US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton called Israeli settlements "illegitimate" in an interview that aired on ABC News on Sunday last. And called for Israel to "change" it's policy!
"I think it is absolutely clear to say, number one, that it's been American policy for many years that settlements were illegitimate and it is the continuing goal and highest priority of the Obama administration to keep working toward a two-state solution with both Israelis and Palestinians," Clinton told interviewer Christiane Amanpour.
Let's get it straight. After 62 years as a state, Israel is facing the threat of extinction at the hands of 300 million Arabs and Muslims who surround it, from "palestinians" on its borders to the Iranians thousands of miles away. Palestinians are "illegitimate", not a real people or national entity. They are Arabs. And the Arabs remain unwilling to let Israelis live in peace. Going back to 1947 and earlier, the Arabs used the term "Palestinian" to gain additional land from the Jewish people, and succeeded. We cannot let that happen again, wherever we live, Israel or any land.
The State of Israel today is on the historic land of the Jewish people dating back to Moses and before. That land included Judea and Samaria, as well as Jerusalem and Gaza, and in fact, a significant part of Lebanon and Syria. Through wars and extermination, the land of the Jewish people was reduced in size by foreign occupiers, until it was re-established and recognized again by the world community in 1948.
Multiple wars later, the Jewish people continue to fight for their right to have a homeland. The Arabs refuse to recognize this reality, and continue to use force, diplomacy, world opinion and terrorism to destroy Israel. Those are the facts on the ground. The Arab world's attempts to thwart peace, with the mission of ridding the Middle East of a Jewish civilization, must be seen for what it is, and brought to an end. So, I do agree with Clinton on one point .... yes, it is time for a change. Certain principles guide my view. Certain principles remain non Negotiable. First, Israel should never again retreat from land it possesses. It has no obligation to do so. Of paramount importance, we must abide by the principle that Jews should be allowed to live any place in this world that they choose to live.
How outrageous to think that a peace agreement is being proposed and discussed based on the idea of all-Arab territory, where Jews would not be able to live, whether it be Gaza or Judea and Samaria, or even, as it was with Yamit, in the Sinai. We are fond of intoning "Never Again" when we mention the Shoah. I hope that we have actually learned never again to accept the word 'Judenrein'.
The State of Israel today is on the historic land of the Jewish people dating back to Moses and before. That land included Judea and Samaria, as well as Jerusalem and Gaza, and in fact, a significant part of Lebanon and Syria. Through wars and extermination, the land of the Jewish people was reduced in size by foreign occupiers, until it was re-established and recognized again by the world community in 1948.
Multiple wars later, the Jewish people continue to fight for their right to have a homeland. The Arabs refuse to recognize this reality, and continue to use force, diplomacy, world opinion and terrorism to destroy Israel. Those are the facts on the ground. The Arab world's attempts to thwart peace, with the mission of ridding the Middle East of a Jewish civilization, must be seen for what it is, and brought to an end. So, I do agree with Clinton on one point .... yes, it is time for a change. Certain principles guide my view. Certain principles remain non Negotiable. First, Israel should never again retreat from land it possesses. It has no obligation to do so. Of paramount importance, we must abide by the principle that Jews should be allowed to live any place in this world that they choose to live.
How outrageous to think that a peace agreement is being proposed and discussed based on the idea of all-Arab territory, where Jews would not be able to live, whether it be Gaza or Judea and Samaria, or even, as it was with Yamit, in the Sinai. We are fond of intoning "Never Again" when we mention the Shoah. I hope that we have actually learned never again to accept the word 'Judenrein'.
The second principle is that Israel cannot turn its enemies into friends through retreat, but only through strength. That was one of the earliest teachings of the great founders of Israel, David Ben-Gurion & Golda Meir, and the lesson remains the same today. The threats posed by the Arabs, as well as the Iranians' words of destruction against the State of Israel, must be taken seriously.
The third principle is that we must be proud of our Jewish heritage and our return to Israel. And remember what Torah teaches is Eretz Yisroel is appropriate here. Ha'Shem's promise & the original vision of Israel encompassed the land West of the Jordan River, including our previous kingdoms of Judea and Samaria, the entirety of Jerusalem, and the land of Gaza. Israel has every right to exist in that land forever, and its claim is not secondary to that of the Arabs. I reject the concept and the terminology that the lands are "occupied territories".
The fourth principle is the most clear for me. Israel can never enter into a peace agreement unless it can be convinced that it will both offer a real, long-term peace and negate the probability of enhancing the strength of Israel's enemies. We must remember certain facts. With the great wealth of the Arabs, and their vast resources of land, the "palestinian people" could be guaranteed by their brethren Arabs an incredible future on Arab land if they so choose. Jordan was to be the Palestinian state, and that kingdom threw many of their supposed 'palestinian' people out of the country. Maintaining the United Nations refugee camps has only continued the hardships of many of the "palestinian people". It is clear that the plight of these particular Arab "palestinian people" will not be resolved by an independent Palestinian state, anywhere located.
Although I opposed the withdrawal from Gush Katif, it was done, and Gaza was set up for the "palestinians" to demonstrate that they could establish a positive society on their own land. They did not, and the fact is that Hamas set out in Gaza, under Iranian guidance, to disrupt, if not destroy, Israel. That cannot, must not and will not be. Until the day that the Arabs accept Israel's right to be a Jewish state, their leadership's credentials remain clouded. There can be no peace with them & and no one should be pushing Israel into a peace that is no peace at all. That includes any American administration & Hilary Clinton!
