Just Another Day of "Peace"

It was another day of “peace” in Israel: more bombs, more bloodshed, more innocent Israelis slaughtered in the streets, more lives destroyed while our government twiddles its thumbs rather than engaging the enemy.

Today’s suicide bombing in Netanya killed 3 Israelis and injured 89 others, while a car bomb attack in Shavei Shomron just 40 minutes beforehand miraculously failed to cause any injuries.

Ariel Sharon’s government reacted by vowing to respond harshly – vows we have heard so many times before and so few of which have ever been kept. The only promise that Sharon seems intent on keeping is to withdraw, to retreat, to run away from the problem instead of confronting it.

How much longer can this go on? How is it possible for so many people to delude themselves over and over again and to think that pulling out of territory will satisfy the appetite of our foes?

For the past 12 years, Israel has tried the path of concessions, and it has only brought the country an unprecedented wave of death and destruction in its wake.

Under normal circumstances, the people would have (and should have) taken to the streets long ago, and brought down this hapless, ineffective and incompetent regime. Instead, we plunge forward, as though nothing has happened, as if three precious Jewish lives were not cruelly taken today, as if all were quiet on the western front.

We can, and we do, deserve better. The sooner this government is sent packing, the safer Israel will be.

London, Israel

The scenes emerging from the string of terror attacks today in London are both terrifying and eerily familiar.

A bombed-out shell of a bus, shaken victims covered with blood and soot, emergency services crews evacuating the injured – it was jarringly reminiscent of the carnage that has appeared on the streets of Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Haifa and Beersheba over the past several years.

London, England, as it were, has now become London, Israel.

The UK has long been one of the Jewish state’s best friends in Europe – though of course that is not really saying very much. Our hearts go out to the victims – innocent men and women on their way to work, fighting the daily struggle to make a living, improve their lives and take care of their families.

It was just a few weeks ago that reports emerged of contacts being held between British officials and Hamas, the Palestinian terrorist group waging war on Israel.

One can only hope that in light of the atrocities carried out in the heart of Britain’s capital today, Prime Minister Tony Blair’s government will gain a renewed sense of moral clarity, as well as determination to do battle with terror – wherever it might be.

This just about says it all...

Every once in a while, there is a tidbit of news that just about says it all, summarizing a complex situation while highlighting the central, underlying problem in an easy to grasp manner.

Today, in Ha’aretz (of all places) is just such a story, one which makes clear just how dangerous and ill-advised Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s Gaza withdrawal plan truly is.

The paper reports today that:

“One of the most feared Fatah operatives in the Gaza Strip will soon be returning to action there - this time, as head of a special Palestinian Authority security service whose goal is to seize control of the lands evacuated by Israel under the disengagement plan.

The new role assigned to Nabil Thamus, who until last year headed Fatah's "death squads," is being interpreted by both Palestinian sources and Israeli intelligence officials as a PA attempt to create a counterweight to the growing power of Hamas in Gaza. Thamus is considered close to Mohammed Dahlan and Rashid Abu Shabak.

Under Thamus's leadership, the "death squads" had several confrontations with Hamas and Islamic Jihad activists, and his name has also been linked to several politically motivated murders.

The new organization that he will head will number some 5,000 policemen.”

So there it is, all in just a few, easy-to-digest sentences:

a) An Israeli withdrawal will mean turning over Gaza to a guy whose CV includes employment experience as leader of a “death squad”;

b) It will mean increasing competition between Fatah and Hamas, with each trying to show the Palestinian public that it is more “extreme” in order to win their support – and that certainly will not result in more peace and quiet;

c) Instead of arresting Mr. Thamus and trying him for murder, the Palestinian Authority is giving him a promotion and placing him in charge of his own police force – is this really the way to build the Palestinian democracy that President George W. Bush speaks about?

There you have it – three darned good reasons why a Gaza pullout is dangerous for Israel, dangerous for the Palestinians themselves, and counter to American interests.

Too bad none of our leaders are really giving any of this much thought – if they did, they might stop and think twice before plunging ahead with a plan that threatens to endanger us all.