Al-Quds Divided: The Politics of Hatred

ISRAEL 101 - A basic course for (intellectualy) handicapped or those who have just landed on the `third planet from the Sun`

By Charley Reese of The Sentinel Staff Published in The Orlando Sentinel February 8, 1998

Just so you can keep up with the perpetual crisis in the Middle East, here is a quiz to test your knowledge:

Question: Which country in the Middle East has nuclear weapons? Answer: Israel.

Q: Which country in the Middle East refuses to sign the nuclear non-proliferation treaty and bars international inspections? A: Israel.

Q: Which country in the Middle East seized the sovereign territory of other nations by military force and continues to occupy it in defiance of United Nations Security Council resolutions? A: Israel.

Q: Which country in the Middle East routinely violates the international borders of another sovereign state with warplanes and artillery and naval gunfire? A: Israel.

Q: What American ally in the Middle East has for years sent assassins into other countries to kill its political enemies (a practice sometimes called exporting terrorism)? A: Israel.

Q: In which country in the Middle East have high-ranking military officers admitted publicly that unarmed prisoners of war were executed? A: Israel.

Q: What country in the Middle East refuses to prosecute its soldiers who have acknowledged executing prisoners of war? A: Israel.

Q: What country in the Middle East created 762,000 refugees and refuses to allow them to return to their homes, farms and businesses? A: Israel.

Q: What country in the Middle East refuses to pay compensation to people whose land, bank accounts and businesses it confiscated? A: Israel.

Q: In what country in the Middle East was a high-ranking United Nations diplomat assassinated? A: Israel.

Q: In what country in the Middle East did the man who ordered the assassination of a high-ranking U.N. diplomat become prime minister? A: Israel.

Q: What country in the Middle East blew up an American diplomatic facility in Egypt and attacked a U.S. ship in international waters, killing 33 and wounding 177 American sailors? A: Israel.

Q: What country in the Middle East employed a spy, Jonathan Pollard, to steal classified documents and then gave some of them to the Soviet Union? A: Israel.

Q: What country at first denied any official connection to Pollard, then voted to make him a citizen and has continuously demanded that the American president grant Pollard a full pardon? A: Israel.

Q: What country on Planet Earth has the most powerful lobby in the United States, according to a recent Fortune magazine survey of Washington insiders? A: Israel.

Q: Which country in the Middle East is in defiance of 69 United Nations Security Council resolutions and has been protected from 29 more by U.S. vetoes? A: Israel.

sigalph235 #17

``Arabs and their lackey poorer Muslim nations will need to heed the the late HS Suhrawardy`s statement: Israel has come to stay. And
she intends to stay with her historic capital of Jerusalem``

sigalph,
I read you posts with interest, and usually find them quite balanced and sensible. However, I have to disagree with you here. Ok, lets talk about Mr. Suharwardy`s statement.

Well, there are claims by Aboriginal Australians over much of Australia including the Sydney harbor, the opera house and the home bush bay where Olympics took place… Their historical claims are based on 60,000 years of continued presence in this continent, and living off the Land that they claim. Most ``civilized`` Europeans, who have only been here for 200 years, laugh at their claims.

And if we apply Mr. Suharwardy`s logic, then what is wrong with Iraq, historically, claiming Kuwait to be part of Iraq? … And what about such claims in Balkans, and parts of Europe? the list will go on and on. I need to look at the context of Mr. Suharwardy`s statement to truly appreciate it. However, your conclusions based on his statement are certainly flawed.

I urge you to look at the plight of Palestinians from a humanistic point of view. Even if there is resentment against ``Muslims`` in your heart, which is apparent from your bitter post, you should have the decency of acknowledging the facts. Millions of Palestinians have been made homeless, and have been forced to live as refugees since the arrival of Jews from Europe and elsewhere to this land that they (Jews) ``historically`` claim to be theirs. You should have the decency to acknowledge decades of oppression which palentinians have endured which includes horrific brutility on the part of Iraelis such as the massacres of Palestinians in sabra and shatila where the Israeli soldiers massacred women and children. You looked at handful of terrorists who blow up planes and decided to condemn the entire Palestinian nation and the entire population of Muslims in the world? I don`t think that terrorist actions of handful of Mukti Bahinis made it halal for Pakistani Army to massacre poor Bengali civilians - men, women and children.

