This week’s news from Israel was dominated by the IDF raid on a Jericho prison to bring the alleged murderers of an Israeli Cabinet Minister to trial in Israel. Most of the local media coverage has been extremely critical of Israel for this action. Their response reminds me of a story I once read about a Jewish slave who was forced to fight in the Coliseum in Ancient Rome.
This Jewish gladiator was chosen to take part in the event where slaves would fight against wild beasts. But because he was Jewish (to put it mildly Jews were not liked in ancient Rome as a result of their dogged resistance to the occupation of Judea), he was forced to fight the wild beast without a weapon and with his hands tied behind his back. Despite this great disadvantage, the Jewish gladiator was able to use his feet to fend off the wild beast. To his amazement, every time he struck the wild beast, the crowd shouted “Jew fight fair.”
Israel is condemned outright for using targeted assassinations against Palestinian combatants (a policy which I believe is not only legal but also moral) for the fact that they are extra-judicial. Nevertheless when Israel does (at great risk to her soldiers) arrests these militants and bring them to trial she is still condemned as violating international law. You can just hear them chanting Jew fight fair.
The hypocrisy of the Israel bashers, although infuriating, is not for me the most important message that the Jericho raid brings home. Most importantly, the Jericho raid represents an end of the bi-lateral Oslo process and the beginning of the new era of unilateral action.
The Jericho prison agreement between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, although struck at the height of the intifada, long after the Oslo peace talks had broken down, embodies the Oslo mindset. The Palestinian Authority was given the responsible for Israel’s security. But as everyonr knew they could not be trusted - a painstakingly detailed legal agreement was needed backed up by international monitors. Of course the Palestinians cheated on aspects of the agreement but these ‘minor’ infringements were overlooked in the hope of an elusive peace.
This week America and Britain said no more and withdrew their monitors. The Palestinians announced that the prisoners would most likely be released. And so Israel was forced to take her security in to her own hands.
Jericho demonstrates that Israel and the International community accept that the Palestinian Authority is irrelevant to the peace process. From now on, Israel will unilaterally take responsibility for her own security. While this will leave Israelis safer, Palestinians will surely long for the ‘good old days’ of bi-lateral cooperation.
No other country in the world would be condemmned for arresting assasins of one of it's cabinet ministers.
What is obvious here is the usual double standard that every country in the world is entitled to defend itself except Israel
The problem is that now there will be pressure to release the assasins of Ze'evi
The IDF should have killed the assasins on the spot , as they should have done with arch-killer Bhargoutti.
Posted by: Gary | March 19, 2006 at 18:06
Kill kill kill...
Thats all I seem to hear these days from the Jew.
Posted by: Just a Caring Individual | March 19, 2006 at 19:42
No, Just a Caring Individual, most Jews do not believe in kill kill kill. But we do believe that if we are attacked we have the legal and moral right to defend ourselves using military force. I personally abhor violence. I fundamentally believe in dialogue as the way to solve disputes. The problem is that when your opponent is only interested in violence, you are left with no other choice. If the Palestinians and the entire Arab world for that matter had agreed to negotiate a just solution to this problem in 1948 instead of launching a war to destroy the fledgling Jewish state, there would have been no need for Israel to defend herself.
Posted by: Mike | March 19, 2006 at 20:27
When Just a Caring Individual hears the moslems and Leftists shouting 'kill the zionists' he doesn't mind!
Posted by: Gary | March 19, 2006 at 20:49