With Gaza's democratically elected ruling party, Hamas, being branded as a terrorist entity, Gaza itself has become an extension of Hamas and, at least in the eyes of the Israeli government, the entire region has become a breeding ground and base for Hamas and whatever terrorism that may entail. So we see that in times of relative calm within the region (or rather, as it is portrayed as "calm" at least by the Western media,) Hamas or some other local Palestinian militia will somehow decide its the right time to strike Israel and fire rockets into Southern Israel, guaranteeing at least reciprocal damage in return as well as in the superlative. Afterwhich, Israeli spokesmen will get on camera and remind us that the Palestinians are a bunch of crazed-loonies who are hell-bent on the destruction of Israel for no otherwise rational purpose. Some have postulated the underlying hatred for the Jews; that the Arabs have pent up rancor since the days of the 1948 and 1967 wars and are unwilling to accept defeat and recognize Israel's right to exist. This we are constantly reminded, and assured of as reality time and again. And the next time we see angry mobs of an entire populace of people we have to go fetch our scripts fed to us and recite to ourselves that the images we see are in fact, of a populace gone mad to no rational end and consequently the means to achieve that end (i.e - the end of Israel) are also somehow decontextualized and that the absolute fury of these madmen does not shy them away from even using stones to hurl at the Israeli "civil" law-enforcement. Somehow being fed the same thing over and again leads to nausea.
The view that Israel is actually the victim in this whole peace fiasco is thankfully, a minority perspective within the global worldview. Yet somehow, little more than 300+ million people still believe that a country funded billions of dollars every year, with the strongest military in the entire region, the latest in military weaponry and technology is at the mercy of a band of crazed stone-throwers and that this warrants the type of awesome "defense" that somehow throws the Palestinians back to (for lack of a better image) the Stone-Age. This, if anything, proves the power of media fueled by an even greater power within ourselves - that of denial. And if the Holocaust taught us anything it was that silence and denial can literally give the green-light to mass genocide. Sadly, history repeats itself. The Semites seem to have had a curse of enslavement and oppression upon them since days immemorial. The denial of the enslavement of the Israelites by the Pharoah in Egypt led God to send Moses (peace be upon him) to fight the oppressors and liberate His people. It was the denial of the genocide of the Jews by Hitler that led to the 2nd Semite Holocaust and now we are witnessing the 3rd Semite Holocaust in the oppression and abuse of the Palestinians (the neo-Israelites) by the new Pharoah "Israel," all thanks to denial. Thankfully however, God has answered the prayers of the oppressed yet again, and more and more awareness of the grave humanitarian crisis of the Palestinians is coming to light. The presence of Internationals within the Occupied Territories has reminded the world what denial and neglect really looks like and the reaction to truth is always the same: ridicule, vehement opposition, and finally acceptance.
For Israelis, the core issue is the Palestinians refusal to recognize Israel and their desire to extinguish the state. For the Palestinians the core issue is the occupation of their land and the injustice and grievances this has brought upon them. The truth, in fact, is that nearly the whole world recognizes Israel's right to exist, but not everyone agrees on recognizing its rulers. In other words, the Jews should have a homeland that they can live freely and happily in, but at who's expense and at what cost? This issue is critical simply because Israel's right to exist is not the same thing as Israel's right to be recognized. They must be understood as unequivocal, yet too often people get confused and mix them up. Palestinians, particularly Hamas, do not recognize Israel because it would legitimize their own occupation which no self-respecting body of people could ever agree to. If Israel's policy towards the Palestinians had a drastic change of heart and harmony between the two sides sprouted, one cannot see a reason to deny both recognizing Israel's right to existence as well as its right to be recognized as a sovereign nation, able to conduct trade with its neighbors, etc. But in the current state, asking Hamas to recognize Israel is the same as asking Israel to recognize Hamas - you cannot have one without the other. And until this happens it is very unlikely to see any real progression towards peace. (Christian Science Monitor)
