Facing History Head On
In his today’s article, “Hunker Down With History”, Richard Cohen of the Washington Post almost put his finger on the most central issue of the Muslim-Israeli conflict. Had he actually touched on the issue and dealt with it, then it would have truly been a remarkable article. Unfortunately he chooses to look upon the creation of the modern Israeli state as a ‘mistake’ for which no one is culpable. A mistake, in fact, that is ‘honest’.
I will not argue that Jews in Europe have suffered throughout the centuries, and that they were in fact running for their lives, as Mr. Cohen asserts, when they reached Palestine. But to say that the creation of Israel was merely an ‘honest’ mistake is to insult the whole Arab world, and the Palestinians in particular.
The creation of Israel was, in fact, a crime committed against the Palestinians. The stated goal from the beginning was the creation of a ‘Jewish’ state. That meant a population ratio that would guarantee that Jews were dominant in terms of numbers. This is the basis of the Arab claim that Zionism is a racist ideology. This is also the reason why negotiations failed with the PLO: Israel’s refusing Palestinian refugees the right to return to their ancestral homeland.
Most Israelis I speak with say that Palestinians had the opportunity to stay in Israel and live in a modern and democratic Israeli state in 1948. They chose to leave instead, and now they are paying the price. I doubt this is an accurate rendering of the facts. Nobody leaves when people come offering salt and bread. They usually leave under duress, threats and massacres. The Jews of the time do have blood on their hands. To turn those crimes into an ‘honest’ mistake, as Richard Cohen does, is to spit on the injured.
Lastly, Mr. Cohen refers to how the sine qua non of the modern civilized state is recognition of the Holocaust. I agree with him. That was a crime that we should all recognize and learn from. Germany has done so and continues to make amends, so many years later.
But what of Israel? When will Israel recognize that it was born out of a crime that has cost the lives, the livelihood and the homes of millions of Palestinians? Perhaps this would be a good place to start. Perhaps such a show of civility from the Israelis will also show the way for the Muslims to recognize where the Jews have been wronged as well.
It is no accident that Jews lived in peace and reached some of their highest cultural points in Muslim lands throughout the centuries. The fecund dialogue between Islam and Judaism helped seed some of the best flowers that later came out of Renaissance Europe. This shows that Islam and Judaism, that Muslims and Jews have no trouble living together, getting along and creating together.
On the other hand, both Muslims and Jews have suffered their worst days at the hands of the civilized Christians. To the Muslim mind, the Jewish state of Israel is nothing more that another of Christian Europe’s, and now America’s, criminal acts against them. Can one blame them for this attitude? Perhaps more importantly, how has Israel’s attitude contributed to understanding in the region?
The problem with hunkering down, as Mr. Cohen suggests, is that time is ticking. This time the rockets have reached Haifa and perhaps will reach Tel Aviv. They are inaccurate. But where will they reach next time? What will happen when Hezbollah has better anti-aircraft defenses? Better anti-tank rockets? What will happen when Israeli incursions result not in hundreds of enemy dead and a dozen or so Israelis, but in hundreds of dead on both sides? Can Israel continue in this way? Is this a decent and civilized way to live?
Perhaps you are thinking: So what should Israel do?
Admit the truth, and build from there. Give up the idea of a Jewish state and embrace the idea of a modern secular state for Arabs, Jews and Christians. Allow the return of refugees. Allow Jerusalem to be everyone’s capital. These radical solutions require magnanimity. Are the Jews magnanimous?
Post by Chris Voidis
http://www.yioni.com/counter-spin.html