July 9, 2014
http://wordfromjerusalem.com/?p=5152
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The words of last week’s Torah
portion resonate loudly, as we read of the non-Jewish prophet Balaam’s
description of “the people that dwells alone and is not counted among
the nations.”
We have all been traumatized by
the events of the past month. No sooner had we absorbed the shocking
tragedy of the brutal abduction and murder of the three teenagers and
humbled by the exceptional dignity of their anguished parents, we were
stunned to learn of the barbaric murder of an Arab youngster by Jews.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the act immediately, even prior to being aware of the motive or the killers.
U.S. President Barack Obama
however related to the abduction and murder of the three Israelis in a
somewhat muted manner, and only 18 days later, upon the discovery of
their bodies. Yet within moments of hearing of Muhammad Abu Khdeir’s
murder, he denounced the act in a highly provocative manner, insinuating
that it was yet another act in a cycle of violence.
Predictably, Obama’s outburst
paved the way for similar condemnations from the entire world, and any
sympathy for the murder of the youngsters was subsumed by the
application of moral equivalence to Israel’s democratic society and the
Palestinian terrorist culture of “martyrdom.”
This in no small measure
contributed toward the escalation of the atmosphere of extremism and
violence against Israelis among Palestinians.
A society is not judged by the
acts of isolated individual murderers but on how the people and its
leaders respond to such acts and whether a universal rule of law is
being applied.
In contrast to Netanyahu’s
response, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas condemned the
kidnappings five days after the event and only following enormous
external pressure. But the bulk of his remarks were a condemnation of
the Israel Defense Forces for their methods of locating the kidnapped
victims. He certainly did not criticize the ghoulish celebrations that
swept the Palestinian street as soon as the fate of the abducted
youngsters became known. The PA-controlled media was particularly
repulsive when it mocked the abduction of the Jewish teenagers and
proudly broadcast scenes of Palestinian children displaying three-finger
victory salutes for the three abducted Israeli youngsters. On July 5,
Fatah -- headed by Abbas -- posted the following threat: “Sons of Zion,
this is an oath to the Lord of the Heavens: Prepare all the bags you can
for your body parts. … We wish for the blood to become rivers.”
Whereas Israelis would never
obstruct police from apprehending murderers, both the PA and Hamas
outlets urged Palestinians to deny police officers and soldiers
information that could lead to the apprehension of the killers.
This is in sharp contrast to
the universal revulsion, horror and outrage expressed at every level of
Israeli society when it was learned that Jews were responsible for the
bestial murder of teenager Abu Khdeir. Every single member of the
Knesset condemned the abominable murder.
In the midst of her mourning
period, bereaved mother Rachel Fraenkel released a statement that “this a
horrifying act. There is no difference between blood and blood. Murder
is murder. There is no justification and no atonement for murder.”
Contrast this with the response of the mother of one of the suspected
Hamas murderers: “If my son did this act, I’m proud of him.” Such
sentiments are routinely expressed by mothers of “martyrs” engaged in
killing Jews and reflect the Palestinian culture of hatred and death.
Netanyahu sent condolences to
the Abu Khdeir family, assuring them that “the perpetrators of this
horrific crime will face the full severity of the law.” Jerusalem Mayor
Nir Barkat personally visited the family and even arranged for the
parents of the Jewish victims to visit and convey their condolences.
Unlike Palestinian terrorists, the perpetuators of this crime will not
be paroled, hailed as heroes, have civic squares and football clubs
named after them, or receive government pensions for their families
funded by U.S. taxpayers.
Whilst it is understandable
that a wave of revulsion against a Palestinian society that exalts
terrorism occurred in the wake of the abductions, it is imperative that
the government contains extremist outbursts and adopts tougher
regulations to prevent racism and intolerance from impacting the lives
of loyal Israeli Arabs.
The disgusting behavior at
Beitar Jerusalem football matches should no longer be tolerated and laws
relating to incitement should be strengthened. We must now more
determinedly stamp out the “price-tag” outrages and recognize that
hate-inspired desecrations can lead to the horrors we have just
witnessed. We also look to our spiritual leaders to promote this message
especially among religious Zionists, disowning the rabid outbursts from
extremist rabbis and citing as an example of Jewish values the moving
condemnations of violence expressed by Mrs. Fraenkel.
