I am writing this while the recent terrorist attack in Neve Ya’akov is still fresh in my mind. I, along with countless others in Israel and in Jewish communities all over the world are absolutely devasted by the events. On Shabbat, the day of rest in Judaism, 7 people were gunned down while attending the nightly services. 7 innocent people, who were only guilty of the “crime” of being a Jew, had their lives cut short by someone fueled by an ideology that taught them only how to hate. It still reverberates in my mind and the more I dwell on the subject the angrier I become. People who had gone to worship G-d, to bring in the sanctity of the Shabbat day as our ancestors had done for thousands of years, were killed for no reason, in our home, in the Jewish State. You can’t help but feel dejected.
This attack is just one of several that has been perpetrated against the Israeli populace during the past week. This string of attacks are just the latest of the Palestinian armory. Their quest for an ethnically homogenous Judenrein state will not end here, and has not abated in its hostility since Jews have restarted our national project at the end of the 19th century. This isn’t for lack of trying on the side of the Jews. It seems we’ve exhausted every avenue, tried every route. Citizenship? Denied. Home Rule? Rejected. Flat out Indepedence? Yeah, we got an Intifada for that. The fundamental issue here is that the Palestinians are not speaking the same language as us. Israel had approached them from a Western perspecctive. The sanctity of life, the dignity of man and his formation in the image of G-d, his rights to life, liberty, self determination, etc. There was a level of sympathy of some. Surely it can’t be that all of them are so hateful? If they are given independence, they’ll leave us in peace.
It turned out to be a fool’s errand. Like it or not, you can not bring Enligtenment-era ideas to people stuck in the 8th century. We have seen over and over again that the ultimate goal of the Palestinians, and this sadly includes many of the average people, is either the complete eradication or expulsion of the Jewish presence in the region. Jews are certainly not the only ones at risk. The Palestinians are not exactly quiet about their dislike of the Samaritans (who they routinely mistreat), the Druze, or Israeli Arabs who support Israel’s right to exist. We can no longer beat around the bush. Israeli politicians, Right, Left, and Center have not had the courage to properly address this issue. As we sit and dilly-dally, more are radicalized, more terror attacks are committed, and more people die. After decades of fruitless endeavors, we must sit down and ask ourselves: What is to be done? In what way can we ensure the security of our nation and limit, if not completely stop, terrorist attacks.
We must first disillusion ourselves of any notion of some coming peace with the Palestinians. Both the Palestinian population within Israel, and its diaspora throughout the world, have made abundantly clear that they do not want any sort of peace with the Jews. So, we need to stop expecting it. We need to stop hoping for any sort of peace deal any time soon. The Antisemitism that is rampant in the Palestinian communities is systemic. Adults teaching children, from their very first moments of consciousness, that the Jew is the eternal enemy and must be destroyed. It is present in school, at home, among friends, in their Mosques, everywhere. It is akin to trying to make peace with the Germans during Kristallnacht. The entire present system of Palestinian child-rearing and schooling must be entirely upended and reformed, bottom-up. That isn’t coming any time soon, so, neither is a Palestinian population capable of moderation.
There then comes the issue of the Palestinian Authority and Gaza. There has been an unspoken rule prevalent in Israeli politics that if we leave the Palestnians to their own devices, give them a taste of Home Rule, they will moderate and come back to the negotiating table. We’ll give them independence, and they’ll stop killing us. Seems simple enough. However, this once reasonable theory has given way to an untenable situation between Israel and the Palestinians. Gaza is ruled entirely by the Islamic Brotherhood/Hamas and is a de facto terrorist state. It has been a routine threat to Israel’s national security, as the barrage of rockets we receive from them regularly can attest to. The Palestinian Authority located in the West Bank is also a massive problem. The Palestinian Liberation Organization, the political party/terrorist group that controls most of the West Bank, has part of their charter to make “Palestine” a state free of Jews. They also give stipends to terrorists who attack and kill Israeli civilians.
Why are we letting these two groups control the Palestinian territories? It has been shown that this was a huge mistake on the part of Israel. Giving extremists immense power and political influence is ALWAYS a mistake. Not to mention the fact that it poses a massive threat to Israel’s continued existence. What then shall we do about it? If Israel wants to get serious about protecting its citizens and its borders, the failed project of Palestinian self rule must come to an end. Israel must dissolve their governements and take back direct control of the territory. We must also use our resources to combat terror actively, on the ground and root it out, hopefully, before it can take place.
However, to take these steps for a safer and more secure Israel, we must stop thinking about what other nations want from us and rather, what is the best thing for us to do as a nation. Other nations, such as the United States, Great Britain, France, Germany, etc. do not think about what other coutries will think of them when discussing matters concerning the wellbeing of their citizens. Neither should Israel. It is this constant trepidation of what others might say that has largely held Israel back in implementing necessary measures for its security. But, I have a hard time understanding why. The UN in its resolutions, as well as the Western powers routinely call Israel out for perceived abuses, real or imaginary. Will some of these measures gain more criticism from the West? Very possibly, but we should not be overly concerned that this will somehow cause the Western powers to break off their relationship with Israel. It’s been a reliable ally in a largely hostile region. The West has as much to lose as Israel does. Moreover, if Israel is going to get criticized anyway, we shouldn’t really let that get in the way of what’s in the public good.
Will the solutions I’m proposing here solve the conflict and bring everlasting peace and brotherhood between all men? Most certainly not. But, I am confident that these proposed solutions will definitely lessen the risk incured by those who seek to do harm. Are these perfect solutions? No. Not by any stretch of the imagination. But, to quote Thomas Sowell “There are no solutions, only trade-offs.” It is worth asking whether such trade-offs will be a net good or net negative. I maintain the former. I will let you decide the answer for yourself.
You are entirely correct in your well-written analysis. Before the situation can get any better in Israel it is going to need to get much worse in the West Bank and Gaza. And “the West” really isn’t going to like it but at some point Israel is just going to have to stop caring about what naive, morally confused Western politicians and UN bureaucrats think.