By Michael Rubin, Special to CNN
Editor’s note: Michael Rubin is a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute and senior lecturer at the Naval Postgraduate School. The views expressed are his own.
On September 18, 1978, Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin signed the so-called Camp David Accords, cementing the notion that land for peace would become the basis for a resolution of the Arab-Israel conflict. Their agreement led to a peace treaty the following year between Israel and Egypt. However the current fighting between Israel and Palestinian groups in the Gaza Strip ends, one thing is certain: the era of land-for-peace is over.
At first, Jimmy Carter’s land-for-peace formula looked promising. One in three Arabs lived in Egypt. Within the White House and at Foggy Bottom, presidents and diplomats believed that where Egypt went, so would go the Arab world. Hence, the precedent of trading the Sinai for peace became a source of hope.
It was this example that Bill Clinton sought to capitalize upon in the 1993 Oslo Accords. The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) agreed to recognize Israel and work toward peace in exchange for land in historical Palestine. I was in Bahrain in 1994 when PLO chairman Yasser Arafat entered the Gaza Strip to establish the Palestinian Authority. Enthusiasm was palpable across the region. Within weeks, Jordan had signed its own peace accord with Israel, and Persian Gulf emirates, Tunisia, and Morocco looked like they might follow suit.
The logic of land for peace became the basis for Israel’s unilateral withdrawal from southern Lebanon in May 2000. The formula of trading land for peace had already begun to unravel. Israel expected if not peace, then quiet. They had removed the last remaining dispute between Israel and Lebanon. Alas, Israel’s withdrawal foreshadowed greater conflict. Even though the United Nations certified Israel’s withdrawal as complete, Hezbollah laid claim not only to the Shebaa Farms – an Israeli occupied area which historically is part of Syria – but also seven villages in the Galilee, a region well within Israel’s recognized borders.
More from GPS: what the Israel/Gaza violence means
Peace between Israel and the Palestinian Authority was also rapidly deteriorating. Certainly, when it comes to the Arab-Israel conflict, there are always mutual recriminations. What is clear, however, is that Arafat had voided his pledge to resolve future conflict with Israel at the negotiating table. Many commentators mark the beginning of the “Second Intifada” as Likud leader Ariel Sharon’s September 28, 2000 visit to the Temple Mount/Haram al-Sharif. But this is dishonest. On August 24, 2000, several weeks before Sharon’s visit, Palestinian Justice Minister Freih Abu Middein threatened, “Violence is near, and the Palestinian people are willing to sacrifice even 5,000 casualties.” Communications Minister Imad al-Faluji reportedly admitted to Palestinian radio that “Arafat ordered preparations for the current intifada immediately after the Camp David summit, as part of the negotiating process with Israel.” The Oslo Process and the land-for-peace formula that underlay it had begun to breakdown.
Many warriors transform themselves into peacemakers in the twilight of their lives, and Sharon was no different. In 2005, Israel undertook a unilateral withdrawal from the Gaza Strip. Palestinians and Israelis might argue about Jerusalem, right of return, and other final status issues, but there were no longer land disputes in Gaza. What followed was a disaster: Whereas southern Israel was once free of violence, suddenly towns like Sderot became targets for hundreds of rockets and missiles. Southern Lebanon, too, became a forward staging base for ever more advanced weaponry, as Hezbollah would demonstrate in 2006. The more land Israel ceded, the more insecure it became and the more violence her citizenry suffered. Sharon did not gamble that Gaza would become the launching ground from which Israel’s enemies could strike Tel Aviv for the first time since Saddam Hussein’s Scud missile attacks in 1991.
More from CNN: 'All options on the table' for Israel
The current violence will be the last straw for land-for-peace. Egypt’s withdrawal of its envoy convinces even Israeli doves that Arab countries see treaties as little more than truces. That the new Egyptian government appears complicit in smuggling weaponry to Hamas in violation of its commitment to police territory returned to it underlines this conclusion.
Palestinians hope for an independent state with the bulk if not the entirety of the West Bank as its core. But Israelis know that their country is less than 10 miles wide at its narrowest point. Forget heat-seeking missiles; withdrawal from the West Bank would put planes landing at Ben Gurion Airport within a terrorist’s rifle range. Most Israelis view their experience of land-for-peace in the same fashion that Native Americans consider their experience with the concept.
Diplomats may scramble for a ceasefire, but any quiet will be deceptive. Hamas’ decision to turn Gaza into a forward missile base rather than the engine for an independent Palestine condemns 35 years of peacemaking to history’s garbage bin and sets the stage for a conflict far more disruptive than anyone in the region has seen in a half century.
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The biggest mistake the Israelis ever made was to return the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt back in 1982. When the Israelis had it, they were building Kibutzes on it linked by newly built roads and thus making the desert bloom. After the Egyptians took it back, these farms were abandonned and were idle ever since due to the poor leadership of both Anwar Sadat and Hosni Mubarak!
// the poor leadership of both Anwar Sadat and Hosni Mubarak! //
Both paid by the US to maintain the Israeli/Palestinian status quo, ...so here we are. Of course, there are "profits in chaos";
"The Agenda of Inevitable Armageddon -vs- the Promise of Personal Paradise”, ...sponsored by the US Government", and paid for with the assets of the American people.
It looks as if the author bemoaned Israel's withdrawal from occupied land. It wasn't a mistake on Israel's side to trade land for peace. Yet the Palestinians saw it as evitable that Israel returned the land. This conflict has been going on for decades and will see no end, as long as both parties are stubborn and intransigent. It's the civilians who suffer most.
Israel is a stand alone killing machine when cornered and unwilling to tolerate excuses any longer. Considering Israel's military hardware, and the quality of troops ,training and motivation, the only question is how many casulities do they want to inflict on their enemies. Is might right?
Kortee: Is might = right? A good question. I thought the author's last comparison involving Native Americans and land grabbing/treaty dishonoring was spot-on but with the Isrealies as the invading white man in ever-increasing numbers. Both sides have broken treaty agreements and both sides are fatally stubborn. In the end, I see Israel grabbing land back and taking whatever it wants with might and not right.
I do not know what meds you are taking but you missed a dose or took a LITTLE to much.America's fault again Screw that.
They have been doing this for centuries. The West never learn but now their trojan horse in Egypt. Watch Europe break like Yugoslavia did
Grammar error. The trojan horse is in Europe
America helped europe break yugoslavia because it was a thriving socialist nation and stood In the way of the formation of the eu.
k
Returning Sinai to Egypt in accordance with the NEGOTIATED AND RATIFIED PEACE AGREEMENT was NOT a "mistake" but the ONLY possible way to go. The alternative would be violation of the agreement Israel signed, a PROOF that Israel is not interested in peace, a subsequent isolation of the Jewish State from its former allies and, finally, the end of Israel as a sovereign state... Exactly what the enemies of Israel are dreaming about.
On the other hand, "LAND FOR PEACE" could not, did not and will not work because it was both UNREASONABLE AND UNFAIR. "Land for peace" was UNFAIR because it assumed that only one side in the conflict (in this case, Israel) was interested in peace and that this peace-loving side was supposed to purchase peace from the other, violent, side and pay for it by land while the violent side would get BOTH land and peace for free. In addition, "Land for peace" was UNREASONABLE because it assumed that after getting land AND peace in return for terrorism and thus proving that terrorism WORKS the terrorists would somehow become peaceful.
Land for peace deals with Muslims is a stupid idea to begin with and i am glad the Israelis are realizing that. Instead of developing and helping his people along to a better future, Arafat, the terrorist that he was, went on to using that deal to launch more land grabs. The same with Lebanon. They will always find an excuse to threaten Israel and this conflict will continue for decades to come. Lesson of the century, don't trust the muslims to keep a treaty.
Right on. At the time everyone knew that this was simply a way for the PLO to grab land and then re-negotiate a better deal later.
It seems like they are no longer satisfied with their original deal, now they are trying it all over again.
Why not? They have nothing to lose, except their reputation.. But since when has that meant anything to the PLO.
Hey dope (Thinker23), the reason why land for peace didn't work is because Arab MUSLIMS are stubborn, violent donkeys whose lives are worthless if they are not trying to f&ck up someone's else's.
Dear Thinker. You miss the main point which is that Muslims do not sign treaties. They sign Hudna-s which means a temporary truce. The Muslim is obliged to disregard the Hudna if he has reason to believe he can get away with it and gain an advantage in the war to subdue his opponent. The treaty is a sham because it rests on a basic misunderstanding of the West of what that signature means. Nazism took a cue from Islam, thus Chmberlain returns with Peace, and reaps war.
It's amazing how so many Americans are misinformed by America's pro-Israel media that the same lies and misinformation keeps being repeated by so many as facts.
It is so unacceptable to speak of the Arabs and/or Muslims as people who have are dishonest or liars or treaty breakers....etc.
The Palestinian Israeli conflict is simply portrayed and presented as one sided in the USA. The Israeli side. How else do we explain that the only occupied people in the world are still imprisoned, killed, starved and deprived of all their basic human rights but yet the American psyche is "OK" with it? It's because the pro-Israeli, pro-Jewish and mostly Jewish owned and controlled media in the US has already brainwashed us over all these years to see Israel as the dove and the victim but the Palestinians who are the true victims of Israel are seen as the aggressors and the terrorists.
The Palestinians have been wronged all these years by the US first as the US created Israel and continues to support the aggressive and criminal and state sponsored terrorism of the state of Israel. The western world who has been sympathetic to the Jewish blight under Nazi Germany has had to openly support Israel so they are not accused of being anti Jewsh. This all helped make the indigonous people of Palestine have to live under this I humane and criminal occupation with little support from the world.
Shame on the United States for the blind support of the Terrorist State of Israel and shame on the western powers and the United Nations for allowing the terrorist criminal state of Israel to continue to kill, torture, starve and deprive a large population of their basic human rights. God bless and help the weak and occupied people of Palestine.
A) If you want peace stop firing rockets into Israel. Hamas obviously doesn't want peace, even if they have a legitimate greivance against Israel, because they continue to perpetrate acts of war against Israel.
B) Israel may have, and almost certainly has, performed morally wrong acts in pursuit of it's own interests. What country hasn't, including our own?
C) The article DOES make good points. Israel did cede control of conquered territory after consistently defeating Arab aggression against them. For making that step they were attacked by an opposing force that espouses peace. Really?
Israel made legitimate attempts at peace, and have succeeded in some few ways, but if Palestinians are not willing to let go of the past than this fight will never end. Similarly Israel must be willing to let go of past, but they will absolutely have to now judge the past and guarantee their own security in any future attempts at peave. This conflict will not be resolved otherwise unless, ofcourse, we remove the leash from the IDF and let them make another statement to every enemy of Israel by systematically and irrevocably destroying their opposition. Power in all its' forms makes peace (while humanity remains in its' current state of consciousness, at least).
Susie is so correct. This situation explains why Iran needs nuclear weapons. This is the only thing that will oppose Israel Terrorism from spreading across the Mid East. Why can Israel have hundreds of nuclear weapons and no one else can have even one? We are the ones paying $100,000 for each rocket Israel fires at incoming missiles. So we borrow money from China and increase our debt to keep our Terrorists in weapons. Very Smart, America.
@ Susie – - the people who call themselves Palestinian are in fact, Lebanese, Syrians, Egyptians and Jordanians. Those same countries bear the responsibility of closing their border to these people. Israel grants these people greater access and provides more services than these other countries. Israel has never acted as the aggressor. Never attacked its neighbors. Firing on rocket launching sites is not an attack. Pushing Egypt back and occupying the land won in battle is not an attack. I hope Israel ends this by breaking the backs of Hamas and all the other muslim terrorists and driving them into the sea. Israel should have learned by now the racism of the world will always be brought to bear on them regardless of the truth, so they should crystallize the desert around them and be done with it.
Wow! What a twisted logic this is!!!!!!! If Mexico invades the deserts of Arizona & New Mexico and build cities, streets and farms, you mean they should keep it because they are cultivating it?!!!!!! You have to be kidding. The nature of land is irrelevant to if it should be occupied or not. The conflict did not start in 1967, it started in 1948. Unless all Palestinian refugees go back to their homes and villages, peace will never occur there.
Then there will never be peace until every Arab has been pushed out of the area.
Dealing with Arabs is like petting rattle snakes.
http://oreaddaily.blogspot.com/2012/11/today-i-have-to-scream-out-at-those.html
Jews calling Israeli government evil and comitting genicide against Palestinians.
Don't you know that it was the other way around?
You are trying to twist the TRUTH! The fact that the country/area was called PALESTINE has no connection to any people called PALESTINIANS ARABS as we know them today. In fact you know darn well there is really no such ARAB people called Palestinians until ARAFAT created that rouse in the 1960's. The truth is "Palestinians" as well as Arafat weren't even from Palestine. They are from Jordan. The way they ended up in the West Bank desert is when Jordanian King Hussein killed them and they RAN for their LIVES out of his country when they tried to over throw him. For a history lesson look up on the web what exactly "BLACK SEPTEMBER" is all about. In fact the country who should be sreaming for the West Bank to be returned should be JORDAN. Part of it is actually JORDAN. Why aren't they asking for it back? The TRUTH is the Jordanians have pushed the millions of Palestinians on to the backs of the Israelis and the world has bought the line that somehow Palestinians are pushed and thrown out of ISRAEL. THE PALESTINIANS SHOULD HAVE A RIGHT TO RETURN TO THEIR HOMES...IT's JORDAN! But Jordan, as well as EVERY other ARAB country has turned their backs on the so called Palestinian refugees. THAT IS THE TRUTH!
You are a wonderful liar Chumash! But a loyal Israeli are'nt you? You are great at falsifying the facts and making things up which is a great trait that many Israelis perfect because it is taught in the schools of Israel.
You want to convince us that Israel is such a wonderful democracy for the Palestinians! What a joke. That Israel offers them a better life than under any other Arab country! What a lie!
The crimes and state terrorism Israel inflicts daily on the Palestinians is beyond describing and you know it. But tell me why do you and you likes lie to the American people and twist the right wrong and the wrong right? Do you have even a twinge of guilt when you constantly lie and lie and lie even more? I know it's in the Israeli psyche and culture but I don't know how you all live with yourselves knowing you are a bunch of liars!
I HEAR YOU LOUD AND AND CLEAR . AS I HAVE , IN MY BRAINWASHED CLOUD, SUGGESTED IN THE PAST , YOUR BRETHREN WILL WILL NEVER AGREE NEVER TO ANY SOLUTION THAT ALLOWS THE STATE OF ISRAEL TO EXIST. ONE CAN ONLY IMAGINE THE HORRORS YOUR PEOPLE WOULD VISIT UPON THE ISRAELIS SHOULD THE BALANCE OF POWER SHIFT IN YOUR FAVOR. FURTHERMORE, FOR SUCH A PIOUS PEOPLE WHO ARE SO CONVINCED IN THE PREDETERMINED NATURE OF THEIR EXISTENCE VIS A VIS THE WILL OF THE SUPREME BEING, YOU SEEM TO BE MISSING THE OBVIOUS QUE STARING YOU IN THE FACE..THE EXISTENCE OF ISRAEL IS THE WILL OF ALLAH AND THOSE THAT CHALLENGE IT ARE AN AFFRONT TO HIS WILL. HOW DOES THAT SOUND FOR RATIONAL ARGUMENT . I USED TO BE A VERY PRO SETTLEMENT AMERICAN JEW WHO WAS VERY INTERESTED SEEING THE RESOLUTION OF THIS QUARREL , FAIRLY. IT HAS TAKEN ME SOME THIRTY YEARS TO BE UTTERLY CONVINCED THAT THERE NEEDS TO BE A TOP DOWN REVIEW BY THE PALESTINIAN AND MUSLIM LEADING FIGURES AS TO WHAT POSITIONS AND BEHAVIOR WILL BE ACCEPTABLE FOR THEIR PEOPLE . YOU KNOW IF YOU CANT PLAY NICE YOU HAVE TO GET OUT OF THE SANDBOX/
Land for peace is dead because is never existed in the first place. israelis are interested in free land, never in peace.
Hey dope (adam), the reason why land for peace didn't work is because Arab MUSLIMS are stubborn, violent donkeys whose lives are worthless if they are not trying to f&ck up someone's else's. Israel gave them land for possible peace, not the other way around.
Esaias, please zip it up: your hate is showing. Stick to the issues and leave the personal attacks behind.
Land for peace you say? the only land for peace deal that will work out, is for Israel to either give back all the land it stiole from the Palestinians. Since we live in the real worl that ain't gonna take place, so the next option is for the palestinians and the Arabs to declare a nonstop war on the zionist state, and that will be the end of the Israel of today. You see as the old saying goes: nothing is more dangerous than a bleeding enemy that refuses to die. The palestinians are bleeding but they are refusing to die, once again I say, this the downfall of Israel. Shalom
Quite the contrary. Until the Jews returned to their historical homeland (and it was never completely abandoned by them), there was NOT ONE Arab on that land. They came around the turn of the 20th century for jobs that the Jews had for them in the fields and orchards and olive groves. The so-called "Palestinians" (never a real people because there was never a country called Palestine–that was a nickname the Romans gave to the Jewish land of Judea and Israel during the Roman occupation–also a time there were never any Arabs present). The Arabs have done nothing but steal land that wasn't theirs in the first place, yet cry all the time about being kicked out of the homes they stole from others.