On one hand you condemn Pakistani army, but on the other hand you smile, and urge the Israeli soldiers on for essentially similar actions to what Pakistani army was guilty of in formerly East Pakistan.

shankar #19, ``The sticking point is Jerusalem. Nobody wants to share it. Ideally Jerusalem should be a soverign state within a state (perhaps like Vatican City), but with the difference that it should be shared by all 3 religions.``

Everything was just fine until they Brits stuck their trouble making noses into the area.

Turning Jerusalem into a sovereign state?

Now that`s a noble idea. But then, Christians, Jews, and Muslims all think they are the best things to happen to this world. These three religions are not good at sharing, not anymore at least.

Who knows though, if Jerusalem isn`t destroyed in the near future, maybe your idea will come into shape. I sure hope so for the sake of the people living there, not because of religious significance, for I believe God is everywhere you want Him to be.

re sigalph #17:

``Give them Jerusalem and they`ll probably blow it up like they use to regularly blow up airplanes.``

Spoken like a true curranta. Now you have really handed in your passport. Welcome aboard.

later

-sac

Re: Shankar # 18

I think that we should turn the Big J into a theme park and charge a daily fee for the riot du jour! :)

Let us nuke Middle East - Moses was given a lemon; we have the land, but where is the promise part? :) LOL

Ciao!

Scout,

{{They are fighting for the right to have their own nation, their land, their identity which THEY DESERVE because they have been living on that land for ages. They shouldn`t have to fight for it, it is theirs.}}

Even most Israelis accept that. They dont have a problem about the West Bank or Gaza. The sticking point is Jerusalem. Nobody wants to share it. Ideally Jerusalem should be a soverign state within a state (perhaps like Vatican City), but with the difference that it should be shared by all 3 religions.

A Palestinian state on the West Bank and Gaza is a nightmare. These ex-terrorists can hardly run the little piece they are lording over in Gaza right now. Heck, they treat dissent with a brutality which is comparable to the worst Israeli actions. Give them a bigger piece and they will become the slave-masters of the rest of the Arab population there. Give them Jerusalem and they`ll probably blow it up like they use to regularly blow up airplanes.

Arabs and their lackey poorer Muslim nations will need to heed the the late HS Suhrawardy`s statement: Israel has come to stay. And she intends to stay with her historic capital of Jerusalem. Once the rabid emotionalism is settled thw world will realise what a mistake it is turn Jerusalem over to the PLO.

shankar #15, ``When people fight & hate each other for the greater glory of religion & God, it is no

wonder God will never grant them peace.``

Interesting concept! But do you think Palestinians are fighting for greater glory of God alone? They are fighting for the right to have their own nation, their land, their identity which THEY DESERVE because they have been living on that land for ages. They shouldn`t have to fight for it, it is theirs.

I can see the parellels between Kashmiris and Palestinians. These people are suffering endlessly for their identity and land, at the hands of power hungry political regimes. No Mullah, no Zionist Rabbi is suffering in Israel. It`s the innocent civilians.

Both Jews & Arabs are right & both are wrong. Jersusalem is a holy place for Jews, Christians & Muslims. When people fight & hate each other for the greater glory of religion & God, it is no wonder God will never grant them peace. They have made Holy ground hell on earth. All parties involved have more than earned their misery. They deserve to wallow in it.

Ammara:

You questioned the impartiality of America as a peace-broker. When it comes to self interests, (political, social, economical, strategical - doesn`t really matter), impartiality is a blurred concept regardless of who is concerned. And no matter how many lives are at stake. Of course, things would have been different had Palestine been in a position to whet the American appetite for more with something that would have gone down well with the rest of the meal.

As far as the role of the Arabs are concerned, (esp. Middle Eastern), they`re very shrewd businessmen. And business is a separate entity to religion.

Thank you for an interesting read. Hope to read more from you.

- Lubna

good article Ammara.

As for Israel and Palestine, it`s a play of power and political interest. Israel is Uncle Sam`s adopted child.

