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UCCtruths

Every denomination needs one of these...

May Israel Defend Itself?

Tuesday, October 02, 2007

By Pastor Ted Weis, Congregational Church, Little River, KS

The PLO, Hamas, and Hezbollah have all vowed the destruction of Israel. If Israel has the right to exist and have sustained borders, what legitimate tools of self-defense are they entitled to use?

This was the question I asked Peter Makari during his workshop at the annual meeting of the Kansas-Oklahoma Conference, which met in Wichita, September 28-30. Makari is the lead Executive for the United Church of Christ's Global Ministries in the Middle East and Europe.

Makari's reply went something like this: The PLO signed a statement saying they recognize Israel's right to exist. Hamas has not, although there's a split within them. Some want peace. The radicals are on both sides. In Israel, there are Jews who don't want Palestinians to have their own country. Their voices are constantly in the press.

At that point I interjected: "But that's not the prevailing policy of Israel. That's certainly not the policy of Ehud Olmert's government. Meanwhile, you got Hamas and Hezbollah constantly launching rockets into Israel. Again, what legitimate tools are they entitled to use to defend themselves?"

Earlier in the conference, Makari described how Israel is heavily armed, possesses a nuclear bomb, and how the wall they built in the West Bank disrupts lives and violates internationally recognized borders.

An observation: Unlike bullets and bombs, the wall by itself doesn't kill anyone. And the wall has significantly curtailed suicide bombers inside Israel. The wall may not be the perfect solution, but it seems to be the least violent way Israel can protect itself.

Markari wouldn't answer my question.

Which kind of answers the question.

But I'm still going to keep asking.

Labels: ,

posted by Living the Biblios, Tuesday, October 02, 2007

2 Comments:

I understand your premise as this "Israel should be able to defend itself". What I wonder is will you also ask "May Palestinians defends themselves?". In August I returned from a 10 day stint in Israel and the West Bank, I travelled to some of the most volatile areas in the region (such as Hebron) and I must tell you that I believe your premise is fundamentally flawed. You associate Hamas rockets and armed Palestinians with terrorism that Israel has a right to defend itself against in some cases I agree this is true, but I wonder with what do you associate the 528 Israeli checkpoints in and on Palestinian land in the West Bank (not on the greenline)? With what do you associate Israel's laws of segregation and discrimination (example Green license plates for Palestinians, and yellow for Israeli's ~ the so-called security barrier which is over 40% inside the West Bank again not the greenline - a barrier which is illegal by US and international standards)? With what do you associate Israeli violence against Palestinians (since Sept 29, 2000 4,274 Palestinians have been killed to 1,024 Israelis who have suffered death from violence a 3 to 1 ratio)? With what do you associate Israels growing and continued policy of house demolition (4,170 Palestinian homes have been demolished since Sept 2000)? With what do you associate the increasing numbers of illegal Israeli settlers confiscating and encroaching on Palestinian land? With what do you associate Israeli discriminatory laws like no non-Jew may purchase land in the Jewish 1/4 of old Jerusalem but Jews can purchase land anywhere in the old city?

I am afraid that you are yet another prophet of the Zionist claim that anything the State of Israel does is righteous because it is done in self-defense, however if you do not see the actions by Israel as cited above as acts of aggression and violence against another people then you are truly delusional and are simply picking a bone with a denomination you probably no longer have much in common with.
commented by Anonymous Anonymous, 2:26 PM  
does the "right of return" include the right of Jews to live in Hebron after the 1929 massacre?
commented by Anonymous Anonymous, 12:13 PM  

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