The Pallies refuse to die in the same way that an actor in a film gets shot a thousand times and refuses to die. Because he is an actor. The Pallies are actors' acting out a part dictated by the Qur'an, which considers non-muslims non people. However, they never reckoned on the Jewish People to throw off Dhimmitude and take back their land promised them by the Lord, 2000 years before muhammad was invented to justify the Muslim blood-thristy empire. The Pallies will do themselves a favor by invading other places, such as France, Germany, the US, and whoever is stupid enough to take Muslims in
Israel has the capability to launch about 60 nuclear armed, cruise missiles from submarine based platforms. They have close to 400 additional nuclear weapons. There is absolutely nothing all the states in the middle east could do to stop them from striking back. If pushed, Israel would erase Palestine from the map forever and kill 90% of the Muslims living in the middle east.
Never was a nation called 'palestine" ...so how can any land be stolen? "palestinians" are refugees from the surrounding arab states...not even the arab countries want them..the west bank belonged to Jordan who now has a peace tgreaty with ISrael, so the west bank (Judea) does beliong to Israel....."palastinians" were only named that after 1967 by te aids riddled arafat to be a thorn in Israel's side since the arab countries failed to beat them in war and take land, ....only people who think that "palestinian" land was stolen is a weak minded fool or a mus lim....Jerusalem has only been the capitol of one nation in all of history, and that is Israel...not sure where people are getting that this was one a nation called "palestine"......also, to you ignoramuses, gaza is not part of Israel, they have their own terrorist government and there is not ONE Israelis soldier there, Israel does not need to let them vote or have to take care of them at all, yet Israel provides them with water and electtricity....if the "palestinians" voted in hamas then why isnt hamas providing the essentials? Because they are spending the peoples money on rockets.......Israel is here to stay, no one will change that, and there is nothing any of the mus lims can do....
I guess you have heard of Sharm el Sheikh, right?... its a touristic are on the Red Sea, in the Sinai peninsula, and do you know that under the "peace agreement", not even the Egyptian employees are allowed to settle the area?... they must go back to mainland Egypt once in a while to visit their family, they can only come to their work during work days and that's it.
Egypt is not allowed to build any town in the whole peninsula. And if it wants to increase even the police force for security, they still need an authorization from Israel.
so true..looks like deals based on trust and respect are long gone. Give the terrosist a finger and he'll grab your whole body.
The author implies that "Land for peace is dead." Perhaps it is, but what is to replace this policy? May I suggest the one state solution. Combine all of Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza into a modern multi-ethnic state. There is much to be disliked from all parties to this solution. Israel no longer claims to be a special "Jewish" state, the Palestinians have to accept that the Jews are here to stay, the future government of this land would have to find some sort of legal accommodation to redress the Palestinians that had lost their property when the current state of Israel was established, and a host of other legal and social problems will remain to be solved. But at least the emphasis will be on civilized mechanisms to create a functioning society. The alternatives? Continually reliving the tribal and ethnic violence and barbarous behavior, that currently bedevils the modern inhabitants of the former British Mandate of Palestine.
The palestinians will never accept that. Their charter includes the destruction of Israel.
Of course the Palestinians would accept that. Once the state is formed, however, good luck living in this "multi-ethnic" state if you're Jewish.
I love how people when referring to Obama write the articles as if they are future recommendations to up coming events. They do this to protect him, as if he is not doing anything right now because his job hasn't started. IT HAS STARTED AND HE IS FAILING AS USUAL.
Putting this on obama is insaine.
It seems the complaint about Israel is that they are efficiently targeting terrorists in self-defense instead of just randomly lobbing thousands of missiles into civilian areas of Gaza like Hamas . Since Egypt is now breaching its treaty with Israel the Sinai legally reverts back to Israel and Gaza has forfeited any right to independence (status quo ante).
The main idea behind giving the Sinai back is to allow Egypt to border Gaza because the Israelis didn't want to have to take the Gaza residents in as part of Israel. Ditto for the Sinai residents. Israel is walking a fine demographic line with even the few Palestinians (and their descendants) they made Israeli citizens after the 1947-48 wars. Adding any more Arab/Muslim citizens would be a disaster for the "essentially Jewish" character of Israel.
However, current developments do seem to show that this was the wrong choice in the long run, and Israel should have developed a different class of citizenship for the Arabs and taken over the schooling of Arab children to teach them peace. If they had done that back in 1967, there would already be peace in "Greater Israel."
simple. Iran nuke the zionist thugs
The biggest mistake was UN putting a bunch of Europeans in the Middle East, who had never lived there before, because some fairy tale book told them that it is their land. Germany iced them, so the solution should have been cutting of a piece of Germany and giving it to the European Jewry.
Except that the Jews were there thousands of years ago.
Jews were there looong before islam even existed...so what are you talking about? And P.s, there were Jews there throught history, Jerusalem was founded by a Jew, the majority of the other Jews came from the surrounding arab states after being kicked out.....and then of course Israel took in Jews from Europe...why wouldnt they? So please, learn some history and get an education, stupid people who just spout garbage and lies and dont even know the real history of the area....
Fareed zakaria doesnt know jack....Fareed should have stayed in India working on a 7/11 .....comparing the American indians who had their land stolen to the Israelis instead of the palestinians basically shows me how uneducated fareed really is about Israel/palestine..It was the Palestinians who were terrorized out of their land in 1947, and thannnnnn Israel was created you idiot!!!
And than to say that Israel is the victim, just shows me that the only way you got on CNN was letting wolf blitzer bend you over
the Mistake that Israel has made, is terrorizing the palestinians, dont worry what comes around goes around and Israel will have their of turmoil just like the palestinians
"Most Israelis view their experience of land-for-peace in the same fashion that Native Americans consider their experience with the concept."
I don't remotely find the situation between the Israeli's and the Native Americans comparable. More like the Palestinians represent the Native Americans in this story.
i thought the same thing. What a poor analogy on Rubin's part.
i wouldn't gamble on that. jews of many ethnic devisions carry more J2 (canaano-pheonician) haplogroups than most levantine arabs,with exception of lebanese maronites.
This is as correct as it is irrelevant. The genetic differences between Jews and Arabs are not the reason the Arabs claim "ownership" to the land of Palestine... nad pleas don't ask me what IS the reason the Arabs claim it. Ask THEM and good luck.
The only claim musli ms have to Israel is that their pedo prophet had a dream he was there once.......Jerusalem is mentioned in the koran ONCE, in the Jewish scriptures, thousands of times....
I think he was referring to the specific situation of negotiating land deals. The muslims breach the agreed-upon contracts just like the Americans did with the natives.
i see so building in the west bank is not breaching isreal's agreed on land deals? interesting
Superficially, yes. But historically, no. Remember these biblical lands are, historically, Jewish lands. There were cultures in the region before the Jews too, of course, but very little of them remains. Whether the claims are valid or not depends on your perspective. Just how far back can "historical claims" be taken? Italy could have a claim, since they took it in Roman times.
Palestine wasn't self governing when Israel was created after the second world war. They'd already been colonized, and there was already an established Jewish population in the area at the time.
Remember, the Native Americans where the ones (effectively) -giving- land for peace, and getting non in return. Which is what Israel has done here. The Palestinians are the ones -getting- the land, then flinging rockets at the people who gave it to them.
Seriously. There is no easy solution. Maybe Donald Trump can buy the center of Jerusalem and bulldoze the all the "Holy sites" to make way for a new mall or something. As long as people are fighting over what amounts to religious differences, there will never be a solution.
The argument that Palestine consists of biblical lands, is idiotic. In that case, the Turks could claim half of Europe, since Suleiman the Magnificent conquered those lands around 1500. The reason for the conflict is the Balfour Declaration that in 1917 or 1918 promised both Arabs – who had lived there since about hundreads of years – and Jewish settlers – who had come over beginning in the last third of the 19th century – the same land. Also, the Israelis have since their independence systematically expropriated Arab land owners in Israel, especially those with water on their land.
Obviously the Palestinians are not guiltless in this matter, and neither are the Arab countries. However, as Yitzchak Rabin admitted in his memoirs, Arabs were driven off their lands deliberately in 1948.
So, Israel, if it comes finally clean, the country will have to work on some history with the Arabs, and find some way of co-existence. What I find interesting is that this article declares that the peace for land policy failed, but does not offer any alternative solution.
Chris, the problem is that in 1948 Arab leaders made open calls for Arabs to get out of the way to make the planned genocide of Jews in Israel easier. The whole bit about Israel driving Arabs out in 1948 really doesn't match historical reality since Arabs of that time were very clear that it wasn't Israel that did it. They only started making that claim after they lost the war and began to realize Israel wasn't going anywhere.
And frankly people who lost their land because they were trying to assist in a genocide don't deserve any sympathy.
Please don't side with the muslims. It makes you look so naive. The muslim leadership is so awful, and the situation is comical in determining who is causing the problem. Please educate yourselves on the WHOLE truth, not just the points you WANT to hear.
Darren, please visit an islamic country and attend one of the many lovely madrassas. See what they teach their children about jews. And please don't mention how muslim leadership aims missle attacks at israeli children. And definitely don't talk about that muslims are the only people on the planet who CHEER the murder of innocent civilians. Just focus on Israelis building a few houses.
so chris please educate us with your version of truth the one that those zionist who occupied Arab lands since 1940s and immigrated from Europe and later from Mid.Eastern/N.african countries,somehow had the deed for the land from thier forefathers from centuries B.C.Oh wait a second they are bibles chosen people so they do no wrong.I bet you work as Aipac lobbyist for congress you stupid moron.
Well jay it starts with the fact that the lands Israel is "occupying" were won in wars with Arab countries who, in their religious zealoutry, commenced wars of aggression against Israel. Israel subsequently defeated them, hence, they took some of their lands. They didn't take these lands only as spoils of war, but for the purpose of securing their own land against future Arab aggression. Now they've left themselves open to missile attacks because of the few concessions they've given the opposing side. Given those FACTS do you really think they are so cruel and unjust? Mind you the missile attacks perpetrated by Hamas are specifically aimed without care for where they land, besides the general intention of hitting Israeli territory. Israel most certainly does take into consideration the location of their strikes as they pertain to civilian populations. If they didn't you would be seeing even more civilian deaths.
That's a moronic statement if there ever was one. Unlike the Native Americans in the U.S., THE JEWS WERE IN ISRAEL BEFORE THE ARABS.
That is absolutely true. In fact, God Himself made a number of covenants with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob ... then Moses, and finally, Jesus Christ Himself in the flesh, made it quite clear.
Actually, Ismael was born before Isaac, so the Arabs were there first.
There were semitic people in that region before Abraham and his flock migrated around 2100 BC. They never had a kingdom until 1000 BC, and then only intermittently (due to Assyrian, Babylonian, Persian empires) until the Hellenistic and Roman Empires. From 2100BC until 1948, there may have been at most 300-400 years of Jewish sovereignty over a 3000 year span. And 99% of the world vies this as Palestine and Jerusalem as multi-religious. Jerusalem was Christian and Islamic much longer than Jewish. We are all equal and now one is chosen over anyone else – sorry to state the obvious.
Um no they were not. Both races were there and had been there for a long time.
The f. jews should swim back to europe or they should wait for their end forever.
Hey @Readhistory, Judaism was around for thousands of years before islam was even created, so how could there have been muslims there before Jews? Do you see how being uneducated makes things worse? Go learn some history and get an education then come back with some smarter comments.....pathetic....
Is there a small chance you are missing some brain cells, Karla? The Palestinians are barbaric and even after they were given land, which they never even owned in the first place, they still used terror to cause hell and havoc for Israeli citizens. i.e, when Israel give them full control and ownership of Gaza, what happened? Pull your head out of the sand!!
I hear ya.I know what I would do if I were Israel and when I was done I bet you wouldn't hear so many stupid Arabs saying they love death.Happy to oblige ya say hello to Allah.
Except the Native Americans tried peace at first (You know; Pocahontas, Pilgrims and the origin of Thanksgiving?) the same way the Israelis did. I'm not saying that the Israelis are completely innocent here, but what the Palestinians do (and so often) is so damning that its almost hypocritical to criticize the Israelis.
Uh, you don't know your history. The Jamestown colony was founded in some swamp land that the local Indian kings didn't occupy. The Indians massacured most of the English and fought wars against them, when they tried to expand.......The Pilgrams landed at the site of an Indian tribe that had just been 98% wiped out by an Europeon disease. The few remainders did welcome the Pilgrams as allies in order to keep neighboring tribes from expanding onto their lands since they couldn't defend them. There is no friendly, peace-loving native culture involved.
And to continue with your summarization of history: The country that later became America, and the people who later became American, neither were guiltless in their treatment of Native Americans. The entirety of North America, if you are using reasonable and objective standards of judgement (like historical residency), technically belongs to the Native American people. The United States of America later conquered those areas, subdued Native American populations and forced to live in areas the country could easily control and had no real value. If the areas were later found to have value, we subsequently forced relocation of those Native American people and took the lands we had given them by treaty.
In other words: we resolved our own "best example" relative to the Israeli/Palestinian conflict by naked force. We should be glad there were no cost-efficient rockets that could be smuggled into and fired from "Indian" territory during those days, or we would possibly be dealing with this issue ourselves to this day. Perhaps the Israelis should consider geographical isolation of Palestinians away from borders with other countries, so they could legitimately monitor and secure all borders with other countries and possibly stop or curtail the smuggling of these weapons into the country. I am sure they have argued this point before, but maybe it's time to take up THAT issue again.
The arabs are not interested in peace only a temporary truce until they are strong enough for jihad . Don't fool yourselves, any Israeli jews finding themselves in a country run by Hamas or the Palestinian Authority for that matter, would not live very long.
Are the Jews tha Native Americans, or are the Palestinians..? Hmm, well, since Palestinians are a made up people, who only date back 100-150 years ago, it seems a false choice. It seems more like: Israelis, who originally occupied the land and were cast about as slaves, reoccupied, then cast about again (all before Jesus was even born), speaks to the fact that it is THEIR land. Not Palestine, but ARABS invaded and occupied it and for a time it was theirs (and they may have kept it). Except, arabs took the wrong side in world war and lost. Then, they failed to maintain what they did have, and lost even "mandated palestine" under british and french authority. The jews deserve their land, the Arabs have lots of places to go in the area. The subtle racism is: Even Arabs hate Palestinians, let them be the Jews problem and we will subtly coerce the world into hating the Jews as we MUSLIMS do. Muslims are the real problem here. Palestinians are just a proxy for the cowardly Muslims, as Syria is a proxy for COWARDLY Shia. Muslims (and the terrorists that represent them) are cowards. Death to the cowards.
"Give us your poor, tired, hungry masses" is imprinted at the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island immigration station. Trevor, are you a U.S. citizen or have you divorced yourself from the idea of welcome? You are also filled with hate and it is hate that keeps the conflict going.
Are you kidding me Mr. Fareed Zakaria?
Why didn't you even mention the illegal settlement activity of Israel in the West Bank?
this article is by Mr. Rubin, not Dr. Zakaria.
Hey, don't stop him – he's on a roll
Why should israel stop the settelments in the west bank? before 67 the arabs wanted to destroy of israel and wanted a war, after 67 the situation stayed the same. Israel left south lebanon an got missiles on the north, israel left gaza and got missiles on the south, should I guess what will happen if israel will leave the west bank?
"Illegal" means "in violation of the law". There is no law forbidding the Jews to live in the West Bank but allowing Arabs to live there. Any such law would be DISCRIMINATION between people based on their ethnicity which is RACISM by definition.
discrimination based on ethnicity is not racism. Its bigotry. Arabs and Jews are both semetic peoples so they are from the same "race" and hence its not racism. It may be discrimination and bigotry, but neither is illegal...and exactly what law governs? Israeli law, Palestinian Law (im assuming they have law), Sharia? Hebraic law (assuming thats a word)? International law doesnt exist, ask anyone who has a law degree....as in me. International law is a gentlemans agreement to agree. The closest we come to firm international law is the convention on the law of the seas...and even that gets fuzzy.
UN Security council resolution. Geneva Conventions.
International law DOES mark the settlements as illegal as the law does not allow ANY land to be annexed militarily. End of discussion.
oh yea, the United Abominations... yaaa , they've helped the world progress. might as well just leave the work to NATO and the EU. Maybe China will get on bored one day.
FAREED DID NOT WRITE THIS ARTICLE
GET YOUR EYES CHECKED
What is Fareed's picture at the the top of the article doing then?
Because its not illegal, Israel can build anywhere they want on THEIR land........go home to Jordan and the other surrounding musli m states you came from....
IN WHICH PLANET DO YOU LIVE.ISREAL OCCUPIED THE LANDS NOT THE THE OTHER WAY.ISREAL ROBED THESE LANDS,GET YOU FACTS STRAIGHT MR FAREED,I REALY THOUGHT THAT YOU ARE SMARTER THAN THIS.
On planet Earth it is PERFECTLY LEGAL to occupy enemy territory during a war, genius... On the other hand, can you NAME THE STATE that LEGALLY owns the lands Israel occupies?
