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| Israel-Palestine-Jordan |
| Island of decency |
| 2006-08-05 |
| Last week I stood waiting at a West Bank checkpoint between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. Contrary to what some would have you believe, these places tend to be fairly clean and warm and the security personnel efficient, if not particularly friendly. In front of me was a small boy, perhaps five years old. He looked at the soldier in front of him and then suddenly lifted up his shirt to display a slightly bulging package taped to his tiny body. All I could think was that this was an absurd, pathetic way in which to die. Then there was a cacophony of explanations in Arabic and Hebrew, and Israeli soldiers told the boy to keep still and raise his arms away from his body. They were firm but not angry or bullying. The boy obeyed, and it then became clear that this was no suicide bomber but a poor, suffering child who had to wear a colostomy bag. His permit had expired but a colonel in the Israeli paratroops, a hardened combat officer, took charge of the situation and brought the boy through the turnstile. He was then taken to the Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem where he received some of the finest medical treatment in the world. A hospital, by the way, where every third or fourth person treated is a Palestinian or Israeli Arab. I tell this story because it is more typical of the Israeli reality than most of the propaganda currently being poured out over the war in Lebanon. Nobody can claim that the Jewish state is without blemish, but anyone who knows it and its people appreciates that this is a nation worthy of respect. Enough is enough. It is time to be bold. Israel is an island of decency and moderation in a raging sea of dictatorship, theocratic madness and undiluted political hypocrisy. The last thing it wanted was a war on its northern border. More of an extended family than a nation-state, the country moves into spasm each times it loses one of its soldiers. Losses are counted as individuals rather than units and names are far more important than ranks. Critics have argued that Israel engineered this war because it wanted to smash Lebanon as a potential economic rival. Nothing could be further from the truth. A prosperous and pluralistic Lebanon would have delighted Israel, a country that cries out for trading partners in the region. The war is economically disastrous, emotionally traumatic and rips Israel apart as its finest sons lose their lives. Nor is this in any way mass invasion and full-scale war. Israel has some 3,500 frontline battle tanks, one of the strongest and most capable air forces in the world, tens of thousands of elite troops and advanced nuclear technology. In other words, if it waged full-scale war we would certainly know. Instead, it has sent teams of commandos across the border to take Hezbollah-held villages one by one. Just as when the Israeli army cleaned Jenin of its terrorists, lives are lost because of tactics based on honour rather than brute force. The usual opponents of Israel will dismiss these comments, but political fashion is usually irrelevant and always too easy. Peace in the Middle East is possible, but it is the Arab world and its friends rather than Israel that has to transform. Soon -- and with full and absolute commitment. |
| Posted by:trailing wife |
| #2 As a Catholic, I understand and support the Jewish people and the State of Israel. To do less would subvert my love for Jesus, God, freedom, and democracy...plus, I always love the underdog. Kick ass, Israel! |
| Posted by: Frank G 2006-08-05 20:40 |
| #1 Excellent catch TW! - and big kudos to the Toronto Sun for printing it. |
| Posted by: Tony (UK) 2006-08-05 20:31 |