Thank you for your interest
in learning more about the conflict.
To start, I will explain the
general conflict and then how it has led to the current situation that is
occurring in Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza.
Please watch this 5 minute video,
which explains the history of the conflict. The entire video answers many
important questions, so make sure to watch all of it! It is important for you
to watch this before you move on to the other information that I have posted.
You have probably heard (and
if you have not already, you probably will) that the Palestinians are suffering
because of the Jews and that the Jews are occupying their territory.
Before I begin, it is
important for you to know that:
1.
Israel is the
only Democracy in the Middle East, and gives Palestinians and Arabs more
freedom than their own countries give them.
2.
The
Palestinians are working with Hamas, ONE OF THE WORLD'S LARGEST TERRORIST
ORGANIZATIONS. Many Palestinians do want
peace and are harmed by Hamas’ presence, however the Palestinian Authority does
not care for its people. Unfortunately, they use people as shields and lie to
the media about Israel targeting civilians during war when in fact, Israel
takes the greatest measures, more than any other army, in order to decrease the
number of civilian casualties. Hamas calls for
Palestinians to stand on rooftops and in war zones to make it seem that Israel
is targeting civilians. Hamas terrorists hide under hospitals because they know
that Israel will refrain from blowing up a hospital.
3.
People say that
Israel won't set clear boundaries. Well, get the Arabs to come to the table so
that a solution can be discussed. Too bad the Arab League decided, "No
peace with Israel, no recognition of Israel, no negotiations with Israel."
4.
Not only has
Israel attempted to make peace with Palestinians by giving up land (Gaza is an
example), it also helps Palestinians and Arabs, by caring for them in Israeli
hospitals and giving them equal rights, who (still) call for Israel's
destruction.
5.
Many people
believe that Israel stole the land they call theirs, but Israel payed for it,
developed it (it was desert), and has historical and political ties to the
land.
I am posting links for you.
I know that this is a lot of
information. I have watered it down as much as I could.
Please let me know if you
have questions.
Here is the truth.
1.
There was never
a “Palestine”
2.
The West Bank
settlements are NOT the real obstacle to peace
(Taken from
StandWithUs):
If settlements were the
obstacle, we would have had peace long ago. The real obstacle is Palestinian
refusal to accept a Jewish state within any borders, as reflected in
Palestinian leaders’ statements and in Palestinian media. Indeed, there were no
settlements when Palestinian violence against Jews began in 1920 or when
violence escalated into wars and terrorism between 1948 and 1967. When Israel
evacuated all settlements in Gaza
in 2005, terrorism and hostility escalated. When Israel offered to dismantle
West Bank settlements for peace
in 2000 and 2008, Palestinian leaders said no. The controversy about
settlements is a symptom, not a
cause, of the conflict, which is rooted in Palestinian rejectionism. When
Palestinians return to the negotiating table in good faith, settlements, which
comprise less than 2 percent of West Bank land, and other outstanding issues
can be resolved.
3. The establishment of Israel
has NOT done an injustice to the Palestinians
(Taken from
StandWithUs):
The only grave injustice was
the one Palestinian leaders inflicted on Israel and their own people. Instead
of accepting the territorial compromise the UN recommended in 1947, Palestinian
and Arab leaders launched a genocidal war to seize the whole territory. They
refused to recognize that Jews had any rights to the land, refused any
compromises that would allow both peoples to fulfill their national
aspirations,
and refused to accept the
existence of a Jewish state, no matter how small. Far from being an injustice,
the UN Partition Plan of 1947 offered historical justice
to the Jewish people and justice to Palestinian Arabs, who were offered the
opportunity to create the first Palestinian Arab state in history. The
Palestinians’ ongoing rejectionism and violence were, and continue to be, an
injustice to Israelis and Palestinians alike.
4. Israel wants peace and has
given the Palestinians MANY opportunities
Over the past 80 years, Israel has repeatedly shown its
willingness to make territorial compromises and accept a two-state solution—in
1937, 1947, 1979, 2000, and 2008—but Palestinian and other Arab leaders have
repeatedly said no. They have rejected any Jewish state, no matter how small
its territory, and tried to destroy it through wars and terrorism. Palestinian
Arabs must begin to say yes to peace and agree to compromises that will fulfill
the national aspirations of both peoples.
CURRENT SITUATION:
Last week, three Israeli
teenagers- EyalGiladNaftali-were kidnapped and killed by Hamas terrorists.
These boys were not soldiers and were not posing a threat to anybody. They were
simply making their way home. Israel is now carrying out its Operation
protective Edge in Gaza- where it must fight Hamas, who is targeting Israeli civilians
day in and day out with rockets, and is putting Palestinian lives in danger.