The supporters of Israel, namely the U.S, Canada, and the U.K are continuously challenged as to why they continue their support. Detractors of Israel or rather, "Zionist Israel," namely, the rest of the world, ask why there cannot be a two-state solution, by default recognizing Israel's right to exist and at the same time, Palestine's. This view has also gained acceptance by Israel's supporters and even Israelis and Palestinians themselves. The main obstacle to this, of course, is the political belief of Zionism, which is a nationalism tied to the Zionists' religiosity as a form of geo-spirituality. A Zionist is not necessarily a Jew by default but one who supports the notion of supremacy of the Jewish people and the Holy Land as their historic home. As it has already been addressed, the latter part of the definition is agreed upon by the world community; that the Holy Land is in fact, part of the Jewish people's traditions and they have every right to live there so long as they are not exclusive to others, but its the first-half of the Zionist creed that poses particular problem. The notion that any race is superior to another is flat out wrong and a nation's merit should be decided by its actions and not a form of divine sanctioning of spiritual nepotism. With that said, the zealous Zionist settlers can be heard speaking and behaving in ways that would indicate race supremacy over the Palestinians. Combining this with a "divine" writ and right to the land, you have a permanent problem in a region that houses sanctity to the three Abrahamic faiths who cannot remain exclusive to one another despite the beliefs of the Zionists. So how do you share a pie - that all parties involved helped create - when the pie itself is hogged up as being exclusively the property of one party? The have-nots convincing the pie-holder is not (and has not) worked. However, if fellow party members can convince the pie-holders of their mistaken views then that is the way to go forward, and we see that has been the case with Jews themselves who speak out against Zionism as well.
In an open declaration from the Central Rabbinical Congress of the U.S and Canada, a list of prominent Rabbis across the nations unanimously declared Zionism as a threat to global peace and especially to world Jewry. They argue that creating a state for the Jews is against the will of God and the Torah and that in so doing the long awaited Messiah of the Jews is being delayed and this movement is angering God, among other things. The entire declaration can be read here:
http://www.jewsagainstzionism.com/rabbinicalcourts/crc/documents/callfromcrc.pdf
As a matter of fact, there are many Orthodox Jews who speak of the illegitimacy of the current state of Israel and if anybody does not believe in its right to exist, it is not the Arabs who believe so, but the Jews themselves. Outspoken about this is the Jewish group, the Neturei Karta, who say that since the outset of Zionism during the late and early parts of the 19th and 20th centuries respectively, countless numbers of traditional, Torah-abiding, Rabbis have spoken against the idea of a uniformed nationalism or any kind of self-determination that would take the Jews out of divinely appointed exile. So we see that outside of the Jews themselves, there is no other group or nation against the idea of a national homeland for the Jews, but only against recognizing it in its current tyrannical form of state. The recourse to anti-Semitism as a defense for justifying Israeli assault against Palestinian aggression is miss-applied due to the prevalent notion of the lie that Arabs intrinsically hate Jews.
Below is an example of exposing the media's lies about the hatred between the Jews and the Arabs and how Orthodox Jews and Arabs get along fine and were received fairly well by none other than the so-called terrorist group Hezbollah. After Hezbollah's fight with Israel in 2006 and the aftermath of the destruction in Lebanon, several Rabbis from the U.S, Canada, Palestine, and the U.K wrote this letter to Sayyed Hasan Nasrullah, leader of Hezbollah, with a commiserating show of solidarity to the innocent victims of the Zionist regime:
February 19, 2008
To His Excellency Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah
To the Distinguished People of Lebanon
Assalam Alaikum
May the Almighty's blessings be on all of you, your families, and all our esteemed brethren in Lebanon.
We speak to you as the voice and messengers of true Jewry — the Jewish people, true to the Almighty's Torah, from around the world.
Less than a month has passed since we have addressed an open letter to Dr. Al-Zahar, and the people of Gaza and the rest of Palestine.
In this letter, with the help of the Almighty, we expressed our hurt, sorrow and frustration in regard to the atrocities perpetrated by the wholly illegitimate (according to the laws of the Torah, the Jewish Law) state of "Israel."