Besides sanctions in Iraq, military surveillance, and Kuwaiti servants, what other way does this superpower control the sitation in the Middle East? By pulling Israeli strings.

Besides, a Muslim life isn`t worth all that much to the US. Until the problem escalates to mass genocide, the US will watch the show and feign grief.

Same thing happened to the Jews during the Holocaust. It`s political voyeurism.

What is the difference between an Arab and a Muslim???

RE: Sahai # 9

Dear Sahai,:

I think your post is a bit too hard and judgmental. I do not agree with the thrust of your post that the acceptance of a fact that one has ``lost`` is a reason enough to make peace with oneself and with others. The acceptance of the formula for peace by the mainstream Arab politics is indicative of the mindset that they have ``accepted`` the fact that they have ``lost``. It may also be translated that the mainstream has agreed on the fact that the peace must take precedence over the morality of the issue. But it cannot be translated that they have agreed to further injustices too. The peace without justice is not possible-especially when one party has sacrificed everything for it-land, lives, the future of several generations, their livelihood, and now they have put the morality of the issue on line too. If justice is still denied then we know that, all it takes is a little guy with a funny mustache.

.......... maybe i am missing someting here ... though not much of a cartographer, the last time i looked at the map, Israel was this tiny strip of land sandwiched between the Arabs from Morocco to Iraq and Arab-wannabes from Iran to Indonesia and Kazakistan to Baluchistan .............. so how come a billion Arabs, quasi-Arabs and semi-Arabs cannot take care of this annoying gnat .... but then if i remember Gideon correctly - David was a Jew and Goliath an Arab ........

.............so let`s blame it on the CIA, the Zionist lobby and those idiots inside the beltway - Ya Allah Kufar go Gharq Kar ! Ya Allah Falestine ko Azad Kar ! Ya Allah Islam key Dushmano ko Tehas Nehas Kar !Ya Allah Kufar ka Mon Kala Kar ! ............ ever since I was a child I have chanted these prayers at least twice a year at the GHQ grounds behind great Momins like Ayub Khan, Yahya Khan, Bhutto, Hazrat Zia (RUA), Sir GIK and hopefully this December I get to repeat the same prayer behind the CEO ....... what else can we do ?

The secret to peace is not just ``justice.`` Even more fundamental is both sides agreeing on the basic nature of the situation. It can be argued (and it has been) that the real reason why there was peace between Germany, Japan, Italy, the USA, and Western Europe at the end of WWII was that everyone agreed on the facts:

A) Japan, Germany, and Italy had *lost * the war.

B) The USA and the Allies had *won * the war.

C) Open fascism was a refuted ideology considered doomed to failure.

D) The USA and Allies were fundamentally more powerful and productive than the Axis powers.

E) The future of the former Axis powers was tied to the fortunes of the Allies.

The importance of this fundamental sort of agreement is easy to miss. For the most part, after the war, the people in the Axis powers were not secretly fuming that ``foreign conspiracies`` had robbed them of a victory. They did not continue to believe that fascism was the one true way of the world. They did not look backwards and say that ``if only all us former fascist countries can work in a united fashion, these Allies would be doomed before our rightousness.``

In the ``Middle East`` (odd term, eh?), there seems to be no such realism. At times it seems the Arab countries and people do not realize that they are on the weaker and losing side. Until that happens, I fear more war and conflict is inevitable.

I`m not saying that USA/Israel are justified in being overbearing or ``rubbing salt in wounds.`` After all, we know what happened after WWI when the victors were too harsh. But the losers need to understand that they in fact lost and so need to move on.

re fuzair #2:

I disagree with your assessment of Arafat and his cronies who`ll have to settle for scraps out of this whole imbroglio. Israel desperately needs some sort of legitimacy on the other side of the bargaining table. Notwithstanding that well-spoken woman from the Palestinian side, Arafat for all practical purposes is the only man who can bestow respectability on any compromise that is ultimately reached from both sides. Negotiations with Hamas or other factions of the PLO are Israel`s worst nightmare. Add to the mix Arafat`s fragile health, the growing ascendancy of the religious right in Israel and the tenous hold of its Prime Minister and the situation is not as hopeless as one might think.

later

-sac