However, it is also incumbent
on our prime minister to take drastic measures to deal with the dramatic
radicalization of the Israeli Arab community, substantial sections of
which have been transformed into an active fifth column supporting our
destruction. We must, however, ensure that loyal Arab Israelis are
enabled to fully participate in all aspects of Israeli society. Yet they
must be made to realize that if they want to remain citizens of Israel,
they will not be permitted to engage in riots or promote treason.
This government has been far
too lenient of the treasonable activities of extremist Arab Israelis,
including MKs – which no democracy under siege would tolerate. The
northern branch of the Islamic Movement is effectively the Israeli
branch of the Muslim Brotherhood and an extension of Hamas and should be
outlawed. Its leader Sheikh Raed Salah has already been imprisoned for
inciting hatred.
However there have been
pressures from the Left, asserting that any attempt to treat these
activities as treason would infringe on freedom of expression and
undermine Israel as a democracy. Yet Israel must learn from the collapse
of the Weimar Republic that a democracy cannot afford to allow its
enemies to act with impunity and undermine it from within.
The Israeli police must be
beefed up to enforce law and order and protect Jews in east Jerusalem
and in the northern towns who are being intimidated, their cars torched,
and even lynched by mobs of masked Arabs. If the police avoid entering
“problematic” areas in the north or east Jerusalem, we are sowing the
seeds for future disasters and will certainly forfeit our ability to
retain Jerusalem as a united city.
In addition we cannot tolerate the renewed and intense onslaught of missiles launched against us from Gaza.
Few would envy Netanyahu’s
obligation to make some very difficult decisions. He is aware of the
risk of major casualties, including civilians, which could result from
massive missile attacks in a military confrontation with Hamas. His
predicament is exacerbated by members of his own government engaging in
demagogic public criticism of him in order to score points instead of
displaying a united front.
A policy of restraint is no
answer to missile attacks targeted against civilians and deterrence
cannot be retained by responding in a proportionate manner. Likewise,
uttering mantras of “quiet for quiet”, “tit for tat” and proposing a
“truce” with the terrorist Hamas induces déjà vu, is unsustainable, and
will inevitably degenerate into all-out war at the time of their
choosing. Netanyahu’s initial threats sounded ominously similar to
former Prime Minister Ehud Barak’s hollow threats 14 years ago, which
led to the collapse of his government. To restore deterrence, Israel
must respond with powerful airstrikes, even knowing that this could
result in an all-out war.
Reverting to targeted
assassinations may initially lead to an escalation, but as Hamas leaders
continue calling on the faithful to murder Israelis, we cannot be
expected to remain passive. It is worthwhile recollecting that when the
strategy of targeted assassinations was implemented, Hamas leaders
feared for their lives and went into hiding -- and we achieved quiet.
Another less drastic but
obvious action that should have been introduced a long time ago is the
cessation of delivery of both supplies and electricity to Gaza from
Israel when missiles are fired against us. This would exert pressure
from the street on Hamas -- already beset with many problems, including
deterioration in its relationship with Egypt and near bankruptcy.
The intensified firing of
rockets by Hamas in response to Israel’s restraint may force Israel into
launching a major military offensive. Hopefully, we will avoid the
mistake of former Prime Minister Olmert who set unachievable goals,
allowing Hamas to present itself as victorious even after being pummeled
into submission. On the other hand, everything will be in vain if we
merely seek to restore temporary quiet and defer the confrontation to
the timing of Hamas who would choose to act when they were militarily
stronger and the cost borne by us would be higher.
These are the burning issues
that will test Netanyahu’s mettle, challenge his ability to retain the
leadership of the nation and determine the nature of his legacy.
The writer’s website can be viewed at www.wordfromjerusalem.com.He may be contacted at ileibler@leibler.com.
This column was originally published in the Jerusalem Post and Israel Hayom
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