We stated that we have addressed Dr. Al-Zahar personally to offer our condolences and commiserate with his loss. We further stated that in truth we should be offering our condolences to every family that has incurred a loss through this evil entity, the Zionist state of "Israel", but tragically the list of victims is daunting. What we should have stated is that we should personally write and personally visit each and every inhabitant of Gaza and the entire Palestine to express the feelings of our hearts and our entire being, our sorrow, felt at the suffering of this innocent nation at the hands of an entity that is declared, ruled, and sealed by the Holy Torah and our Rabbinical authorities, as totally forbidden.
Furthermore, all the Palestinian people, their relatives and offspring, spread out around the globe, must hear and feel our empathy, our support, our constant and intense prayers offered up to the Almighty, for them. For after all, we know that every one of these people has been deeply affected by the Zionist State.
Your Excellency, Sayyed Nasrallah, our feelings in regard to the people of Lebanon, are exactly the same.
We have heard you speak just recently at the funeral of the assassinated Mr. Imad Mughniyah and many times previously. Hence, we know that you and your organization are deeply aware that there is a distinct difference between Zionism and Judaism and that there is a large segment of Jewish people, whether in occupied Palestine or throughout the world, who are entirely opposed to Zionism and the state of "Israel".
Further, a delegation of our Rabbis were guests in your magnificent country of Lebanon, and were hosted by your organization, the Hezbollah. We were there to attend the Conference of the International Union of Parliamentarians for the Defense of the Palestinian Cause.
The respect and graciousness that was extended to our group was beyond exemplary. At that time, thanks to the Almighty, we had the opportunity to see and experience at first hand, the fact that the Arab and Muslim people despite their long-suffering at the hands of Zionism have not fallen prey to the influences of evil.
We were confronted with love and friendship wherever we turned. Concern for our comfort was the first priority of every individual, wherever we traveled throughout Lebanon. Only then, after these good people were assured of our well-being, were we shown the suffering that they have incurred through the Zionist occupation. To our surprise and to their praise, this was all shown to us, without any accusations directed at our Rabbis or the Jewish nation.
The Muslim and Arab people obviously still remember that we don't have a religious conflict and that we have co-existed in harmony for hundreds of years. Many obviously understand the difference between Zionism and Judaism.
May we just mention three very moving experiences that we had in Lebanon that has left an indelible impression on our hearts.
We went to the former Khiam detention center and saw the shocking tortures that the Lebanese have suffered so many years, and that the world ignores. (We have heard that the Zionists destroyed this detention center entirely in the recent incursion in Lebanon to obliterate any memory of these tortures.)
We visited the sad confines of the Sabra and Shatila refugee camps; we spoke to the Palestinian people there and lit candles at the Martyrs Square, where the infamous massacre was perpetrated. At these two places our tears flowed at these needless and tragic sufferings that are ongoing and are contrary to any logic or human rights (which we refer to as Godly rights).
Then we had the opportunity and the privilege of holding a demonstration against Zionism and the state of "Israel", right across the Zionist occupation, at Fatima's Gate, the connecting point of Lebanon and the Zionist occupation. Of course, many of our brethren who reside in the Zionist occupation constantly demonstrate against the state from within at great personal cost. They are brutally beaten or arrested, etc.
Also, we want to make you and our brethren, the people of Lebanon, aware that after the recent Zionist attack on Lebanon, Jewish people throughout the world joined in demonstrations in support of the Lebanese people. In Canada, U.K. and the U.S. we of the religious Jewish community had our Rabbis speaking at almost all the main rallies to express our vehement condemnations and opposition to the cruel and murderous attack on Lebanon. This was beside the demonstrations that were orchestrated solely by our Jewish religious communities globally(1).
We now turn to Your Excellency, Sayyed Nasrallah ever so humbly, and ask you to accept our words and to convey these words with the following message to the citizens of Lebanon and to the Palestinian people in refugee camps in your country.
May we reiterate that we speak to you as the voice and messengers of true Jewry — the Jewish people, true to the Almighty's Torah, from around the world.
Although we are limited in the means of expressing our deepest and true feelings, by the barriers of words, nevertheless, the Jewish people humbly offer to you and all of Lebanon, Gaza and the entire Palestine, a few words, to attempt to convey our support, deepest sorrow and heartfelt sympathy that we all feel for you, in this present tragic and traumatic time.