The third principle is that we must be proud of our Jewish heritage and our return to Israel. And remember what Torah teaches is Eretz Yisroel is appropriate here. Ha'Shem's promise & the original vision of Israel encompassed the land West of the Jordan River, including our previous kingdoms of Judea and Samaria, the entirety of Jerusalem, and the land of Gaza. Israel has every right to exist in that land forever, and its claim is not secondary to that of the Arabs. I reject the concept and the terminology that the lands are "occupied territories".
The fourth principle is the most clear for me. Israel can never enter into a peace agreement unless it can be convinced that it will both offer a real, long-term peace and negate the probability of enhancing the strength of Israel's enemies. We must remember certain facts. With the great wealth of the Arabs, and their vast resources of land, the "palestinian people" could be guaranteed by their brethren Arabs an incredible future on Arab land if they so choose. Jordan was to be the Palestinian state, and that kingdom threw many of their supposed 'palestinian' people out of the country. Maintaining the United Nations refugee camps has only continued the hardships of many of the "palestinian people". It is clear that the plight of these particular Arab "palestinian people" will not be resolved by an independent Palestinian state, anywhere located.
Although I opposed the withdrawal from Gush Katif, it was done, and Gaza was set up for the "palestinians" to demonstrate that they could establish a positive society on their own land. They did not, and the fact is that Hamas set out in Gaza, under Iranian guidance, to disrupt, if not destroy, Israel. That cannot, must not and will not be. Until the day that the Arabs accept Israel's right to be a Jewish state, their leadership's credentials remain clouded. There can be no peace with them & and no one should be pushing Israel into a peace that is no peace at all. That includes any American administration & Hilary Clinton!
Jews had lived in Gaza throughout history. As Gaza was included in the Palestine Mandate for a Jewish national home, Jews continued to live there. In August 1929, however, the Arabs of Palestine (geographical area ~ not people), led by the Supreme Muslim Council, began a nation wide massacre against their Jewish neighbours. Instead of punishing the perpetrators, the British administration of Palestine, forced the Jews to leave Gaza as well as Hebron. The Jews weren’t even allowed to go back to their homes in Gaza when the State of Israel was declared in 1948 due to Egypt’s illegal occupation of Gaza (1948-1967). It wasn’t until after the 1967 Six Day War, that Jews were allowed back home. Since then, the Jews have been accused of occupying ‘Arab land’, when in fact, the Jews who lawfully lived in Gaza, were forced out by the Arabs rioters, and not the other way around. This fact needs to be remembered & reiterated.
In August 2005, the deportation of nearly 10,000 Jews, the whole Jewish population of Gaza, by their own Israeli government occurred.
‘’If we give up some land, then we will get some peace’’ was the premise posed. And pushed by America!! The answer to this thought is a question .... What peace has there been since the Disengagement? Is there peace?
There is no peace. There is only pain. Every Israeli should ask themselves these questions with their fellow Israelis in mind who were expelled from Gush Katif:
* Is it ‘’peaceful’’ to be made homeless?
* Is it ‘’peaceful’’ to watch your home destroyed?
* Is it ‘’peaceful’’ to have your life’s business taken away from you?
* Is it ‘’peaceful’’ to have your children’s education destroyed?
* Is it ‘’peaceful’’ to see your children urinate in their clothes from nightmares of soldiers snatching them away from their home?
There is only pain in uprooting a family from their home and it certainly isn’t in the direction of peace. Israel withdrew from every millimetre, including evacuating settlements, received nothing in return. Rockets in return ... Not Peace!!!
"I still cannot understand how Israel gave up parts of its land willingly and with abandon, and how the residents connected to that land were turned into criminals, instead of raising their dedication as a banner of preserving the Jewish identity of the state of Israel."
Maj.-Gen Yiftah Ron-Tal, IDF ground forces commander at the time of the Disengagement
Kfar Chabad weekly, October 6th, 2006.
* Is it ‘’peaceful’’ to have your life’s business taken away from you?
* Is it ‘’peaceful’’ to have your children’s education destroyed?
* Is it ‘’peaceful’’ to see your children urinate in their clothes from nightmares of soldiers snatching them away from their home?
There is only pain in uprooting a family from their home and it certainly isn’t in the direction of peace. Israel withdrew from every millimetre, including evacuating settlements, received nothing in return. Rockets in return ... Not Peace!!!
"I still cannot understand how Israel gave up parts of its land willingly and with abandon, and how the residents connected to that land were turned into criminals, instead of raising their dedication as a banner of preserving the Jewish identity of the state of Israel."
Maj.-Gen Yiftah Ron-Tal, IDF ground forces commander at the time of the Disengagement
Kfar Chabad weekly, October 6th, 2006.
It turns out that the "extremist" and pessimistic "settlers" were those who were right. The Arabs do not wish to recognize Israel and have not accepted its existence. They turned the communities of Gush Katif into launch sites against residents of the Negev and particularly the town of Sderot. The "palestinians" have become more, not less, radicalized. Israel's public image as an occupying country has not significantly improved in the world, and further unilateral disengagement in Judea & Samaria as a possible way of solving the Israeli-palestinian conflict has turned out to be a chimera, in large measure because of the failure of what was supposed to be its Gazan first stage. One positive thing is that we know now that this assumption, that it is enough for us to leave territory in order for the other side to stop its attacks has proven false … I do not want to see a situation where we once again fold, in Judea and Samaria, and the next day Kassam rockets begin to be fired on Kfar Saba, Raanana and Herzliya.
This must be the commitment of world Jewry today. We may not live in Israel (yet), and yet, it is clear that we can do something. We can proudly shout out with a clarion call that Israel exists, and is entitled to a secure future just like every other country on Earth. Am Yisrael Chai!!!
This is what Peace means to the "palestinians" ..... I love Palm trees & I want to live in PEACE amongst them!!!!!
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