am):
Palestinian terrorists kill Palestinian civilians not engaged in hostilities.
How can anyone expect them to stop killing Israeli civilians?
If there were mad dogs in my neighborhood I'd sure want a big fence.
Anonymous (March 1, 2007 @ 8:56am):
Excellent article.
Anonymous (March 1, 2007 @ 5:03pm):
very well-written piece!! Great Job!
Anonymous (March 1, 2007 @ 5:13pm):
David Urman really seems to have a full understanding of all the issues. The original articly written by Kyle Szarzynski seems to only advocate for a continuation of violence that neither side wants. I am glad to see that level headed people that actually want peace exist in Madison.
Anonymous (March 1, 2007 @ 5:33pm):
Of course Mr. Urman calls Kyle Szarzynksi article disturbile. However not once does Mr Urman acknowledge of mention the Israeli policy of dispossesing the Palestinians of their lands homes and villages. All of this done under the guise of Greater Israel. Does he see no connection between this policy, done under the barrell of a gun and terrorism.
And then he goes on to call the Gaza withdrawal as some great gesture for peace. Far from it, it was a plan by Ariel Sharon and the Bush administration to freeze any land withdrawal in the West Bank. In fact some of the Gaza settlers are being proposed to be settled in the West Bank.
Dov Weisglass, in an interview with the Israeli newspaper, Ha'aretz, on October 8, 2004, withdrawal "... park conveniently in an interim situation that distances us as far as possible from political pressure. It legitimizes our contention that there is no negotiating with the Palestinians."
Anonymous (March 2, 2007 @ 1:42pm):
as a person who has recently been to israel and seen it with my own eyes, thank you for responding to that article. it had to be one of the most frustrating things i've ever read and i'm so glad to finally see the truth.
Anonymous (March 3, 2007 @ 1:12am):
Yeah right, coming from AIPAC the points expressed in this article mean nothing. The people who work for this organization are basically devoting their lives to promoting the interests of an apartheid state and dehumanizing the Palestinian population. They're probably turned on by images of dead Palestinian children. These people make me sick.
Anonymous (March 11, 2007 @ 7:20pm):
Great Job Mr. Urman. Your article puts to shame those who try to vilify the State of Israel and all the Jews, Christians and Muslims that live in it. Mr. Szarzynski obviously came with a clear objective to tarnish democratic state and its struggle against terrorism. Its also really sad to see that some of the comments to this article also reflect Mr. Szarzynski's original ignorance. Keep up the good work David.
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