Once again may we state it would be only proper and fitting, that we personally write to and address each and everyone who has fallen victim of the Zionist state of "Israel". Unfortunately and how tragic, the list of victims is daunting.
May our few and humble words be a message of consolation, friendship, loyalty and support to you, the people of Lebanon, and to the people of Gaza and the entire Palestine.
True Jews around the world, of course including in the entire Palestine, never have and with the help of the Almighty, never will accept the ideology of Zionism and never will recognize the realization of its heretical plan, the state of "Israel".
Our sole bond is with the Almighty and His Torah. Our sage's state that we are required to emulate the Almighty, "just as the Almighty is compassionate, so are we to be compassionate."
We always have and always will, with the help of the Almighty, remain unaffiliated and estranged from this aberration and the will of Satan, "Zionism and the state of Israel".
May we remind you, that the Almighty has clearly and explicitly commanded us, the Jewish people, since the destruction of the temple, around two thousand years ago, to be humble and loyal citizens in every country in which we reside. Furthermore, we are not to rebel against nations, we are not to attempt to end our exile. We are forbidden to create our own state or own entity.
We are to pray for, yearn for, and wait patiently for, the day when the Almighty will reveal his glory throughout the world.
At that time, all humanity together, will go up to the Holy Land, in harmony and brotherhood, to serve the Almighty in joy and peace.
Around one hundred years ago, the Zionists began arriving in Palestine in order to bring to fruition the realization of their dream, the transformation of Judaism from a religion into a nationalism. And so began the sorrowful and bitter history of the rebellion, the mutiny against the Almighty, which eventually evolved into the illegitimate state of "Israel".
Since the creation of the state of "Israel", the Palestinian people and at a later date, the Lebanese people have continuously suffered indescribably. They have been oppressed, beaten, murdered, humiliated, displaced and expelled.
Although, this letter and the present moment, is not the proper place and time to delve into the issue of our personal suffering at the Zionist regime's hands, still we feel it is necessary to bring these facts to the Arab people's attention. Our sages state that to know that many people share ones suffering, alleviates the suffering somewhat. Also, it is to demonstrate to all, the sincerity in our opposition to this tumorous growth on the Jewish nation — the so-called state of "Israel".
Therefore, let us state that since these sinners and atheists, Theodore Herzl and his cohorts, raised their repugnant voices in promulgating their ideology of the devil, the heresy of Zionism, Jewish people too, have suffered indescribably both physically and spiritually at their hands.
Our G-d fearing brethren throughout the entire Palestine, have been and are continually beaten, murdered, imprisoned and oppressed, since the beginning of Zionism up until today(2). They are and have always been the victims of these same perpetrators of evil, who are oppressing the Palestinian and Lebanese people.
Let it be known that our true leaders, the Rabbis and Sages in Palestine, the Middle-East, Europe, and throughout the world, have vociferously and most fervently expressed their total opposition to Zionism and the state of "Israel", since its inception. They have decried and condemned all the evils that it has wrought, the oppression of the Palestinian people, and more recently the Lebanese people. They have decried the oppression of the religious Jews and the state of "Israel's" constant attempts, at eradicating and destroying anything that is G-dly and religious. They have tirelessly and fearlessly publicly demonstrated, at great self sacrifice, their opposition to this rebellion against the Almighty.
Countless edicts have been issued from our saintly leaders requiring the Jewish people, true to the Almighty and His Torah, to distance and estrange themselves from this sinful and illegitimate state of "Israel" and all the evils that emanate from it.
Thank the Almighty their message has been heard around the world by many God-fearing Jews and they have obeyed. What's more, untold thousands have stood by their Rabbis and many thousands continuously demonstrate fearlessly, till today, throughout occupied Palestine and throughout the world, against the state of "Israel".
All of the above is well documented, but stifled by the powers of the Zionist media control and by the intimidation of all who dare to confront or reveal the truth(3).