You arab supporters have to be the biggest waste of human intellect i've ever come across. These people you are supporting, stone women to death for having an affair!!!! They are still living in the dark ages and medieval times! The western and civilized world stands with Israel for a reason! If you don't like it, move to Syria and join Assad. He is of the same faith as these animals that Israel has to deal with on a daily basis!!
they'll never understand they are the worlds cancer.
Dude- Fareed didn't write the story. Before calling out someone's intelligence maybe take a look at what you're reading?
sam in arabic there is a word for the likes of fareed its called minafiqeen,those whose soul is sold to highest bidder,you can sugarcoat lies as much as you want but evey one in the world except those with tattoo of zionists in thier asses know the land belongs to Palastinians.It boggles my mind when they deny this fact but what you expect from those who signed pact with devil.
There never was a country called "palestine" who is feeding you this myth? Your imam? Better go back and tell him he lied to you...you are embarrassing yourselves thinking there was ever a nation called "palestine" Judaism was aroundfor thousands of years before islam even existed, the western educated nations stand with Israel for a reason...your cause is unjust and a myth....arafat named the refugees from the surrounding arab states "palestinians" after 1967 when Israel fought off the genocide from 5 arab countries.............no such place nor people as "palestine"
The Zionist are occupying land and oppressing the Palestinians. Fareed you are wrong. I guess you can't really say anything remotely honest considering the backlash you would get. Therefor you shouldn't speak on this.
whiney little school girl. take it like a champ.
muslims are occupying and holding the world hostage. but you dont see me complaining? they'll be dealt with in due time when the rest of the world decides it wants to move forwards instead of backwards.
"The Zionist are occupying land and oppressing the Palestinians. Fareed you are wrong. I guess you can't really say anything remotely honest considering the backlash you would get. Therefor you shouldn't speak on this."
1. "Fareed" didn't write the article, so you're wrong about that.
2. Who "occupied" the land prior to 1967? Do you recall? And where were the claims of a "Palestinian" state in that region from 1949-1967? Nowhere – there were none.
I guess you can't say anything remotely honest (or even accurate, for that matter). Therefore you shouldn't speak on this.
Correct, before 67 Jordan occupied Judea (west bank) and Egypt owned gaza, Israel now has peace treaties with both of those countries, there were no "palestinians" before 1967.....therefore, "palestinians" have no claim to any of the land....they are lucky they got gaza, which they will lose soon if they keep firing missiles and rockets at Israeli schools, daycares and old folks homes....
The looser of a war of agression – is always oppressed. the Arabs attacked, the arabs were defeated – the arabs lost – so be it. This is a lesson about attacking your neighbors.
This article is a textbook case of an "US vs. them" mentality. "Egypt’s withdrawal of its envoy convinces even Israeli doves that Arab countries see treaties as little more than truces. " Demonizing of an entire culture is an easy justification for war. Israel's foreign policy challenges are significant. I do not pretend to know if there is a path to peace, but I do know that blindly painting the world in black and white is the shortest path to war.
Both sides are getting duped into a school yard fight.
When I was in 5th grade, somehow me and one of my friends were to fight after school. I dont know how it escalated nor did he, but everyone knew about it and they were egging us on. At the end of the day, he and I were so tired, we each said that we didnt want to fight and walked home, like we did everyday. Someone orchestrated the fight because they were so pathetically desperate for attention and relevance that they were willing to create chaos for its sake.
http://pulverizedtonearpower.wordpress.com/2012/07/12/pulverized-to-near-power/
In defense of the Gaza Strip, with little infrastructure and a blockade preventing efficient trade, there is little for them to turn to but war. This statement is not meant to be a condemnation of the blockade. Rockets being launched into Israel is obviously an unacceptable situation. I'm simply stating that the economic reality of the Gaza Strip will predictably cause violence. If you want to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, economics may be a good place to start.
voting out Prime Minister Netanyahu would be another place to start.
Netanyahu is a war hero, knows how to defend Israel...and will wil the next election again....if you want to see a left leaning prime minister then worry about Americas......until the muslim world stops trying to annihilate Israel, you will see it moving even more to the right...and I dont blame them...
The siege came because rockets
You seek to allocate blame rather than to solve problems. My point is, without economic opportunity, the people of the Gaza Strip have nothing to turn to but war. The threat of or use of violence will not solve this problem.
I guess, to me, instead of trying to avoid war, you seem to be trying to blame one side for it or justify it. It seems to me, when you have reached that point, you have already given up on peace.
hey deep blue, you ever heard about picking the Lesser of two evils ? cause you're not .
You forget that Gaza has 2 borders. One with Israel and one with Egypt. You can't enforce a blockade just on one of them for it to be complete, so how come nobody asks Egypt to lift it's blockade?
I'm not recommending anyone lift the blockade. Flow of weapons into Gaza to be used on Israel is obviously unacceptable. I'm just explaining what I view as part of the problem. I'm not proposing any solution to the problem. I'm making two claims. 1.) pretending Arabs are evil, untrustworthy, ect. and that Israel is a great force for good is counterproductive 2.) the economic conditions in the region are not conducive to peace.
deep blue...Please educate yourself before posting. Israel completely pulled out of Gaza in the hopes that it would bring peace. Not only did they relocate their own citizens, but in good faith, Israel left behind all of their infrastructure such as housing, greenhouses, factories, etc etc. What did Hamas and the arabs do with this opportunity?? They destroyed all of the infrastructure, and immediately started launching rockets at Israeli citizens (women and children) across the border! How can you blame Israel for the current situation in Gaza. These people had a perfect chance to build a modern society and have peace with Israel. Instead, they flushed it down the toilet and chose to fight. Why? Because their charter openly and clearly calls for the destruction of Israel. They don't want peace, they don't want land, they want the end of Israel. If you agree with that mentality, which you obviously do, then go live in Gaza and enjoy!!!
You, like many on this forum, try to allocate blame for current problems. It is a good excuse for hatred, after all.
I am not making the claim that Israel is responsible for the economic conditions of Gaza. I am simply stating that if the underlying economic conditions do not change, we can predictably expect perpetual war. You can try to find someone to blame for that, but pointing fingers is just making excuses rather than finding solutions.
bull. Economy is just a result of following radical religious leaders. dont you notice how most Islamic countires have crappy stone houses and crumbling infrastructure? this is all pretty black and white man,
and you can point fingers and blame when they say the same rederict that Hitler and the Nazis said. the modern world does not stand for that stuff. I like how your playing devil's advocate, I see that as a common tactic with Muslims in the west. but the true ideals are hidden and present in your heart.
"Proud to be an Infadel! "
You're perfectly correct about who is to blame for the current situation, but you will never convince the people who are only interested in trashing the Israelis. It doesn't matter to them that the Palistinians created their own problems. They could have had a decent life by now, but just like the rest of the Muslims on this planet all they want is dominance, which they can never have. The ONLY reason they want all of the land is because Israel is in possession of it. They could care less about the land itself, they don't WANT to USE it. They just want to take it away from Israel.
The Gulf countries are supporting the Gazzan militants with hundred of million of oil dollars. The economic fate of the palestinians is of their own making. Before Hamas took over in a bloody coup, dozen of thousands of Gazzans worked in Israel, and Gazza saw an unprecedented economic boom. Then the Hamas sheeled the crossing to ISrael to prevent the Gazzan workers from going there. Religious hatred trumps economics, Deep Blue.
I guess my main point is, this article's listing of grievances in order to paint Israel's neighbors as untrustworthy and seeking violence is not meant to illustrate a path to peace. It is meant as a justification for war. Maybe I'm naive, but I still hope for peace, and even in war I don't not think that this type of black and white view of the world is useful.
You are naive, and I don't want my life placed on the alter of your pipe dreams.
Jerusalem resident
That's ok, but don't justify it by pretending that all Muslims are bad people, cannot be trusted, and deserve whatever comes to them. Sometimes there is no option but war. I understand that. Pretending that your country is in a battle of good vs. evil makes good propaganda, but it prevents opportunities for peace in the future.
lol, look at what this deep blue guy says. He's hypocritical of his own words of mouth!
Good luck Israel, Canada stands with you, so does Australia! don't even pay attention to what this guy has to say, they've had their chance, and Pi$$ed it away, multiple times. He says Israel is hatred. oh my friend, you dont know what hatred is, because the developed world is moving forward, but you are a cancer. hatred is regretfully building up against you and your rederict and your propaganda. The option to avoid war has dissapeared with each Rocket from islam.
I'm always on the side of righteousness, which is my only agenda. This is not a situation of two big babies not wanting to get along. Hamas knows it needs to perpetuate violence in order to maintain power. It's a big game to them. You can't just say things. You have to study the situation and make rational determinations. If the muslims wanted peace, there would be peace. Straight and simple.
"If the Muslims wanted peace, there would be peace"
People that are hungry and have no opportunity for future do not want peace. Look at the situation in Gaza. You have a country full of people with no opportunity for economic improvement. You have a lack of basic necessities. You have Israel with an ant meet boot mentality. Humans, when cornered, fight back. What I'm saying is that the people of the Gaza Strip have no good options, so we shouldn't be shocked when they choose war.
orrr... deep blue.... you could stop electing terrorists that create a charter of hatred.... you think the rest of us are so naive to forget the words from their mouths? the hate they spew? my country has peace with Israel....so does America, and GB, and countless other countries.... hmmmmm, notice their not countries with terrorist organizations ?
No, I am not asking you to forget the terrorists. I'm asking you to be better than them.
Facts are there to demonstrate a point, Deep Blue. Rubin gives you a history lesson for over 30 years with ample evidence that giving back land resulted in no better security for Israel. That is not demonization, that’s reality. I wonder if you'd be so gallant if it was your house under bombardment. You need 2 sides for peace, and in this case one side, recognized as a terrorist group by the US, does not want peace. Sometime, thing are straight forward even if they seem like black and white.
"Most Israelis view their experience of land-for-peace in the same fashion that Native Americans consider their experience with the concept." Rubin: what are you smoking? Do you mean most PALESTINIANS view heir experience of land-for-peace in the same fashion that Native Americans consider their experience?
We Jews have a 4,000 year presence here, I think the parallel is apt.
Oh yeah you Jews have 4000 year history and in that part of the world and Palestinian kicked you out right? and then you kicked Palestinian out? So if you can kick Palestinian out from their land just 60 years ago, why they can't and shouldn't kick you out now? If repeating 4000 years if history is justified then repeating 60 old years of history is even more justified. Also why don't you advice your "white" American counter parts to repeat 300 old history. Try and see what they tell you.
Only someone mentally sick and a retard is going to compare Native Americans with Israeli Jews? Are Jews in Israel occupied or are they occupier? It is the Palestinians who have lost their land like native Indian lost their land. It is the Jews who stole and are continuing to steal Palestinian land like the white settlers were stealing land from Native Indians.
even in the writting of the orginal settlers of isreal there were people they displaced. maybe palestines have an equal right to exist as maybe they have been there as long? quit going back to the past if so i should own a large land mass in asia. Get over it and become an adult.
You can certainly try and kick the Israelis out of Israel now, but then do not cry "help" “aggressors” “occupiers” when they kick your ass and turn your bunkers and rockets into dust! Jews never kicked out anyone, this is a myth perpetrated by Arabs. Five million Jews, in Israel, like the Native Americans were and are vastly outnumbered by the 1 billion Muslims, but unlike the Indians, they refuse to live on a reserve. Instead, they built a great country while Palestinians kept their refugee status and UNRA handouts for decades instead of assimilating into their brethren in Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria, where they came from originally. If the Palestinians did not start a war with the Jews in 1948, they would still have their homes today. There is a price to pay for fighting with a 4000 old nation. We in America support Israel, not terrorist. Let Israel deal with Gaza the way Assad is dealing with the Sunis in Syria, brother.
When those war-mongers in Israa-hell want a war for the sake of re-election or for whatever reason, they would throw amateur-type missiles and motor-fire into themselves and blame it to Palestinians. And there comes Phony Blair and the West in clear support of those Ashkenazim criminals.
That's the most ridiculous thing I have read. Arab mothers proudly give their suicide bombing children support for the almighty dollar that they receive as a result. You don't see Israeli parents giving that type of support do you now?
Haha. That is the stupidest thing I have ever read. Yeah, they are firing missles/rockets at themselves. bundalunda, you extremist, hate-filled moron, you are a sad excuse for a chimpanzee. There is no government in Gaza. If the Hamas leadership said "OK, stop firing rockets while we work this out", the rockets would still rain on Israel – they are not a government and have nopo control over their populace - stop the rockets and you stop the war - plain and simple. The poor people of Gaza are being lied to, taken advantage of and dragged into this mess by their own, terrible, evil leadership. Read a book and learn something you moronic chimpanzee.
One should never expect 'peace agreement' with a poisonous snake to hold! Islam loves violence. Israel, Kashmir and badly made youtube videos are all mere excuses for their violent acts.
You claim that "Islam loves violence." You judge an entire religion and speak of them with hatred. These are hardly words from someone that does not love violence. Words of hatred and bigotry do not come from those who desire peace. Lovers of war paint in black and white. They believe they are good and their enemies are evil.
So you are against generalization, right. So, according to your logic, one can't generalize that seat belts generally save lives, or the in WWII, Germany was generally murderous?
The fact that you compare humans to inanimate objects is telling. I believe that judging someone solely based on his or her religion is a bigoted worldview of a closed minded individual. All seat belts are more or less the same. All Muslims are not.
If you identify yourself as a Muslim you are stating your belief in and support for Islamic teachings. Which are most certainly violent and genocidal.
You need to get off your high horse and READ the Quran. If after you do that, you still say that Islam is NOT a violent religion there is NO hope for you. I did exactly that, and after the number of verses exhorting all good Muslims to kill the unbelievers passed 100, I gave up. That experience convinced me, and unless you have been completely brainwashed it will convince you too. These people want world domination. Nothing less. And they will do ANYTHING to achieve it.
They don't really want that land back, they just want Israel GONE. And they'll play the victims as long as anybody believes them.
It was Islam who went and kicked Palestinian out from their land and made them refugee in their own land! Right. What have you been smoking lately dude!
The irony is that it was actually pretty close to that.
Muslims leaders encouraged Muslims to leave Israel so when they conquered the place they could just kill everybody left. Their invasion didn't turn out like the planned, and their supporters were stuck outside Israel.
What a morally bankrupt individual you are Mr. Ruben.
Yes, and you are so much more ethical and moral. Pity you can't even defend your own judgements..
I am tired of the blame game and all this bravo about who are the real victims or martyrs. Neither Muslims nor Jews have universal ownership of suffering and victimhood. It is an unhealthy and dangerous philosophy to live by. It same goes to the racist slurs about Arabs, Khazars, Askenazim etc. It is the hight of human foolishness. We need to seek common ground and to argue about the benefit of peace for both. And we have to calm down the heated emotions and our more primitive, violent and hateful tendensies, so we can think clearly and in a humane manner. Stop the drums of war!
Please get your facts straight.
First of all, you neglected entirely the land of the westbank where settlements are popping up like mushrooms to confiscate palestinian land (so according to the peace-for-land logic, there should be a war by now).
Second, the Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon was not to a peace-for-land strategy but rather the realization that staying in lebanon did not give enough benifit compared to the losses of the Israeli army.
Third, Shabaa farms may very well belong to Lebanon. They belong to Kafar Shuba which is Lebanese!
Fourth, where the hell did you hear about Hizbolla claiming 7 villages in the galilee? I am from that area and I never heard about this!
I can go on an on about all the false information that you are writing about.. but that would be just a waste of my time!
So stop spreading false information.
The writer seems to be of the opinion that there's no such thing as Palestinian.
Amazing. This piece of propaganda doesn't mention Israel is expanding its settlements. When it withdrew from the West Bank it stole more land from the Gaza strip. The wall, the racism, the children killed and arrested. No it's the Palestinians fault. haha
It is amazing. This piece of reality mentions the Hamas terrorizing children, old people and innocent civilians by shelling their homes. Help!! The terrorists are the victims!!
Hey Aladdin, the "wall" as you say is a security barrier which Israel was forced to build because you and your muslim murderous terrorist friends like to strap bombs to themselves and walk into schools, cafes, busses and restaurans...the security barrier has proven effective, as there have not been a suicide attacks in years....Im sorry Israel built the walls so now you and your murderous terrorist friends cant blow up babies and old ladies.....you musl ims are disappointed Im sure...
I always wonder...why did Hitler not gas the remaining Jews of the world during his time? We wouldn't have this abominable replacement in his place by the thuggish Israelis.
I wonder why israel waited so many years with rockets for this operation and haven't done this before. I also wonder why israel don't ruin gaza and try not to hurt innocent people while if it was the opposite the muslim animals like you wouldn't hesitate. everywhere there are muslims there is bloodshading
Azmat Khan
Surely you sound like another of those Zionist dimwits who doesn't even realize that its the Israelis who have occupied Palestinian land and not vice versa. What would you do if someone forcefully occupied your home and went around killing your family members? And push you into a ghetto? And the whole world supported your tormentor just because he lobbies better than you? Get a life...
Israel occupied territory after the arabs wanted war with israel and "drop jews to the sea" was their goal. what happened in Egypt? why did israel occupied Sinay? it's called "Land for peace". Arabs like wars and blood and Israel has the answer – Israel will take your land and give it back if you give peace back. but arabs like wars and blood, like animals. If the palestinians would have promised peace and not terror, they would get their territory back. I suggest that you read some history of what happened before 67. I wonder what would muslim animal would do if he were attacked by rockets.
Man, get a life, really. Israel was created on Palestinian land. Period. That's why the Arabs waged war. And Israel survived because of the USA. I don't see anything wrong with Arabs wishing to eliminate Israel for usurping their land, killing their women and children (remember Sabra and Shatila), destroying their farms, bombarding civilians and even schools in retaliation for rocket attacks in what was once their land. Get out of the usurped land, and you will have your peace.
If you look back long before 1948 even, there is not such a thing "Palestinian people". If you wish to eliminate Israel, be aware that you can be eliminated yourself. Israel have never aimed citizens! Arabs aim citizens! If you don't even think about 67 limits as a ompromise, i.e. Hamas in Gaza, be aware of its consequences. If Israel would shoot without distinction, the arabs would lose many peaople and Israel would save many lives. It doesn't matter, if you are a muslim, killing is your hobby. look what is happening in syria, you crazy animal!
But why did you even bother going there? They wanted to throw you in a sea because you went and occupied theri lands and villages? Or did they go and occupy your lands and villages in Germany, France and eastern Europe. just go back where you came from and Arabs will have no reason to throw you in the sea.
If your claim is based on 4000 years old history then why don't you advice your benefactors in usa to repeat just 300 old history and see what they tell you.
Ani you are so wrong! look at pictures of the league of nations which predated the UN. there is a Palestine placard and a group sitting there! I cannot imagine anyone as uneducated as you commenting about this situation. Basic fact Isreal was created out of palestine...geeze
What a joke! A plestinain delegation to the Leauge of Nations! I want to smoke what you are smoking, man!! Until the Jews populated the empty land of Israel, there wasn't even a nation of Palestinians, just a crowd of nomads from Lebaon, SYria and Iraq that settled in 1/10 of the country where there was no swamp land.
man, I thought muslims would be the first to know the world and land there in it doesn't belong to any one group, It belongs to god. ohhh yea, i forgot, Allah detests the Jew. nvm, my bad....
must only be a Christian sentiment.
people like you and the rest of your jihadist friends are the reason there will not be peace between jews and muslims for many generations to come. Even after being presented with historical facts you seem to have a small seizure and revert back to your al quida talking points. Peace would be great, but we're at least half a century away from the muslim world having enough sense to confront their primitive notions of "the other"
you have a point about what the problem is. It is the other concept. No getting around it.
The opinion of the writer has many speculations and twist of facts. It doesn't mount to a professional analysis. I wonder why the CNN publishes such a low quality essay.
Tamora, kudos! You lern to spell analysis!!
Go back to reading Mein Kampf, Adolf.
hey assmat, never was a nation called "palestine" sorry...nothing was stolen from you, sorry......and the way you and your dirty murderous mus lim brothers are going, there never will be one......you low life....suffer......
Surely you sound like another of those Zionist dimwits who doesn't even realize that its the Israelis who have occupied Palestinian land and not vice versa. What would you do if someone forcefully occupied your home and went around killing your family members? And push you into a ghetto? And the whole world supported your tormentor just because he lobbies better than you? Get a life...
Go away, Nazi.
It's always been Palestine. Israel stole the Palestinian land with support from the USA back in 1948 when Truman pushed a vote in the United Nations to create the State of Israel. Truman paid and bribed many smaller countries to vote for the creation of Israel. The ONLY country ever to be created by a vote of the UN is Israel. That alone arguably makes the state an illegitimate state.
The Palestinians owned that land and legally belong to every inch of Palestine. The Jews came from all over the world to occupy Palestine and imprison and kill Palestinians. Shame on Israel. shame on the Jewish State.
Reblogged this on Meir Weiss' Blog and commented:
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Lets face it, the so-called 'Holy Land' is a holy mess and has been for ages. Sadly, this nonsense won't subside until both sides wake up one day and see mushroom clouds engulfing everything they hold dear. But even that won't be enough to end the cycle of hate and intolerance as there is no real tradition of moderation on either side, only tribalism with each claiming the moral high ground of uncompromising beliefs that defy reason and thus preclude any possibility of being 'reasonable'. Two scorpions in trapped a bottle stinging each other to death, that about sums it up...
God is the only true path to peace and salvation. If it is HIS will that everyone – men, women, children – perish so be it. Those he favours will ascend while the rest will burn in hell for all eternity. What could be simpler than that? There is no middle path to heaven only hell.
The opinion of the writer has many speculations and twist of facts. It doesn't mount to a professional analysis. I wonder why the CNN publishes such a low quality essay.
Israel would most likely not be a topic if Hitler had been stopped. Also most important if as a group the Palestinians and their supporters had won the war in 1948. They out numbered and out gunned the Israelis. There was very little cross border trust in the Arab world in 1948 and still that way today. Learn to trust each other and maybe you can make a peace with Israel and children will stop dying. Your current leader does not want peace because it reduces their power and influence. The Arab fighter is as good fighter as any in the world. But have never shown the ability to unit across tribal boundaries your fragmented efforts will never achieve your goals. You have too many little Napoleons. The Israelis on the other hand fight with their backs against the wall and train accordingly as a united team no matter what their political leaning are. Make peace and share the land or your hate will continue this life of death and destruction.
Much BS, many "Palistinians" are actully Iraqi, immigrants or descendants.
The Pal. Authority land is an apartheid country, only Arabs allowed to lve there. Israel is a democracy with Arab residents, including legislators, lawyers, physicians, and military
Hamas and Hezbollah are Iranian puppets, Iran is trying to replace Saudi Arabia and Egypt as leader in the Middlle East
Israel acually supports the Pal. A uthority by collecting payroll tax from Pa. workers, and turning it over to the Pal. Auth.
Much of this has been stolen by Pal. leaders, s tarting with Arafat.
NS-Wow, your ignorance is ASTRONOMICALLY HIGH! NO, Palestinians are NOT Iraqi immigrants. Palestinians ARE PALESTINIANS, they lived in Palestine for HUNDREDS of years BEFORE 1948. They did not come from Iraq, Iraqis live in Iraq. What peace are you talking about when MILLIONS OF Palestinians, INCLUDING CHRISTIANS, are not allowed back to Palestine?!!!!!!!!!!!!! You try to give the conflict a picture of religious conflict between Jews vs. Muslims. Jewish terrorists in 1948 committed MASSACRES AGAINST PALESTINIANS CHRISTIANS, DEMOLISHED CHRISTIAN CHURCHES ALL OVER PALESTINE. Visit the village of Betset and see the demolished Catholic church. The Orthodox one was not demolished, as Shlomi "settlement" keep their sheep INSIDE THE CHURCH!!!!!!!!!!!Now do you really think God would choose Jews of this nature?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
hey Amir, no, "palestinians" are not "palestinians" shows how much you know, these refugees from the surrounding arab states were only named that after 1967...learn some history......
Frankly, I doubt the comments of the Palestinian leader who said 5,000 Palestinians are ready to lay down their lives. Have the terrorists of Hamas ever conducted a genuinely survey of their people and needs? Like a majority of Israelis who want peace, so to a majority of Palestinians want this war not to escalate any further. Will the Hamas leadership listen to The People. I doubt it....
Truthbetold: If that was Gods will he would not have had Noah build an Ark or sent his son for our salvation.
Try as I might, I can't sympathize with the Israelis. It's still a David vs Goliath battle with the Palestinians filling the role of David this time around. As for "land for peace", the Palestinians get a crumb of land (Gaza) on the coast and areas of the West Bank criss crossed with Israeli settlements and exclusion zones. Not much of deal for nation building. The writer states " Palestinians hope for an independent state with the bulk if not the entirety of the West Bank as its core. But Israelis know that their country is less than 10 miles wide at its narrowest point. Forget heat-seeking missiles; withdrawal from the West Bank would put planes landing at Ben Gurion Airport within a terrorist’s rifle range." How wide is Gaza at its narrowest point and how much of it is within Israeli rifle range? The Palestinians have a right to expect the same amount of security as the Israelis.
They have it, it's called Egypt. Oh yeah, the Egyptians won't take (their own people) in. My bad.
When the Palestinians learn to love their children more than they hate the Israelis, then there shall be peace. When the Palestinians recognize Israel's right to exist, then there will be peace. Some Palestinians get this, unfortunately, most do not.
TO RICK-Please, do not use a quote from Mrs. Gold MEIERSON-A BRITISH CITIZEN, originally FROM UKRAINE. Hating your enemy is a very acceptable thing, just like the French hated German nazis occupying France during WWII. The French loved their children, yet resisted German nazi occupation. The Palestinians love their children, yet resist German Jewish occupation of Palestine. Peace will not come back until ALL non-Palestinians go back to their countries. Palestine is for Palestinians ONLY, just like France is for French ONLY. What is wrong with that?
funny you would quote biblical stories with this..... yea, except David didn't consistently throw rocks at Goliath.
Perhaps the United States should indeed give back all the land to the Native Americans it gained in conflict and every US citizen move back to the continents of their ancestral origin. Now wouldn't that be interesting? After all, fair is fair.
The jews are actually in their ancentrial birthplace. Did you really not know that?
Yes they are Chris. My post was a tongue-in-cheek response to some of my fellow Americans (including Barack Obama) who believe that Israel must submit to their pre-1967 border and reprimand Israel for the "violent" acts they supposedly perpetrate, never mind the 2nd Intifada. Seems too many of my fellow Americans suffer from selective memory loss.
TO CHRIS-If you read the Bible, Jews AND NON-JEWS were there(Palestinians, Sumarians and Canaanites.) Further, white settlers into the USA did NOT kick out native Americans out of America. Why did Jews kick out Palestinians out of Palestine in 1948? why not all these Palestinians back to Palestine now?
Second-Since when is God involved in real estate transactions of giving ANY land(Palestine, Israel, Judea..etc.) to ANY one? Do you think God is a real estate broker?!!!!!!!!!! The God of the Jews is JUST THAT-God OF THE JEWS, NOT of the non-Jews. The 1 billion Hindus do NOT regard the God of the Jews as God. Judaism is a HIGHLY questionable religion, IF IT IS A RELIGION IN THE FIRST PLACE.
Israel you are doing the right thing to these so-called rats who only understand the language of bombs
CNN MANAGEMENT: As you know, the Precious One has planted his little spy mice all over the website streams to fish for info - if there is no worm on the hook, would they still bite?
The printouts must amuse you - wish I was there to read them 
I'm re-reading "All the President's Men" now. Where is Bob Woodward?
Hardly a surprise, A writer named Rubin writes a biased story defending zionists.
If he had an Arab name others would have called him a traitor.
Tell me about it! And they want peace to. What are they thinking?
boy is this a pro Isreal writer! Bad reporting Bad reporting ..there is so many historical errors in this article it is hard to know where to begin. Historically palestine now isreal had 2 times as many arabs as jewish people in it. if you believe in democracy then Isreal should have never been. Even if you accept this do you accept the expulusion of a people from there historical lands? This was not in the orginal mandate in the creation of isreal. then do you accept isrealis expansion? then its futher expanision in 67. Then show how the west bank is suppoised to be palestine if it is a piece of swiss cheese isreal keeps buidling on? At what point do you believe isreal when they keep using up palestine land? At what point do you accept your internment in a jail/bantu stand without a passport and no rights? Come one writer be real! gosh should i pull appart this article? Why bother won't change the writer. Bad CNN
If the Patheticinians would just recognize Israel and put down their rocket launchers (by the way, how did they get them in the first place?) there would be peace. If they would love their own kids more than they hate the Israelis, then there would be peace.
Good point.
He also doesn't mention that Arabs started the wars and waves of violence. That Arabs have sabotaged every peace agreement. That Palestinians held massive celebrations after the 9/11 attacks. That to this day Palestinians still express their desire to slaughter every last Jewish man, woman and child in Israel simply because they believe in a different religion.
There will never be peace with Israel until the Arab world acknowledges Israel's right to exist.
Israel's legitimacy, at this rate, will not be recognized by Arabs. Since Israelis hitch their fate to Arab state recognition, there will not be an Israel for long. The question Israelis need to ask: where does Israel exist? It's not like Arabs picked up and settled around Israel because they hate Jews. Jews should have checked their hate for Arabs the minute they decided to settle among Arabs. So your logic is as convuluted as Zionist spin.
Majority of the people of Israel are Jewish. Even before the nation of Israel was created, there were many Jews in the region. Ignoring their rights is unacceptable. So is ignoring the rights of the Palestinian Diaspora.
But why does Israel demand that they recognize Israel as a "Jewish" rather than "secular" state?
Because the context of "Jewish" is a nationality, not a religion. Lots of secular and Agnostic Jews in Israel. Lots of religious Jews as well. The great thing is Jews and Christians (in general) don't strap bombs to their waists nor hide among civilians.
"Jewish is a nationality"
No, Israeli is a nationality. Jewish can either be an ethnicity, culture, or religion. In any of the three interpretations, it conveys that ethnic Palestinians are unwelcome. You can't expect Israel's neighbors to recognize it. It won't happen.
the term "Jewish" was around long before the state of Israel was formed in the 1940's. Thus, "Jewish" is not a nationality. It is a culture, religion, or ethnicity. Choose any of the three, and the assertion that "Israel is a Jewish state" is still offensive.
Israel asks for recognition as a Jewish state for the same reason all its neighbors recognized only Islamic law and nationality without you ever questioning it. And no, Jews did not exist before Israel, they were born with the Israelites 3500 hundred years BC (approx.). Jews are an ethnic group with a shared history, and Israel is their homeland.
Israel is a country. It was formed in 1948.
Before that, the entire region was part of Great Britain.
"Israel asks for recognition as a Jewish state for the same reason all its neighbors recognized only Islamic law and nationality without you ever questioning it."
I agree! And that is why I say it is an entirely unacceptable demand for Israel to declare themselves a Jewish state.
Why should that be a problem? There's only 1 officially secular Muslim state in the world ( Turkey ) and that country has been sliding away from civilization pretty fast the last decade.
Of course, this is a slanted view of the reality. Just his statement that 'Many commentators mark the beginning of the “Second Intifada” as Likud leader Ariel Sharon’s September 28, 2000 visit to the Temple Mount/Haram al-Sharif. But this is dishonest. On August 24, 2000, several weeks before Sharon’s visit, Palestinian Justice Minister Freih Abu Middein threatened, “Violence is near, and the Palestinian people are willing to sacrifice even 5,000 casualties,' proves Rubin's bias. Palestinians have always declared that violanece is near, it is never far in their lives when occupied by a terrorist state such as Israel. And for the pig of a man Sharon to enflame the Palestinians by setting foot on Haram al-Sharif, he knew full well what he was doing, and porved what most of us already know, Israel never, ever, wants peace, as with peace, Israel has no possibility to play the victim card anylonger with the US, the UN, and the EU.
Of course not Emile, Israel never came to the table in 2000 and offered Arafart just about everything he demanded. Emile, get your head out of your behind and breath some fresh clean air.
I love the logic you genocide/terrorist sympathizers use to justify your support for the bloodthirsty Palestinian animals.
A Jew goes to a Jewish holy site and to you that's some great act of aggression. Palestinians spend decades trying to kill everything in sight.. and you don't see that as even a slight problem.
This is a one sided story. It blames the victim and ignores the perpetrator. Israel never gives the Palestinian anything unless it is for its own interest. They did not leave Gaza to make peace, they left Gaza because they could not control it anymore with the explosion of the population and the resistance they faced from the occupied people. Israel greatly altered the land in the west bank by creating hundreds of illegal settlements, and they propose peace for the remaining land which is not much. Most Palestinians don't believe in peace with Israel because Israel controls the formula and dictate what they will and will not do. Israel thought if they weaken the Palestinians they will eventually give up and lose hope in pursuing their aspiration , but they were wrong and they will pay the price overtime....
Hope (nice name btw) Think back to the Helsinki/Oslo accords where Israel conceded to Arafat 93% of what he demanded. But Yasser/Nossir Arafat couldn't agree to Israel's right to exist as a nation and there is where the trouble lies.
I wish that everyone would admit what they already know: there is not enough space in the areas under discussion for both Israel and a Palestinian state. 40% of Israel consists of the Negev desert, much of which can't support heavy human habitation; the high population density of Gaza compounded by the high birth rate among Palestinians; the fact that there are literally millions of Arabs in surrounding Arab countries who identify themselves as Palestinian and want to live in a Palestinian state; Israel's need for the west bank for security reasons; and so on. The only question is which one state is that going to be. I place my bet on Israel; they have fought five wars with Arab countries in the region and won all five.
No, I am not Jewish or Israeli, I'm a wasp from Texas.
It's just so amazing how often articles like these prompt so many anti-Semites to babble on and on about their overly biased views on the so-called "plight" of the Palestinians. If the Palestinians would leave Israel alone and cease firing rockets into civilian areas than the IDF wouldn't target those Hamas militants who duck and cover behind women and children. The truth of the matter is that the Palestinians should be thankful that, believe it or not, Israel has shown restraint. Israel has the capability to wipe them off the face of the map completely with one fell swoop. If their "friends" in Iran and Egypt want to help out the Palestinians we'll see what happens. 1967 SIX DAY WAR; 'nuff said.