One more issue is important to mention, beside the many commandments in the Torah of doing good and the requirement of emulating the Almighty "just as He is compassionate, so must we be", and besides the clear prohibitions against Zionism. We are exceptionally sensitive to the Palestinian and Lebanese people's plight, for we the Jewish people, have just recently experienced extreme discrimination and all the tragic sufferings in the concentration camps in Europe. Our close relatives have suffered indescribably and died there. Also we know and have experienced what it means to be displaced as we have all been uprooted from our original homes and dwellings throughout Europe. This of course compounds our understanding and feelings for the Palestinian and Lebanese suffering.
To date, it seems to our human and limited comprehension, that this evil entity, the state of "Israel", will, G-d forbid, never cease to exist and it will continue to exude its evils, on the innocent and G-d fearing people under its control.
However, remember and comfort yourselves, our brethren in Palestine and Lebanon, there is a great and exalted, benevolent, Master of the Universe, who truly controls the world. He can and will end this suffering!!
In the Torah it states, that transgressing against the Almighty, will not be successful. This state of "Israel", according to the Almighty's Torah, must and will eventually end.
Let us all pray and beseech Him, to bring about the total, peaceful and speedy dismantlement of this illegitimate state soon in our days. With the Almighty's benevolence, may He make this happen, without any further pain or suffering. Amen.
Please convey this message to each and every one of your brethren suffering under this oppression of "Zionism — Israel". Especially important, please convey this message to the bereaved relatives of the fallen victims, the wounded and maimed, and most certainly to the ones languishing in Israeli prisons and to the ones lying in pain in hospitals.
Convey to them our solidarity and words of comfort and support. We are humiliated by the actions of those who use our name, and our hearts are rent by what is happening to them.
We implore you to convey the message to the people in Lebanon and Palestine, that there are untold thousands of Jews worldwide and in Palestine who stand with you and who entirely oppose Zionism and the state of "Israel" and bear no responsibility for the actions of the Zionists. Educate your people that when you meet Jewish people, do not consider them your enemy. We all serve the one God.
Once again, we constantly pray — worry and hope for you all.
May we merit to see soon in our days, the total, speedy and peaceful dismantlement of the state of "Israel".
May the Almighty bring upon us the words of His prophecies when all men will serve Him in harmony, peace and joy. Amen.
Assalam Alaikum
Very truly yours,
Rabbi Moshe Dov Beck
Rabbi Yisroel Dovid Weiss
USA, Canada
Rabbi Meir Hirsh
Palestine
Rabbi Ahron Cohen
United Kingdom
- **Courtesy: http://www.nkusa.org/activities/Statements/20080219_nasralla.cfm
Here is a video show-casing the rapport between the Jews and the Arabs in their meeting with President Ahmedinajad of Iran - both being critics of Zionism and the state of Israel.
So it is important to keep in mind, not just the Muslims, but Christians and Jews as well, that the trouble we see in the Middle East is not a religious divide, since the followers of Abraham have lived together in peace for hundreds of years. Rather, this is a problem created by a political agenda backed by religious valediction that has created a cruel and unjust apartheid and occupation of an entire people. A relevant parallel can be seen in Islam's crisis of Jihadism and terrorism and how the two are not equivocal like Judaism and Zionism. And as the Quran-abiding Muslims suffer from the internal struggle within their own communities to speak out and fight against terrorism, so too are the Torah-abiding Jews who speak out and fight against Zionism. If three kindred faiths share so many similarities it is not too difficult to see them sharing similar problems as well. The problem of terrorism not only affects the Muslims but it is a problem for the whole world, similarly the problem of Zionism is not only a problem for the Jews but involves the whole world.
I pray, like my Jewish and Christian brethren, that we as a global community and representatives of Abraham's teachings can come together and find the root cause of the conflict that has engulfed our Holy Land and put aside our differences in order to address justice and our grievances, but to also learn to forgive and reconcile deep-seated wounds. It's about time for peace. I'm sure God, Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad would all agree.
Sources & References
http://www.btselem.org/English/index.asp
http://www.palsolidarity.org/main/
http://gazaeng.blogspot.com/
http://occupiedlove.blogspot.com/
http://talestotell.wordpress.com/
http://www.ifamericansknew.org/
http://www.nkusa.org/
http://www.jewsagainstzionism.com/index.cfm
http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0202/p09s02-coop.html
Film: Occupation 101
Film: Peace, Propaganda, and the Promised Land
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