This is a justification for Israel's annexation of the West Bank and completing of Israel's system of apartheid. Israeli tourism maps already have dispensed with even mentioning the West Bank and show over 65% of the West Bank as part of Israel proper. Rubin is simply preparing the groundwork for Israel's official annexation to take place. The only option it seems now is creating a single state that is a democracy for all the people living there, Jewish, Muslim, Christian and all the rest.
Comparing Israelis to the Native Americans is so incredibly ridiculous, they are the colonizing aggressors and are the ones committing ethnic cleansing and apartheid on the Palestinians, forcing them into smaller and smaller bantustans or reservations and stripping them of their human rights. This analogy alone shows how Rubin is bending reality to fit Israel's maximalist agenda.
i agree the 2 state solution is dead. Ironic that the annex of the west bank may let to the repatraition of the palestinies to isreal
many Jews who came from few years back from eastern Europe now call Israel their country. but what about millions of Palestines who are languishing in refugee camps. lets honor human rights for all the parties involved. pandering Jewish lobby must stop.
Jaya
Many Palestinians do live in peace within Israel's borders and not in refugee camps because they see the light and can live their life. Problem is they are considered persona non grata and traitors and turncoats by their Palestinian brothers in Gaza and are marked for death. Sad but true. I know. I see them and know them.
You start a war, you bear the price.
A clear and succinct history of Israel.
How about first you stop your pro-terrorist propaganda?
We're pushing 70 years since any meaningful number of people could have possibly been made legitimate refugees. The Palestinians are in the state they're in because they're far more interested in killing their neighbors than they are in trying to create a safe home for their children.
The writer of this hack piece projects the fallacy that Israel is blameless.
No, Israel is not blameless. They're just stuck between Iraq and a Hard place (aka Saudi Arabia). Location location location. Gotta love the Archangel Michael, always protecting the Jews. And cops too!
Got to love Christian Zionists. You pray for The Rapture, when all nonbelieving Jews will be slaughtered. Jews must really love you.
And somehow you could not actually refute one fact of his, could you?
Could not refute? You must have weak eyes, as I attempted no such thing. Mr. Rubin's fantasy is not worth refutation. But your observation seems typical of a Zionist's: no substance.
The reason this conflict hasn't gotten solved is because of the religious characterization of the conflict by Israel's Muslim neighbors.
They are unable to accept the existence of a Jewish state, because it appears to be in conflict with their Koran.
If they were to see the situation purely in terms of need and geopolitcal realities, the problem would already be solved.
What do the Israelis need? After being repeatedly ethnically cleansed over the centuries they need a safe place to call home. The only logical place for this home is their ancestral homeland where the Jewish kingdoms used to exist. They built Jerusalem and it is a part of their i d e n t i t y (the censors don't like this word). They cannot give it up.
What do the Palestinians need? They need an economically viable country to call their own.
What do the Palestinians not need? They don't need to take a part of Jerusalem from the Jews. They want that only so they can say that they "won" and the Jews "lost". They don't need a right to return and take over the Jewish state, essentially making it an Arab Muslim state. and wiping out the state of Israel. Again, they want that only so they can say that they "won" and the Jews "lost".
What is the solution to the conflict? One possible solution could be the one that Arafat agreed to in the Camp David accords and then went back on his word when he actually got everything he asked for. Another could be taking Gaza and joining it with a part of the Sinai (hey, Egypt is concerned about them, right?) to make it a larger, stronger state. There can be many solutions. For them to be possible, each side should completely stop the religious rhetoric and purely consider what they, as a people, need. Then the problem can be solved.
Read the Jewish holy books. Every page mentions Israel as the home for the Jewish people. Israel will always belong to the Jewish people. Anyone that doesn't like it, can go join their crazy jihadi nut jobs in Gaza and become martyrs. LONG LIVE ISRAEL!!!!!
Anyone arguing that Israel belongs to anyone but Jews is a fool; however, Palestine doesn't belong to Israel.
"Palestine" is a hole in the wall. The people that control it are more interested in murdering Jews then building a civilized society. You can keep it!!! Just stop trying to murder innocent Jewish civilians, so we can all live in Peace. Otherwise, be prepared to pay the price, since Israel will always defend herself.
It appears that the day will come when you eat your words, recognizing that Zionists' idea of defense is offensive to humanity.
Meanwhile, you don't have to wait for your support of terrorism and genocide to make you look like filth to every civilized person in the world.
Some Random Guy is just some dedicated zealot. Let's face it, you are bankrupt.
Land for peace is not a viable solution. There is another trade-off that could stop the attacks on Israel. Israel should implant explosives around the Al Aksa Mosque, and declare that any Muslim attack on Israel after a specified date will bring the destruction of the Mosque. The Mullahs, who incite the attacks, can either issue Fatwas to halt them, or they can see their Mosque destroyed. This approach cannot make matters worse, because "worse" means allowing the attacks to continue and escalate. If this approach is successful, the attacks will stop. If it is not, then Israel can clear the Mosque site of rubble and commence reconstruction of the Jewish Temple.
This is a Zionist's idea of peace.
Hey frank, We've seen what a Muslim's idea of peace is: lob a few dozen rockets at civilians and then cry "foul" when the counter attack launches. What a pathetic society, culture and religion Islam is.
Hey LR, what a gentle country Judaism is.
I am proud to be a Zionist who is a Christian. I love beating my swords into plowshares, unlike you who seems to just like beating your meat.
As opposed to the vision of "peace" you support which amounts to "there's nobody left here to kill, let's go someplace else."
I like that. We are learning thses tactics from the Islamists. Burn a huge pile of Korans also.
You cannot control humans by fear.
You must be joking. What do you think all religions do?
Belief in the superiority of fellow believers to nonbelievers. Note, some atheists fall into this trap as well. Humility is the only escape.
And to all you other crazy Islamic extremists and supporters, look around at every single country that is run by Islamists. Every single one! Do I really need to say anything else?? Go live in Iran, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, Tunisia, Mali....take your pick. There is no way in hell you will ever get your wish and turn Israel into the sh..thole that arabs have made of every other country they control. Why anyone would even want to is beyond me!
You are whom you question. Hate on.
If you fart really hard, the Isreallis will think is a rocket and build settlement on your b*tt and annex your b*tt hole.
Hey Frank, go strap a bomb to yourself and become a martyr. Collect your 72 virgins. The "zionists" are the cause to all of your problems in the world, right? Pathetic.
Zionists are the main problem in the Middle East, but do continue smoking that Zionist dream.
We apologize for refusing to let you kill us. Sorry!! And here is a promise – we will keep on being a thorn in your 1 billion Islamic Calife side, won't we? Go Jews!
Ben, you need to have your delusions checked by professionals quickly. You might start seeing pigs fly over Jerusalem if you don't.
Meanwhile Muslims have started the wars, started each wave of violence, sabotaged every peace plan and openly state their desire is to engage in genocide. Go figure..
HAHAHAHA. Soooo predictable. You are a crazy islamic jihadi aren't you? Assad murdering his people for wanting a change, and it's the zionist's to blame! Do you realize how stupid you sound? You getting that bomb ready? The 72 virgins are awaiting your arrival.
You are trying too hard. Assad is primarily Syria's problem. Zionists are a Middle East problem. Got it? Good, now burry yourself in bile.
Except, of course, that they weren't the cause of the problems. Islamic hatred of all things non-Islamic was.
Got it? Good. Now you won't have to make a fool of yourself with your pathetic jihadist propaganda.
Frank: Most of you have never been out of this country. I have 20 years Naval service. People hate becouse someone tells them to. "I was born in the White South". If you want to hate someone then hate anyone who tries to kill a child no matter what side they are on. Poeple die in war but to fire rockets with no way to control them is murding children, winning for you more hate control poeple. Hope you can live with it.
Land for peace.
Looks like Israel wants Land and Peace it is obvious from their behaviour and actions in occupied land they are succusfull in having Land by Americans help but have they got peace ask now Israeli people. Palstenian people never had peace they are used to see their children killed and their blood spilt over all the time.
Israilis will have peace once they know that there blood will be spilt all over like palstenians blood then and only then they will make peace and that time will be when palstenian rockets can hit Israelis where it hurts.
World has to wait till then.
you cannot control humans through fear.
Yes you can. You can also beat your swords into plowshares. It's called free will.
People forced to live in fear will always fight back. Always. Fear never wins in the long run. You have to give people hope for the future.
Bonjour street smart - take them off (wink)
Reading the comments so far, it would appear that only the Palestinians have wacko extremists on their side and the Israelis are justified iin their actions because they need their security. No hotheads/wackos on the Israeli side? No level-headed thinkers on the Palestinian side?
M R Khawaja. When Israel completely withdrew from Gaza hoping that it would be a start of peace, did the Palestinians embrace the opportunity and act peacfully? Please read some history, and then answer that question yourself. Perhaps, if they had built a civil society, then Israel would have done the same with the West Bank, and the Palestinians would be well on their way to having a state of their own. But they didn't. They chose violence and war, voted for Hamas (whose charter openly calls for the destruction of Israel), and now find themselves in this same position. On top of that, they target civilians, and use civilians to protect them from Israeli defense which shoots at rocket launching cites. Palestinian blood falls solely on the hands of Hamas. The more you support Hamas, the more you support the death of innocent Palestinians. If you bothered doing research, you would see that Israel does everything possible to avoid civilian deaths. They even drop leaflets warning civilians to stay away from Hamas terror sites!!! You are a fool to believe that the Palestinians and Hamas are the victims.
The bottom line is the arabs are not interested in peace , have never been interested in peace. If they were, it would have happened. To blame a country (and a pretty small one at that) that is surrounded by people that not only scream they are going to kill them but activly practice it, is crazy. How long would we put up with rockets coming from mexico (remember some mexicans claim Texas, NM, Cali)? We wouldn't, nor should we. The same is true for israel. The fact is there has been billions of dollars spent in aid for the palinstinians (on a per person basis, they would all be millionares) but their corrupt leaders spend it on themselves or weapons to kill jews
I just love Israel apologists: it's all the Arabs' fault. Perhaps a little self-fulfilling prophecy is overdue for Zionists to realize that military power is not only deceptive but also fleeting. It's due time for Israelis to realize that military power is the only thing that has supported their narrative.
You are a hypocrite, do you know that Frank? You wrote above that all of the middle east's problems are because of Zionists, and then you complain that Israel apologists blame all the problems on the arabs. Can you really be so stupid? You do need to go back to school you crazy islamic jihadi nut job!
And you must be illiterate. I certainly did not write that "all of the middle east's problems are because of Zionists". You might want to learn the difference and understand what "Zionists are a Middle East problem" means. But if the problem isn't caused by your ignorance, it must relate to your inability to tell a truth.
You do know that your beloved prophet was a pedophile right?
Rubin is a revolting, partisan Israel Firster who should simply move to Israel. His every waking thought revolves around Israel and his own 'Jewishness'.
Land for peace is and was dead because the Jews always intended to ethnically cleanse all of the Mandate – even after getting a disproportionate share of land.
Are you Romanian. If yes, from what City ?
I think all of this land along with Turkey, Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Libya, and Tunisia should go back to Greece, after all the Greeks were there long before the Arabs and Muslims (see Byzantine Empire and even Alexander the Great's Empire before that).
Sounds good to me. And while that gets done throw the Turks out of Crete and give it to the Palestinians so
that they finally have a "homeland" of their own. That way the Greeks can deal with what was an Israeli
problem (Palestinian nationalists), And the Jews can have all of Jerusalem back...
So when will native Americans regain North America?
Hey Florin, do you call a growing population in the Palestinian territories ethnic cleansing?? You do know what ethnic cleansing means right? Do you know that Israel arabs live in Israel and are treated equally to Israeli Jews, Christians, and people of other faiths. Can you tell me, if a jew walked through the streets of Gaza, would he be safe? Maybe you need to pull your head out of the sand and read a book, one that isn't supplied to you by Hamas. Idiot.
Furthermore, if all the jews wanted was more land, why would they have given the Sinai to Egypt, or withdrawn from Gaza?? You do know that could wipe out the entire population in Gaza and take the land if they wanted to, don't you?? But they don't, because everything you believe and regurgitate is a lie, taught to you by your lunatic imams and radical clerics. Keep your filthy lies in your Islamic run countries. Israel and the civilized world will never give in!!!
Jews should have never given up West Bank, it is actually the traditionally homeland of Jews if you look at maps. Most of the West Bank was a part of the Kingdom of Judah. Northern part of West Bank was Kingdom of Israel.
Yeah, just like how the entire region used to be Canaan.
The US should have given Northern Iraq to the Assyrians who are Christian and allowed them to be free from Islam and then give a piece of Egypt around the city of Alexandria to the Coptic Christian Egyptians. That way Israel has two allies in the region against Islam.
Unfortunately, radical islam is infesting not just the entire middle east, but many European, Asian, and African countries as well, bringing with it nothing but violence and destruction. Of course, people like Florin will blame all of the world's violence on the jews, sorry, the "zionists", since it is much easier than blaming themselves and their sick ideology. We, the civilized people around the world, will soon have to pick a side. The crazy islamists, or the civilized. I chose the civilized, and that is why I stand with Israel!
What this zionist liar "forgets" to mention is that it was the zionists who started the 67 war by striking egypt first.
and that in 1946, 70% of the population of the British Mandate west of the jordan was Arab(both muslim and christians) but less than 40% of land was alloted to arabs.
Ah, the ol' "zionist liar" card. You guys are all the same. Pathetic. We all know that Israeli arabs live freely in Israel. So...... Answer my question you crazy islamic nut job? Try not to lie for once in your life. If a jew walked through the streets of Gaza, would he be safe??
Arman, why don't you go live in Syria? Why aren't you helping your muslim brothers there? Where is the flotilla? You are a hypocrite, a liar, and an absolute disgrace to humanity!
And what genocidal jihadist nutjobs like you "forget" to mention is that:
1) Arabs had been attacking Israel for years prior to the start of the six day war.
2) Egypt, Syria and Jordan were caught conspiring for a joint attack on Israel.
3) Illegally blocked access to international waterways for Israeli shipping.
4) Expelled UN peacekeepers from Sinai.
5) Massive buildup of troops along Israeli border.
Some "random racist" guy you are!
Which random area of Israel do you live in? Could you tell us more about the random crimes that Israel commits daily in Gaza and about the never ending random crimes Israel been committing agains the indigenous Palestinians since 1948?
I guess they didn't teach you that in Israel. Did they?
The funniest part about you Islamic extremists, and their supporters, is that you get caught up in your lies. Hamas was just caught using images they claimed were from Israeli airstrikes but were really from the conflict in Syria. Some idiot above claims that Hamas has ruled "palestine" for 1400 years, and Arman claims Israel was the aggressor in the 1967 war (which all valid history books clearly tell the opposite). Do you know how dumb it makes you look?
TO AREYOUCRAZY-Be objective, BOTH sides are extremists. Sure there are Muslim extremists in the Middle, but also thee are JEWISH EXTREMISTS there too. Palestine existed for thousands of years. Its people lived there without harrassing the Jews of Lithuania. But when Jewish Lithuanians occupied Palestine, by having the British empire ILLEGALLY smuggle them, do you expect that Palestinians not to resist? The French resisted German nazi occupation of France. Do you blame Palestinians for resisting German Jewish occupation of Palestine? You should see things with BOTH eyes in this world.
Ahh more lies and revisionist history from amir,...hey amir "palestine" did not exist for thousands of years, THERE NEVER WAS A NATION CALLED"palestine"....liar.....Jews have lived in Israel for thousands of years...THATS FACT!!!..........
If the Arab Israeli conflict has to be decided on the ground, then Israelis are doomed. Israel will not exist either way.
Short memory , eh. Some 57 Arab states and they have never been able to defeat Israel in armed combat. Why do you think that is?
Why that is? Obviously, Israel's superior military was been winning the day. How long do you think that will last? I'd have hoped it would have been Sharon's last dance, but, alas, he'll have to witness it vicariously in a coma.
"Land for Peace" , if it is dead, is dead because the israeli's decided to illegally occupy and illegally build "settlements" on occupied land (a war crime in and of itself). Throughout this entire ordeal the israelies have shirked their responsibility to supply roads, water, medical care etc for the people in the occupied lands( also war crimes). Then they have the gall to build "settlements" for ultra right wing religious nuts and then claim that due to all those settlements, they have to build a wall accross palestiian land (also a war crime) to prevent the palisinians from getting to their own land so the israelis can occupy and illegally settle it.
These are all, of course, clearl war crimes commited by the entire israeli population. The entire occupation is illegal. The settlements are illegal. The wall is illegal. Israeil itself is simply a rogue state that is criminally liable for all the deaths of palistinianes.
Everyone on earth knows the solution. But no one has the guts to say it. Either israel gives ALL the stolen land back Including that they stole inside the supposed israeil borders – never accepted by the palestinians) or dissolve israel and give ALL the land back to the palestinians. It's the only solution.
Stop listening to your radical imams and clerics. Israel never stole land. After promising palestinians that Israel will be destroyed and will lose everything, advising them to leave their homes and to return after Israel is destroyed, 5 arab armies attacked Israel, and Israel won!! In doing so, they took land to better defend themselves in the future! You can't voluntarily leave in the hopes that your enemy will be destroyed, and then cry when you lose. The whole issue can be solved by the Palestinians and their supporters accepting Israel's existence and inherent right to live peacefully. Until then, the Palestinians will reap what they sow!
Amir, how many Jewish Exremists are flying planes into civilian towers? How many Jewish Extremists are blowing up restaurants, buses, and other public places all over the world? How many Jewish terrorists are murdering little kids in France while they study in school? You cannot defend the indefensible! Wake up.
Why is a Jewish journalist doing the commentary on this? Seriously, my past memory is imbued with stories of how badly the English treated my Irish ancestors and that surely affects my outlook on the question of the Republic's claim on Northern Ireland. Mr. Rubin surely came to adulthood with an anti-Palestinian mindset. Personally, I wouldn't mind if Palestine disappeared and the Jews, who have done such an incredible job with their land (I personally planted a tree in the Israeli National Forest which was barren hills for a century before replanting began) and have a Democratic Government. But that's not going to happen. And the Palestinians, called the Peloset by the Egyptians and given land by Pharaoh Merneptah where Giza and some of the rest of the Holy Land is today, at the time that religious historians say Moses was wandering in the desert or arriving in the Holy Land, certainly have equal claim to their land, having lived there for 3300 years. It's clear to me that Jerusalem has always been primarily a Jewish city, even during the Ottoman Empire. But the Palestinians don't see it that way and until the Jerusalem question is settled, there will be NO permanent peace.
Rubin- Being Jewish should not necessitate accepting everything that Israel does.Come on let's be honest here:
If I came to your house and kicked you out of it because I had lived there 20 years ago and I put you and your kids in a tent in the backyard and starved/deprived you from basic things, I think your reaction to the Occupier would not be much different than Hamas.
Juneyt, nobody kicked anyone out of their land. The palestinians left voluntarily after being promised by their leaders that the arab armies will annihilate Israel, and that the palestinians will get it all! They were all a bit surprised when Israel defended itself and conquered additional land in order to defend itself in the future. The palestinians gambled, and lost big time!!! Since then, they have been trying to destroy Israel, unsuccesfully, as well as turning down any land for peace. Their current situation is due to their own actions, not Israels. Read a history book!!
No one kicked the Palestinians out? Hahahaha... What a joke.
Tell this to my mother and her family who were kicked out of their homes in 1948 and the attacking Jews at the time shot and severely injured my grandmother and she was never able to walk since the. Tell this lie to my father and his family who were forced under the guns to leave Palestine.
When do you Israelis and pro-Israelis stop your lies? What does it take for you all to speak the truth?
Are you really proud of your nation that is built on stealing land from the Palestinians? And now supporting your state with discrimination, starvation, deprivation of human rights for Palestinians and lies lies and more lies?
Susie, there never was a nation called "palestine" except under the british mandate, there were no "palestinians" until after 1967....you never owned a house or land in Israel proper you liar, you should go back to the surrounding arab countries you came from you liar....you will never get one inch of Israel....sorry.....
Just let the Jews wipe out the toliet trash ragheads!
Yet another racist. Amazing how CNN allows the likes of you to spew hate!
I am sure you are very proud of yourself.
People were warned there would be consequences to reelecting Obama and this is just one of the first. Notice how Hamas and al-Qassam waited until now to start launching missiles towards Tel Aviv. Obama has spoken in the past pre-presidency days of how he supported the vision of turning over the entire West Bank to the Palestinians. And as President he has treated Israel with at best scorn, unilaterally changing the position the US has supported for 30+ prior years. So once Obama was reelected, and with an ally in Egypt finally after Obama tossed long time US allies under the bus, the terroists in Gaza knew they could start doing what they want. Now watch when Russia or China or someone proposes some bill in the Securty Council comdemning Israel (ignoring the terrorist attacks) ... and Obama will have our UN representative quietly vote present (not a yea, not a nay, not a veto ... just present). This is just the first of far worse things to come. Congratulations Obama supporters, your hands are red with the blood of women in childern now.
We got nothing in it bonehead , this has been the case in the region for thousands of years.
Yada , yada , blah , blah , blah...
All this political gibberish is hogwash. Islamists zealots will never be happy until Israel is GONE. This is the proverbial "white elephant" in the room. There will never be peace in the region. Never , as long as Israel exists.
"Palestinians" don't want peace, or land. They want death. Death for Jews, and death for themselves.
This is why they have no qualms about targeting civilians from positions near their own civilians. They hate all Jews, civilian or otherwise; and, they rationalize and glorify the death of their own civilians with their beliefs that those who are killed are "martyrs".
Israel is in a war against a population of suicidal islamic Kamikazes. And the region will never know peace until Israel has the courage enough to decimate them.
Fair enough Mr. Rubin... Let Israel reclaim the land, but then give Israeli nationality to the Palestinians. In other words the end of the Jewish state.
Otherwise if you take the land but not give equal rights to Palestinians, you will end up with Apartheid and you know how much the World loved that. And please before telling me that you will just push them all to Jordan, think about the legality, morality and practicality of a mass exodus...
There was a solid solution offered by one of the Arab countries. I think it was Saudis.
1967 borders in exchange of ALL Arab countries recognition of Israel.
Difficult compromise on both sides. Status of Jerusalem resolved in favor of Palestinians; refugees issue resolved in favor of Israel.
There is no other feasible solution.
Gaza now – is Aushwitz for palestinians.
Everything in dispute to palestinians, and then a rain of rockets from the West Bank on BG Airport, Tel Aviv etc.
Would not al terrorists have wet dreams about it.
Dream on.
"Land For Peace" is dead because of a complete power imbalance. Israel and the US have an overwhelming monopoly of military and economic power. There is absolutely no incentive for Israel to give up anything. Peace is achieved if the two sides can both exert critically damaging force on the other so an agreement is better for both rather than destruction or it is achieved if one side completely wipes out the other. Israel can achieve its goals with a "final solution."
All this talk about who owns the land is baseless. Evreryone knows Abraham had Ishmael before Isaac It is also stated that Abraham decided to send Ishmael away for the sake of Sarah and Isaac. It was Abraham who was told by God Himself ( if you want to believe that) that Isaac was going to recieve the blessings for the most part even though there was going to be blessings for Ishmael and his people as well. There is alwasy a fight by the Arabs that palestine belongs to them. That land had been called Israel before it was called palestine by the Romans. The jews have lived there at the very earliest from the time of Kind David. Why do people think Jerusalem is still called the city of David and even the Arabs accept that name for it. Is David not a Jew? So to whom does the land belong to? Who can actually claim a right to it? It is beyond obvious the only people who can claim that land are the Hebrews or Jews which are one and the same.
Israel will end up taking more land, which is given to them by God, though the world will protest vehemietly........
.........Zechariah 12:3
And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples; all who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it.
Glad we got rubin to give the Jewish perspective. Hopefully CNN will find a Palestinian to tell the other side.
No chance of that – in America, there is only one side to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and that's not the Palestinians'.
Israel is committing deliberate genocide with their blockage of Gaza, punishing the people for daring to choose Hamas over the Fatah collaborators. But with the U.S. Security Council veto under their control, the Israelis have no reason to change tactics. Let's hope that someday a U.S. president actually grows a pair and tells Israel where to get off.
here is your genocide: http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/162148
israel brings down hamas rocket factories surgically and rockets are hitting schools in israel main cities..
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/162134
This article is so one-sided pro-Israel biased. What about all the settlements in occupied lands?
If there was an exchange of land for peace, why do the Palestinians have less land now?
Unilateral withdrawal? HA HA good one. Withdrawing from recently-invaded and occupied land, but then enforcing a strangulating blockade?
I see another post about racism. Try looking at Jewish immigration laws. They pay Jews from other lands to settle on occupied territories, but refuse any Arabs the right of return. Israel is the most bigoted country in the world.
LAND for PEACE is ABSOLUTELY necessary. The increasing population of Palestinians being squeezed into smaller territory is just not sustainable.
this would mean all americans should return to europe..all mexicans should stop evolving and start rocketing on new york. get some perspective. right now the poor palestinians are the ones that are growing the next generation of 9/11..good luck when that returns to YOUR home and not somewhere far away where you can discuss history. If you really know your history you know that every nation goes from setting the border with his neighbor to growing in peace and prospering. Not into building rocket factories for 570!! rockets to be shot in 3 days. Do you know what 570 rockets mean for 20,000 km square?...
Then give them birth control or allow them to move to other Arab countries. The other Arabs countries won't let Palestinians who have lived in their countries for decades even become citizens because they want the issue so they can continue hating and killing Jews
Michael, I am really surprised and shocked at your statements. I accept that you are a Palestinian sympathizer. However you do realize there is no such thing as Palestinians. They are JORDANIANS. Also the ARAB world knows the truth, that's why they don't let them into their countries or their societies or marry their daughters. The TRUTH, without getting to deep into this with you, is the ONLY country EVER to offer the Palestinians their own STATE has been ISRAEL. Come on, what have the Arabs really done or offered the Palestinians in way of growth, prosperity, independence or anything of substance. ONLY ISRAEL has said they would support a 2 state solution. The other Arab countries, including Jordan, which is 95% Palestinian, has left them to rot in the desert.
Finally a voice of reason. Thank you, Michael.
The only way to have peace and settle the conflict is thru land for peace. Israel is an apartheid state built on discrimination with the Jews being supreme over the Palestinians. That's why Israel does not look at the Palestinians as equal to them. They think of them as almost sub humans. This is the true democracy Israel offers to the Palestinians.
You know what? If it was me making the decision you could have land for peace when NONE of the Palestinian controlled borders connected to any other country but Israel. Even then if one rocket was ever fired again from your territory, which is absolutely inevitable in almost any scenario EVEN IF YOU GET ALL OF YOUR DEMANDS, it would be war again. Honestly you can have peace when the Israelis ***contain***, yes that is exactly the right word, the Palestinians within borders they can absolutely exercise complete control over. When you can't get your rockets anymore there will be peace.
how about palestinians taking investing all the rocket money in their economy for a change and building schools somewhere far away from hammas rocket factories..how about using the millions UN is giving every year to build teh farms on those great nature reserves. How about stopping to shoot rockets at cities with civilians and stopping to hide behind their children... Every nation in the world is caring for their people, all Hamas is doing is business on terror. http://www.jihadwatch.org/2012/11/media-manipulation-palestinians-push-their-children-to-taunt-idf-soldiers-as-media-stand-ready-to-fi.html
There will never be peae with Islam. The useful idiots who stick up for the Jihad will still be cursing Israel, even as their useless heads are parted from their scrawny necks, foul sacrifces bloodying the alters of Mecca.
They won't use it on Israel, because they know Israel will retaliate in like terms. They will use the bomb on America, smuggling it into an American port and that will be ironic. It will be ironic because so many idiot liberals who cursed Israel for defending itself, will be destroyed. This is ultimately their payment for bowing and scraping and kissing the sandals of the Imams of only religion they are afraid to insult. Submit to the Jihad and the Saif will be sharpened for you next. Israel has done more than enough in the name of Peace, when the threat is truly existential, then Israel will obliterate all of its enemies from Sudan to the Borders of Russia and maybe farther and that will be Justice Served.
For those who think that Israel is to blame. The Arabs and Palestinians have broken every agreement that has been brokered since 1920. If you don't believe it, google it. Use Wikipedia if you dare to be proven wrong.
wiki is a bad source of information. the reality is the majority of the people in the area wanted a state of palestine. Britain and the USA imposed a state of Isreal. Isreal orginally was for both jewish people and palestines. The jewish people FIRST went back on the orginal intent and made isreal a jewish only(mostly) state. So really we are all to blame
Truman should have sent the Jews back to Europe from whence they came after WWII instead of letting them steal land from the Palestinians and then suckling off the US Taxpayer teat for the next 70 years.
It's time these two sides just battled it out to an ultimate conclusion.
And without the help of any foreigners.
And please spare us the details.
Just let us know when one side or the other finally wins.
.
This is not a one sided issue, as is commonly presented by US media. In principle land for peace was not a bad idea, but the well, so to speak, was poisoned by various facts, historical and current, at least as viewed by the non Israeli side. Firstly, Israel continues to expand its settlements and settle new areas in the West Bank in spite of the Oslo Accord to which Israel had acceded. This was ruled illegal by the International Court of Justice and is considered to be a violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention. This activity continues to this day and was not suspended. The blockade of Gaza? Well, when Hamas won the Palestinian Legaslative election Israel and others were not pleased – so they imposed sanctions/the blockade. According to an Israeli NGO ( Gisha Legal center for Freedom ), the Red Cross and UNHRC, this is illegal, has induced great hardship on the population, and prevents movement of people and basics of life. This has continued to this day. Finally, as for Lebanon. From at least 1978 to 2000 Israel supported the SLA ( Southern Lebanese Army ) in its occupation of Southern Lebanon. The SLA operated the Khaim Detention Center, where torture was a large scale ( almost industrial ) operation. The major human rights organizations which have investigated this piece of history discount Israeli claims that they had nothing to do with it. Bottom line – this is near term enough for people to remember. So – although land for peace was not a bad idea ( and possibly could have worked if aspects had been complied with, and attempts to face up to some ugly things that had been done were made ), the continuing negative activity and historical baggage was obviously enough to drive certain confrontation. And perhaps that was the unspoken intent?
You are dead wrong: "The logic of land for peace became the basis for Israel’s unilateral withdrawal from southern Lebanon in May 2000". You write the wrong history which might work in the West but certainly not in the Arabic and Islamic world. The true land of Palestine for peace goes to 1948, do you know of El Nakba? It is nowhere mentioned in your text. Now you may provide an analysis that many can debate and discuss but the truth is that El Quds will remain Arabic and shall return to Arabs...in 10 years? in 50 years or 100 years? Read the Quran and what it says to Muslims!
How anyone can support the Muslims against Israel is beyond me? The extremists use the Palestinians as a cause just to keep up their antisemitism. We have a clash of civilizations, and Israel is the front lines. It's the future (western civilization) against the middle ages. At some point we are going to e forced to fully join the fight and the Middle East will become more of a sewer than it already is.
The Israeli and Palestinian issue is more complex than the average blogger understands. The West normally sees issues through an economic lens. However, this issue is not economic. It is spiritual. The Israeli believes the land belongs to them and the Palestinians believe the land belongs to them. The rules of modern warfare and conflict do not seem to apply to this situation since they are not appropriate. The Israelis define themselves by belief and through Jacob and the Palestinians define themselves by belief and through Ishmael. Therefore, unlike nations like the US, England, France, etc, which are not defined by a common ancestry, the Jews are and the Arabs are. These issues complicate the normal nation building process and complicates issues related to diversity, equal rights, justice, etc. when it is the nation's intent to maintain a majority of those with common ancestral and religious beliefs. Clearly, secular nations founded on religious beliefs and common ancestry do not lend themselves to nations of diversity wherein equal rights, justice, and civil rights take precedence over privileges of common ancestry and beliefs. Therefore, the situation in the Middle East is a powder keg waiting for the spark that will usher in the war to end all wars. There is no way to build a nation of justice for all while also trying to maintain common ancestry for its citizens and common religious beliefs. War is inevitable and the entire world will drawn into the conflict. The situation is not logical since it is religious in nature and since ancestral nation building often trumps diversity, justice, equity, and civil rights for all.
This is a very one sided piece. Ever since Israel took over far more land than the UN slated for it in 1948, it has been expanding on even more land. In recent decades, Israel continues to gooble up more land in illegal settlements while paying lip service to an eventual Palestinian state. Those paying attention will see that anytime relative peace and cease fire break out, Israel does something, an air strike, an assassination, that it knows will provoke a response so it doesn't have to follow through with an independent Palestinian state.
This time is no different. Palestine was going to the UN for recognition as a state. Israel orchestrated the lead up to it's next coming massacre to short circuit that. The real plan is to squeeze as much land and as many Arabs out of the West Bank and Gaza as possible over many years until they have nearly everything, which is almost the case now.
For a perspective on who the real terrorists are, simply add up the death toll of Children on both sides. Babies aren't terrorists, they are victims.
Israel actually gave backteritories,after borders were signed on, did you hear of Sinai? Do you see any European country crying over lost teritories. Israel was on that land long before Arabs called themselves Palestinians. The name was given by the Brittish treaty when no country around wanted to accept the Arabs in their.country so they needed a name. Grab a history book before you comment. I wish from all my heart that you will not live to meet the culture of Hamas, it will be a trip back to mediaeval
Find a country that was not formed after armed conflict. You can't find one that did not have at its roots fighting and violence. Furthermore you can not find a war that did not have economic gains at its' root.
What is going on in the middle east is just human history being played out on TV and the internet.
Regardless of the arguments about rights, religion etc. Land is what the battles are about; who owns them, who lives on them and what is under them. Those are economic issues that are the basis for all wars.
Trying to twist this current conflict into something else, flies in the face of human history going back to the first time a cave man threw a rock at another early human.
What is going on in the middle east is human behavior which will never change because for good or bad it is the nature of the creature we like to call human beings.
As soon as Israel uses collective punishment of Gaza civilians to retaliate (by factors of 10 or 100) against a few terrorists, they lose the high moral ground, and are to be condemned. The west should cancel all aid programs to Israel.
Israel ultimately wants all the land Palestinians are living on. Not much chance for peace there, only people taking their money even claim to believe that lie.
I have to assume you are a smart person, without much knowledge in this matter based on your post. So let me let you in on a little secret. Israel withdrew completely from Gaza in 2005. It has been completely run by the Palestinians/ Hamas since then. Why are the Gazans still sitting in refugee camps? Why are they still suffering? Why are they still under sanctions? OH it's because they let the HAMAS continue to be a sponsor of terrorism and killings and bombings and smuggling of arms! So under complete and total Arab rule since 2005 the ARABS continue to bombard Southern Israel. WHY? What exactly do the Palestinians really want? What do they think is really REALISTIC? That they are going to take over Israel? They need to look at the entire Arab world and realize ISRAEL could actually be their ONLY true Friend.
You are a wonderful liar Chumash! But a loyal Israeli are'nt you? You are great at falsifying the facts and making things up which is a great trait that many Israelis perfect because it is taught in the schools of Israel.
You want to convince us that Israel is such a wonderful democracy for the Palestinians! What a joke. That Israel offers them a better life than under any other Arab country! What a lie!
The crimes and state terrorism Israel inflicts daily on the Palestinians is beyond describing and you know it. But tell me why do you and you likes lie to the American people and twist the right wrong and the wrong right? Do you have even a twinge of guilt when you constantly lie and lie and lie even more? I know it's in the Israeli psyche and culture but I don't know how you all live with yourselves knowing you are a bunch of liars!
There is no hope for peace in this region. They will still be killing each other 1000 years hence just like they do now and just like they did in the Bible. The best the US can do is stay out of it.
Why is the media constantly characterizing this conflict as Israeli aggression ("assault on Gaza")? They NEVER use terms like "defensive measures" or "protection against deadly attacks", etc... Gaza is provoking Israel and forcing them to attack just to stop the horrific missile barrage on civilian populations. The inevitable and justified response fuels the propaganda machine and gives all the Arabs, Muslims, leftists and anti-semites around the world an opportunity to galvanize around the old pity-martyr routine. All we see are crying Palestinians in images, with no context. No barrage of images from Israel with whole populations running for shelter all day and night. No headlines decrying the cynical and brutal use of civilian shields to produce propaganda scenes used to inflame the world. Israel must defend itself against immediate military attacks; they do so in the least harmful way possible. I don't know how they restrain themselves so well, but if I were under this kind of brutal attack, I would want a complete and devastating retaliation.
War is war and the reasons never change. The bystanders are just that, speaking or writing words that make them appear to chose a side without getting their hands dirty. The larger issue is oil. As long as countries need Arab oil they will side with Hamas (this time) who is being supported with oil dollars. Even CNN has bent to the Arab will so that they will be able to operate in that region. Anytime you think decisions are being made by powerful interests without the decider asking first how will this benefit me, then you miss the whole point of taking sides.
THE PALESTINIANS SHOULD HAVE A RIGHT TO RETURN TO THEIR HOMES...IT's JORDAN! But Jordan, as well as EVERY other ARAB country has turned their backs on the so called Palestinian refugees. The Arab world knows there is no such thing as PALESTINIANS. They are JORDANIANS! That's why the ARAB countries don't take them in to their countries or their societies. Ask some Arabs what they think of the "PALESTINIANS" on a personal basis.
You are a wonderful liar Chumash! But a loyal Israeli are'nt you? You are great at falsifying the facts and making things up which is a great trait that many Israelis perfect because it is taught in the schools of Israel.
You want to convince us that Israel is such a wonderful democracy for the Palestinians! What a joke. That Israel offers them a better life than under any other Arab country! What a lie!
The crimes and state terrorism Israel inflicts daily on the Palestinians is beyond describing and you know it. But tell me why do you and you likes lie to the American people and twist the right wrong and the wrong right? Do you have even a twinge of guilt when you constantly lie and lie and lie even more? I know it's in the Israeli psyche and culture but I don't know how you all live with yourselves knowing you are a bunch of liars!
The Arab world knows there is no such thing as PALESTINIANS. They are JORDANIANS! That's why the ARAB countries don't take them in to their countries or their societies. Ask some Arabs what they really think of the "PALESTINIANS" on a personal basis.
It's always been Palestine. Israel stole the Palestinian land with support from the USA back in 1948 when Truman pushed a vote in the United Nations to create the State of Israel. Truman paid and bribed many smaller countries to vote for the creation of Israel. The ONLY country ever to be created by a vote of the UN is Israel. That alone arguably makes the state an illegitimate state.
The Palestinians owned that land and legally belong to every inch of Palestine. The Jews came from all over the world to occupy Palestine and imprison and kill Palestinians. Shame on Israel. shame on the Jewish State.
apologize for the double post...
How come no one ever asks the question Why are the Israeli ARABS, those living inside Israel with full citizenship and full rights. why aren't they ever protesting or rioting or attacking any of the Israelis? Could it be MAYBE because they are thrilled to be living in the ONLY democracy in the Middle East. Many ARABS will tell you In Israel they couldn't have it any better. The entire Arab world is fighting amongst themselves. ONLY in Israel the ARABS are Happy and living well and functioning in peace and security. Why is that? Go speak to some Israeli Arabs. You may have a completely different take on the reality in the Middle East. ONLY the ARABS are KILLING ARABS. Israel of course will certainly retaliate against attacks. BUT take a look at SYRIA and LEBANON and LIBYA and YEMEN and AFGHANISTAN and IRAN and IRAQ and any other Arab country. They are all killing themselves and guess what ISRAEL isn't even involved. Can't blame ISRAEL on that.
I am an Israeli Arab and live in Haifa. We are living in fear in Israel and our lives as well as the lives and careers of our families would be truly jeopardizes if anyone of us openly criticizes Israel.
We hate Israelnand we hate the way we are treated as second class citizens. We love and support our brethren in Gaza and the awestruck Bank but can't afford to ruin owner kids lives by saying or acting agains the occupying power that we resent. We pray every day for Gaza and for the day Israeli occupation ends.
hey Susie, if you dont like it there then go back to one of the muslim countries you came from....I have spoken to many Israeli arabs and they know they have it better in Israel then in any arab country.....that is why you dont leave, you are free to leave to syria, lebanon, iran wherever you want, no one is forcing you to stay....its not your original home anyway.
How many times do the Arabs want their asses kicked by the Israelies? Every time the Arabs try to provoke conflict all the succeed in is getting their asses kicked!
FINALLY!!!! Some true, honest, and accurate fact based opinion on CNN. This is a first!
the muslim & arabs should help the palestenians develop their present land in all areas & inall forms! try n restrhct attacking the Israelis! whatever land is available at present, let there be proper housing & all facilities for their people. the muslim world can surely help them!
It's amazing how so many Americans are misinformed by America's pro-Israel media that the same lies and misinformation keeps being repeated by so many as facts.
It is so unacceptable to speak of the Arabs and/or Muslims as people who have are dishonest or liars or treaty breakers....etc.
The Palestinian Israeli conflict is simply portrayed and presented as one sided in the USA. The Israeli side. How else do we explain that the only occupied people in the world are still imprisoned, killed, starved and deprived of all their basic human rights but yet the American psyche is "OK" with it? It's because the pro-Israeli, pro-Jewish and mostly Jewish owned and controlled media in the US has already brainwashed us over all these years to see Israel as the dove and the victim but the Palestinians who are the true victims of Israel are seen as the aggressors and the terrorists.
The Palestinians have been wronged all these years by the US first as the US created Israel and continues to support the aggressive and criminal and state sponsored terrorism of the state of Israel. The western world who has been sympathetic to the Jewish blight under Nazi Germany has had to openly support Israel so they are not accused of being anti Jewsh. This all helped make the indigonous people of Palestine have to live under this I humane and criminal occupation with little support from the world.
Shame on the United States for the blind support of the Terrorist State of Israel and shame on the western powers and the United Nations for allowing the terrorist criminal state of Israel to continue to kill, torture, starve and deprive a large population of their basic human rights. God bless and help the weak and occupied people of Palestine.
Maybe many Americans feel this way about Arabs, but moreso about MUSLIMS, because we have been dealing with Arab and Muslim extremists for more than 10 years now. I've talked with many of our soldiers returning from war. There are so few of them that put any faith in peace or prosperity for Iraq or Afghanistan. There are more countries than this, I know, but our best examples and collective experience tell us it's a bad bet and a poor investment to make on most Arab countries or Muslim nations.
Terrorist state of Israel? What are you a backwards retarded muslim? The whole world knows its the muslims that are the terrorists.....they kill civilians all over the world and are involved in every conflict on earth.....you want terrorist states? Lebanon, iran, Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, sudan ......all muslim states.....shall I go on? You are a liar and a coward and a baby killing terrorist appeaser....
The American taxpayer has paid to prop up the Terrorist State of Israel (TSI) for far too long. America gives TSI over $3.5 Billion per year in direct cash aid and this does not include all the other military and hardware support, food, aid in sending Jews to visit their "motherland" although stolen, supported and financed by the American taxpayer. Why? Because the Jewish lobbies in America are so strong and their propaganda extremely powerful and far reaching that they have successfully brainwashed us into believing that the aggressor is the victim while the true victims are labelled terrorists.
The Jewish state is a criminal terrorist state...
Dear Fellow Israeli – Palestinian Humans
You’ve been resorting to the same approach (Eye for an eye) for decades expecting a different result. It is not going to happen. Stop wasting precious world resources. Cool if off and try a different approach- Gandhian non-violence approach.
Saying Gaza was freed by sharon is completely wrong .Israel has continued their seige (air,sea..etc) , and Gaza is not a state by itself , they belong to Palestine which is occupied , so it is justified to continue resistance.
Whether one sides with the Palestinians or Israelis, one this is abundantly clear. Reciting a litany of past grievances, while cathartic, doesn't resolve a damn thing. For complex reasons, many having nothing to do with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict itself, the Arab world, Palestinian leadership, and Israeli leadership have missed opportunity after opportunity to resolve an increasingly intractable situation. Sterotyping Muslims, insulting Jews, digressing into worn diatribes about imperialism and religion may make people feel better, but they don't solve a damn thing.
So... where do we go from here? Two things need to happen
1. Hamas needs to stop lobbing missiles into Israel. Period. No other country would ever tolerate this, and frankly, Israel has shown remarkable restraint given its military capabilities. Until Hamas starts behaving like a neighbor intent on peaceful coexistence rather than a staging area for Iran, Israel has no reason to de-escalate militarily. Those who expect Israel to do so, when no other country in the world would, simply aren't dealing with reality.
2. Israel needs to show the Palestinian people that there is a better option than Hamas. Israel has repeatedly missed opportunities to strengthen the position of moderate Palestinians (who are unfortunately dwindling). If the people of Gaza saw a vibrant, economically growing Palestinian state on the West Bank, support for Hamas would dwindle. While maintaining a firm response to Hamas-sponsored violence (i.e. "war"), Israel should embark on a series of initiatives in the West bank that reward peaceful coexistence. Stop building settlements. Loosen restrictions on travel. Adjudicate legal disputes fairly. Allow more Palestinians into Israel to work. Build infrastructure and invest in the West Bank economy. And so on.
Simple concepts, but obviously very difficult to execute.
1. I believe that the problem can be solved if all the people involved and working for hammas are imprisoned or killed in horrendous bomb strikes (which I DO NOT SUPPORT).
2. Then put in prison mahmoud abbas, a corrupt leader in the eyes of the same people he is trying to govern (two of my best friends, both Arabs {since "Palestinians" don't exist} told me their opinions). I cannot generalize, because two people isn't a good representation of the whole population, but with that in my mind, i can honestly say that the youth of the Arabs living in the land which Jews held as their home, both religiously, socially, culturally, and ethnically can live in peace.
The things we need to start (which everyone knows is the HARDEST THING) is, after the first two steps I mentioned, put a machine with two buttons in the hands of the Arab population, one with "no" and the other button with "yes". then we will let the youth, that are the majority of the Arab population, to decide what they want, through various questions being asked that can only be answered yes or no (which is a rough representation of our voting system in the western countries). When we give TRUE DEMOCRATIC VOTING power to the youth, we will be able to change the world...and hopefully create peace. YOUNG PEOPLE ARE TIRED OF STUPID WARS WHEN WE CAN HUG AND SHAKE HANDS AND HAVE A GOOD GLASS OF WATER (or juice, I prefer orange
) AND DISCUSS THINGS LIKE WE ARE BROTHERS, BECAUSE IN THE END WE ARE ALL OF US HUMANS. I bleed the same color a European bleeds, an African bleeds, an Asian, south american, north american, middle eastern, the Indian sub-continent...it DOESN'T MATTER WHERE YOU ARE IN THE WORLD, WE ARE ALL THE SAME. If my two friends that are Muslims died, I could not live with myself. If I had an Indian friend, and he died, i could not live with myself. WE THE YOUTH HAVE THE POWER TO DEMAND THE OLD PEOPLE WANTING WAR TO STOP IT.
I hope one day, there is a war between stupid old people and the new young generation, and the youth wins because we are more friendly, more open, and more in desire to increase our friendships around the world. We don't care about stupid old grudges, i only care for my fellow human being. If you talk about religion, do it like turkey's law, keep it private and away from the community. that way, we don't need to deal with religion in multi-ethnic societies. Thank you turkey for being an awesome metaphor (even though you haven't said anything about the Armenian massacres yet). To say the truth may hurt, but at least it is said, instead of lying and lying and lying.
To my Palestinian and Israel brothers and sisters . And all the pundits . You should all participate in a group exercise of holding your breath for 5 mins . And then decide wether killing each other for is worth it .
I cant believe how Don Lemon is letting the PLO US rep just ranting on forever. Doesn't a normal journalist asks questions. let alone contest his obvious misstatements of facts? Lemon wasn't acting like a journalist, but just allowing CNN to do Arab propaganda. Don, did you ask him about the rockets? When the PLO rep said Israel started the violence by killing the Hamas military man, what about the hundreds of rockets before then? Abbas refuses to negotiate peace, not Netanyahu, and Lemon lets him geyt away with his lies. Good going, CNN and Don Lemon. so much for unbiased journalism.
Don Lemon did a wonderful job attempting to be fair to both sides. Many pro Israelis who like to keep Americans seeing only the Israeli side would love to shut the other side's voice. Does it really matter how long the Palestinian representative talks? Of course it does if you want the facts to be twisted and Israeli lies to be heard.
Thank you Don Lemon. You are doing a wonderful job!
Hey Susie, the world can see both sides on their own, Israel doesnt need to use propaganda...the whole world sees what evil murderous people the musl ims are.....when you rain down rockets on cities of course you will be attacked, hamas should stop using its money on weapons and build a nation instead of living in squalor...they have received billions from the world communitly but no one seems to know where they are....most is in arafats wifes bank account, and the rest goes to weapons while Israel supplies water and electricity to their enemies....guess where most of the injured "palestinians" are being treated? IN ISREALI HOSPITALS BY JEWISH DOCTORS!!!....The world knows its the muslims that lie and revise history.....try again liar....
The Palestinians have been city dwellers for a couple generations now. They don't need much land, they wouldn't know what to do with land. What Palestnians need is education and opportunity. If all the money spent on weapons was spent building instead of destroying, another Dubai could have been built somewhere on an Arabian ocean coast .
Whether one sides with the Palestinians or Israelis, one thing is abundantly clear. Reciting a litany of past grievances, while cathartic, doesn't resolve a damn thing. For complex reasons, many having nothing to do with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict itself, the Arab world, Palestinian leadership, and Israeli leadership have missed opportunity after opportunity to resolve an increasingly intractable situation. Sterotyping Muslims and Jews and digressing into worn diatribes may make everyone feel better, but it solves nothing.
To fix the problem, two basic things need to happen.
1. Hamas needs to stop lobbing missiles into Israel. Period. No other country would ever tolerate this, and frankly, Israel has shown remarkable restraint given its military capabilities. Until Hamas starts behaving like a mature government capable of peaceful coexistence rather than as a forward staging area for Iran, Israel will have no reason to de-escalate militarily. Those who expect Israel to sit passively while a sworn enemy lobs missiles into its population centers simply aren't dealing with reality.
2. Israel needs to show the Palestinian people that there is a better option than Hamas. Whether by wilful intent or myopia, Israeli leaders have repeatedly missed opportunities to strengthen the position of the few remaining moderate Palestinians. If the citizens of Gaza saw a growing, vibrant, economically prosperous Palestinian state on the West Bank, support for Hamas would evaporate. Israel should firmly respond to Hamas-sponsored aggression, while simultaneously rewarding peaceful coexistence in the West Bank. Stop building settlements and dismantle the ones that have no strategic value and serve only to irritate the local populace. Loosen restrictions on travel. Adjudicate legal disputes fairly and quickly. Allow more Palestinians into Israel to work. Build infrastructure and invest in the West Bank economy. And so on.
Simple concepts, but obviously hard to execute.
Excellent comment.....only problem is that if Israel lets "palestinians" into Israel to work, they will turn themselves into human bombs to kill babies and old ladies....Israel gives them chance after chance, and they always prove to be barbarians...
Peace must first be achieved in the hearts and minds of people. Judging by the views expressed in these comments, the hearts of this generation are hardened against eah other and there will be no peace in our time.
There is no such thing as a Palestinian. This is a farce created by the Jew haters. Palestinians should go back to the neighboring countries and forget it. The best peace is with a tall concrete barricade and JDAM smart weapons.
The biggest mistake was the UN putting a bunch of Europeans in the Middle East, who had never lived there before, because some fairy tale book told them that it is their land. Germany iced them, so the solution should have been cutting of a piece of Germany and giving it to the European Jews.
Or just wiping jews off entirely
Too bad you atheists won't admit that jews are the problem of the world. Eliminate them and 1/2 of the world's problem would be gone
thats because the majority of the world knows its the mus lims that are the problem,.....nice try though
First off, the Un didnt put them there....Israel has been around for thousands of years, looong before islam existed.....and Jews have had a presence there continuously......so thats your first lie, secondly, there has never been a nation called "palestine" thats your second lie, most Jews living in Israel came from the surrounding arab states after being stripped of their valuables and thrown out, the remainder came from north africa, and then of course they took in their european brothers and sisters as they were persecuted, so whats the problem.......thats your third lie, Jerusalem was founded by Jews, and has only been the capital of one nation in all of history, and that is Israel......sorry to break it to you, but your imam lied to you....
It's always been Palestine. Israel stole the Palestinian land with support from the USA back in 1948 when Truman pushed a vote in the United Nations to create the State of Israel. Truman paid and bribed many smaller countries to vote for the creation of Israel. The ONLY country ever to be created by a vote of the UN is Israel. That alone arguably makes the state an illegitimate state.
The Palestinians owned that land and legally belong to every inch of Palestine. The Jews came from all over the world to occupy Palestine and imprison and kill Palestinians. Shame on Israel. shame on the Jewish State.
WE have made a lot of mistakes. The Iraq war was probably the biggest mistake. However we have to be realistic in the here and now. Can Israel get Sinai back from Egypt? NO! So why even talk about it? Maybe the creation of the state of Israel was a mistake, too.What is clear is that Israel cannot live without peace and I don't see anyone, Israeli and Palestinians lifting a finger for peace.I think we have to accept a one state solution, because there is no real two state solution to this mess.
We have made a lot of mistakes. The Iraq war was probably the biggest mistake. However we have to be realistic in the here and now. Can Israel get Sinai back from Egypt? NO! So why even talk about it? Maybe the creation of the state of Israel was a mistake, too.What is clear is that Israel cannot live without peace and I don't see anyone, Israeli and Palestinians lifting a finger for peace.I think we have to accept a one state solution. None of them really wants a two state solution,
Israel is being accused of genocide, massacre. With the 1000 bombs sent to targets killing less than 100 fighters and civilians in not exactly a good outcome if they were after a massacre. If Hamas had fired 10 similar rockets (let alone 1000), no one in their right mind would expect less Israeli casualties. The Iron Dome if it has achieved anything this week, is stopping a less controlled attack from Israeli military, and thus saving many Palestinian lives.
If you kill 100 civilians in a crowded city it is murder regardless of whether that was the out come you were looking for. Murder never achieves peace and Israelis are not after peace with the Palestinians. I think in the interest of preserving the jewish lives in Israel we should move quickly to a one state solution.Otherwise Israel will disintegrate from the inside and lose it's cohesion as a country and a lot of people will be killed.
mardjan quit twisting the facts. The Palestinian terrorist launched over 300 rockets into Israel to start this conflict.THEN Israel said "enough".The Palestinians are the ones that do not want peace. The palestinians are nothing but Muslim/Nazis. Hitler started a world war and blamed it on everyone else when it was plain to the world that he was want more land and to destroy the Jews. Some time I believe that he has beer reincarnated in Hamas.
One thing no one can argue is the FACT that since Israel was re-established in the 40s,death has been it's mainstay.With 70 plus years of death,maybe it wasn't such a good idea to allow it or co ntinually assist it.
Land for peace was tried. The Muslims want more. There is never enough to satisfy them. Muslims kill more Muslims than Israel ever did. Israel will and should defend it's citizens from the Muslim aggression.
Could most of you, whose opimnions are irrelevant, please learn to write English correctly. I realize that most of you are not nattive born English speakers. This is obvous by your misuse of grammar, and spelling errosrs. Hideous.
israel first pig neocon neojews have destroyed the U.S. and it's reputaion and continue to drag us down like the smelly turds they are..down the toilet called israel. It is by far the worst investment in U.S. history. the finacial terrorists called jews have done more damage to the U.S. then all muslim terrorists combined. AIPAC and the neopigjews got ot go..rinse and repeat
Israel is actually the best investment they have ever had...Israel has the most nobel prize winners per capita.....nice try you jealous nasty murderous muslim...baby killing terrorist...no one that is educated would believe your stupid lies...you are definitely not American, so go write on the Tehran times...oh wait, they might behead you for speaking your mind....
muslims have killed more muslims then the US or Israel combined...
The American taxpayer has paid to prop up the Terrorist State of Israel (TSI) for far too long. America gives TSI over $3.5 Billion per year in direct cash aid and this does not include all the other military and hardware support, food, aid in sending Jews to visit their "motherland" although stolen, supported and financed by the American taxpayer. Why? Because the Jewish lobbies in America are so strong and their propaganda extremely powerful and far reaching that they have successfully brainwashed us into believing that the aggressor is the victim while the true victims are labelled terrorists.
The Jewish state is a criminal terrorist state...
Ever wounder why people die in wars...
@the truth
Or just wiping jews off entirely.
Too bad you atheists won't admit that jews are the problem of the world. Eliminate them and 1/2 of the world's problem would be gone
*********
This is a fool who thinks killing women and children is the only way. Why not kill all Christains and Jews so the Middle East will turn 100% muslim. But wait why not kill all muslims and that would let peace win. Or just kill everyone and let the sheep clam every thing.
In my humble opinion, Land for Peace would have worked if Isreal had given up the post 1967 territory. To give Gaza – a tiny enclave with one of the highest population density in the world and even then not allowing free flow of resources is almost like building an open air prison.
Given Israel's continued settlement activity, the two state solution is now out. I believe the only solution now is one state solution – a democratic Israel for all its population with equal rights for Jews, Christians, Muslims and any others instead of an Apartheid state based on racism.
Lasting solution step shuold be taking,if to declare state of palestion is what will bring a lasting solution to the middle east.The concern poeple should not hesitate to give them their independent.
If land-for-peace is dead then what's the new plan? One-state, one-man, one-vote? If so, then Israel will soon not be a Jewish state (which, IMO, would be a good thing). Ethnic cleansing? Continued apartheid & incremental land grabs? I'm guessing the third. Most Israelis, while not entirely happy with the status quo, have decided it's something they can live with.
Israel is behaving like a dictator and criminal spying state ,killing even Americains at times to create a reason for their
powerful acting ,even harming the us interest ,dont worry what you do to others will get done to you no question about that it is just a matter of time .
WE THE TAX PAYERS CAN NO LONGER SET A SIDE AND SEE OUR MONNEY AND ARMS GOPING TO A KLILLER ANIMAL STATE ,ONE DAY WE WILL TURN AGAINST THEM FOR ALL THE HARM THEY DOING TO OUR POWERFUL STATE .AND REST ASSURED THAT W LL EVEN NUKE THEM IF WE HAVE TO .
Israel need to respect international law and obeid by the UN resolutions and stop killing innecent kidds .they should know better .......
Are you even a true American? to say such a thing, no clue of the "Truth about Hate being taught and instilled in then Innocent Children growing up in this world, places like Gaza Strip, Africa, Pakistan, and other Countries over the many years of different Terrorism Organizations Invading. Taking over, Persuading and trying to Rule those Countries People Filling their minds up with hate against America, Europe, Israel and anyone else they want to blame for their transgressions! Using those countries and their people for transportation of drugs, their resources, bombs &weapons smuggling, suicide bombing, destroying everything their hands touch! OH to be so hatefully indoctrinated,being ruled and consumed, Full of hate and envy! To ever feel that, that's the most Full-filled, happy life one could have for their selves or their own families through HATE is Totally Preposterous and ILLOGICAL!!!! If you would have even watched CNN over the past 10, let alone 30 years of World News you would know the TRUTH! That Hate only leads to destruction, of you yourself and others! But LOVE conquers ALL!
I see many commets on how bad Israel is or how bad Hamas is. I for one say I Hamas wants my support the stop firing rockets into Israel make Israel make the first move..
I CAN STOP THE ROCKETS AND AVOID THE WAR – WILL YOU LISTEN
By Email and by Fax to Premier Netanyahu and POTUS
011-972-025664838 – 011972-036976218
November 18, 2012
RE: A Solution for Israel that has never been heard – A short window of opportunity to win an Israeli-Palistinian peace settlement now exists and to avoid a new Gaza Hamas War. I CAN STOP THE ROCKETS AND AVOID THE WAR – WILL YOU LISTEN
To: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and CC TO POTUS
and Defense Minister Ehud Barack
Dear Prime Minister Netanyahu,
I personally am not known to you, however your brother was my kid brother Jonathan Abrahams's commander in the Golani Brigade. He now lives in northern Israel within 2 miles of the Lebanese border. He works for the Israeli government. He has a wife and four sons and has spent most of his adult life living in Israel. My parents, Abraham Judah Abrahams and Evelyn H. Abrahams lived in Israel for many years until they passed away in the 1990s in the US. They were good friends with Yitzak Shandar when he was with El Al. They lived in Kfar Vitkin.
I have an unusual different proposal to change the current status of Israeli-Palestinian conflict, that if successful will turn the Hamas and possibly Hezbollah, away from Iran. Even better it will stop the rockets and senseless attacks on civilians and it can change the face of the Middle East..
In light of the recent powerful developments from the“Arab Spring” in Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, and Syria, the current escalating Middle-East conflict in Gaza , there is a short window opening for a new and different approach to resolve this Middle-East Conflict. Since 1948 when Israel gained its independence, since the 1956 war, the 1967 war, the Yom Kippur war of 1973, the Israeli-Hezbollah conflict of 2006, and since the Israeli-Hamas conflict in Gaza in 2008 the world has only seen two ideologies in conflict with a perpetuation by the Palestinians of murder, suicide bombings, and senseless rocket attacks. Israel to preserve its security and safeguard its citizens has at times been forced to take targeted counter measures and to drastically restrict the movement of Palestinians by using numerous checkpoints within the State of Israel and the occupied territories. The settlements in the occupied territories are part of Israel’s security system, but are also a constant sore point for any peaceful settlement. Israel is the only nation that to defend itself must always go into the conflicts with two hands tied behind its back when it unleashes its military power with surgical precision.
The peace process is the fictional imagination of leaders on both sides of the conflict, because until the people’s hearts and minds (on both sides of the conflict) support the practice of peace (not a peace process) , there will never be a successful peace. When Palestinian children are taught in madrasas that it is their divine destiny to be suicide bombers, there can be no successful peace.
It is time to think outside the usual box and find a new approach to bring peace to this region. I propose using the world's most powerful, but most underutilized weapon system, that has decisively defeated terrorists and insurgents every time it has been used in Iraq. It is part and parcel of the “Arab Spring”. This weapon system is more powerful than a B2 bomber loaded with nuclear weapons. It is how this weapon system is used may determine its success. The use of this weapons system to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian ageless conflict will take heroics, expertise, and diplomatic finesse. It can be the missing diplomatic and political key to resolving this conflict. Part of the difference here will be the practice of peace on a trial basis by the people of both sides, rather than a peace process run by their leaders. The key is how to make this happen. A bonus will be the detachment of Hamas and possibly Hezbollah from the influence of Iran and how to convince them of this and to be a part of this new plan.
It will take powerful and eloquent world leaders who are willing to change world politics to successfully resolve this conflict. The timing is right if properly prepared and planned. President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton personally have experienced the power of this weapon system, and with their and your expertise, experience and world connections it can be successful.
I have previously written you, POTUS, President Bush, Congress and the media about this weapon system that can decisively defeat terrorists and insurgents. It is how this weapon system would now be used to change this conflict that will determine its success. Because of the delicate nature of this idea for the specific and intricate use of this weapons system in the Middle East, I will only speak of the details of it personally to preferably you or one of delegated personal representatives and to POTUS. I am approaching my 75th birthday and it my dream that in my lifetime that I leave this world when the time comes with having been instrumental in helping to accomplish the task to bring a possible peace to the State of Israel.
I believe that you, President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton can successfully guide the use of this weapons system to achieve what Presidents and Premiers before you aspired to. This can be your legacy, which will be far superior as a statesperson to any you might have ever achieved as Premier.
I sincerely hope that you will listen to this new and unique approach to resolving the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict. All you have to lose is a little time to hear the unique use of this weapons system and see a vision of a peaceful and secure Middle East.
I leave you with one other thought from “WE THE PEOPLE”. Politicians, Governments, Presidents (and Presidents to be), Prime Ministers, Secretaries of State and Defense, Foreign Ministers, Defense Ministers, Parliaments, and Congresses make, declare and run Wars. However, it is always WE THE PEOPLE (and rarely, but not never, any of the above) who have to fight, be wounded or maimed, and die in the wars. True statesmen and stateswomen will only use war as a last method of dealing with terrorists and dictators of radical, totalitarian governments that use or support terror. Just as the pen is mightier than the sword, the "VOTE WEAPON" is more powerful than our mightiest military weapon. It is time to unleash its power to bring the practice of peace uniquely to the Middle-East.
My firm desire is “Next Year in Jerusalem”
MRCANDU10 (Cousin of MR.Get-It Done)
Well Mr. Prime Minister. perhaps you and POTUS will listen and maybe our dream of a true peace can be achieved.
Thank you
MRCANDU10 (Cousin of Mr. Get It Done)
Very truly yours,
Lloyd Michael Abrahams CPA
Why is the American Government not doing more to stop terrorism, we didn't allow Saddam Hussein to have Kuwait because of it impacting the World at the gas pumps, Presidents Can say we went there to bring about Democracy to Iraq, that wasn't the case, 10 years or more we sat back and aloud Saddam Hussein to terrorize hundreds of thousands of his own people and did nothing about it, in fact we are responsible for him even coming to power, and we did nothing until it effected our pockets, how hypocritical is America. We Expect Israel always to be the makers of peace, and to barter and give up more of their land to the terrorist countries that surround it! They should not have to compromise anything to them countries or give up anymore land to barter with the Terrorists groups of people that have come against them over the many decades, since the were recognized as a country. I feel bad for the Palestinian family's who have suffered or died, however, your people have let the Hamas leaders and terrorist into Gaza Strip, just like you welcomed Hezbollah or Arafat of the P.L.O. or any other terrorism group to represent you through violence, what do you expect, If you start a fight be ready to finish it. Israel is a country, whether you or me like it or not, they have the right to defend themselves, you have bombarded them again with missiles over the months and they have done their best not to war with you, or the other terrorist groups that have rained down on them over the many decades. I don't know of any other country that has tried so hard to keep peace. If this was U.S. territory being bombarded by missiles by terrorist we would have already exterminated the threat by dealing with it immediately. Terrorism should not be bargained with no matter how many Countries are "PRO HATE". Israel should be defended by all it's Allies, not made to cave to terroristic demands, as you have seen it has not gotten them nowhere bartering, it has only made them loose what little bit of land they had. NO MORE COMPROMISING, EVEN IF THE WHOLE MIDDLE EAST COMES AGAINST ISRAEL< WE SHOULD NOT FALTER BY THEIR SIDE, WE SHOULD STAND FOR THEM! CAUSE THE DAY OUR LEADER TURNS AWAY FROM PROTECTING ISRAEL, WILL BE THE DAY AMERICA IS NO LONGER BLESSED BY ALMIGHTY GOD, ACCORDING TO THE BOOK OK REVELATION!
Muslims are involved in all of the conflicts around the world....
The American taxpayer has paid to prop up the Terrorist State of Israel (TSI) for far too long. America gives TSI over $3.5 Billion per year in direct cash aid and this does not include all the other military and hardware support, food, aid in sending Jews to visit their "motherland" although stolen, supported and financed by the American taxpayer. Why? Because the Jewish lobbies in America are so strong and their propaganda extremely powerful and far reaching that they have successfully brainwashed us into believing that the aggressor is the victim while the true victims are labelled terrorists.
The Jewish state is a criminal terrorist state...
Susie, for me is very dificult to write in English, it's why, only a few words: stop repeating the old mantra of stolen lands. Don´t be silly.
When do you Israelis and pro-Israelis stop your lies? What does it take for you all to speak the truth?
Are you really proud of your nation that is built on stealing land from the Palestinians? And now supporting your state with discrimination, starvation, deprivation of human rights for Palestinians and lies lies and more lies?
It's always been Palestine. Israel stole the Palestinian land with support from the USA back in 1948 when Truman pushed a vote in the United Nations to create the State of Israel. Truman paid and bribed many smaller countries to vote for the creation of Israel. The ONLY country ever to be created by a vote of the UN is Israel. That alone arguably makes the state an illegitimate state.
The Palestinians owned that land and legally belong to every inch of Palestine. The Jews came from all over the world to occupy Palestine and imprison and kill Palestinians. Shame on Israel. shame on the Jewish State.