I am an American Jew, and I certainly don't condone Hamas or its attack on Israel, but I do understand how Muslims and others around the world who follow the history of asymetric warfare and Palestinian suffering, and believe in the cause of Palestinian libration, can say that Israel is fully responsible for this violence. I hope that is a serious question, because it has serious answers that we must sincerely try to understand if we ever are to move beyond horrific violence and suffering.
Excellent analysis. I don’t think Bibi survives this, he was the one dismissive of Hamas being a threat. He thought they could be bought, while they spent all the Qatari money on weapons and training.
And if reporting is correct today, and Egypt’s head of Intelligence did in fact, alert Bibi personally, that Hamas was planning something big and soon, then he has no excuse for being so obtuse and dismissive of the intelligence from Egypt and his own intelligence chiefs.
That said, Bibi has no one else to blame but himself. He got in bed with right-wing fanatics who don’t serve in the military, yet get special treatment and funding for their religious studies, while working hard to destroy Palestinian rights in the West Bank and a wholesale takeover of all of Judea and Samaria.
Additional fault goes to Trump and Kushner who were enablers of the right-wing fanatics and Netanyahu. They moved the US Embassy to Jerusalem without Israel making any concessions to the Palestinians. They allowed Israel to annex the Golen Heights without any concessions to Syria. They did nothing while Netanyahu continued to allow illegal settlements in the West Bank, while continuing a stranglehold on Gaza, all at the expense of the Palestinians.
Under these conditions, would anyone expect a different result?
In his younger days Bibi was a courageous soldier who served his country with pride. Now he is an over-the-hill fat cat poseur. Will the Israeli public see his dereliction of duty, allowing complacency in the security bureaucracy? We can hope they'll soon open their eyes. He lost my respect when he demonized Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in the months before Rabin's assassination in 1995.
A note for history buffs - a great read is "Jerusalem-The Biography" (2011) by Simon Sebag Montefiore. An epic history of 3000 years from King David to the founding of the modern Israeli state. I couldn't put it down.
The journalist Amir Tibon, who lives in Nahal Oz on the border with Gaza and was trapped with his family in a safe room during the attacks, agrees with you. In an extraordinary interview by Yair Rosenberg just published in The Atlantic ("We're Going to Die Here"), Tibon says, "First of all, we have to win the war. This is the most important thing. After the war, I believe the people who went down to fight and to rescue their families, and the people who have loved ones kidnapped inside Gaza, and the people who lost their homes—these people will not allow this government to stay one more day. The protests that Israel saw in the last year are going to be a children's game compared to the anger of the public after this. But right now it's about winning the war."
Good analysis. One more thought: Bibi will likely enjoy worldwide sympathy that, like the US after 9/11, he will sadly squander on killings, tortures, and imprisonments. Those will number in the thousands, and this process will drag out for perhaps 5-7 years. So, the rest of the world may lose sympathy for Israel, and perhaps Bibi finally loses his job and perhaps a real peace process happens with PA playing an important role. But the scars will be hard and deep. And Iran will not be helpful to the peace or healing process. I would very much like to believe that good things can result from this moment - but I’m afraid we will be witnessing and participating in a messy and long new chapter before a new light really begins to dawn.
I am an American Jew, and I certainly don't condone Hamas or its attack on Israel, but I do understand how Muslims and others around the world who follow the history of asymetric warfare and Palestinian suffering, and believe in the cause of Palestinian libration, can say that Israel is fully responsible for this violence. I hope that is a serious question, because it has serious answers that we must sincerely try to understand if we ever are to move beyond horrific violence and suffering.
Nice article, interesting comments. Staying hopeful.
Excellent analysis. I don’t think Bibi survives this, he was the one dismissive of Hamas being a threat. He thought they could be bought, while they spent all the Qatari money on weapons and training.
And if reporting is correct today, and Egypt’s head of Intelligence did in fact, alert Bibi personally, that Hamas was planning something big and soon, then he has no excuse for being so obtuse and dismissive of the intelligence from Egypt and his own intelligence chiefs.
That said, Bibi has no one else to blame but himself. He got in bed with right-wing fanatics who don’t serve in the military, yet get special treatment and funding for their religious studies, while working hard to destroy Palestinian rights in the West Bank and a wholesale takeover of all of Judea and Samaria.
Additional fault goes to Trump and Kushner who were enablers of the right-wing fanatics and Netanyahu. They moved the US Embassy to Jerusalem without Israel making any concessions to the Palestinians. They allowed Israel to annex the Golen Heights without any concessions to Syria. They did nothing while Netanyahu continued to allow illegal settlements in the West Bank, while continuing a stranglehold on Gaza, all at the expense of the Palestinians.
Under these conditions, would anyone expect a different result?
In his younger days Bibi was a courageous soldier who served his country with pride. Now he is an over-the-hill fat cat poseur. Will the Israeli public see his dereliction of duty, allowing complacency in the security bureaucracy? We can hope they'll soon open their eyes. He lost my respect when he demonized Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in the months before Rabin's assassination in 1995.
A note for history buffs - a great read is "Jerusalem-The Biography" (2011) by Simon Sebag Montefiore. An epic history of 3000 years from King David to the founding of the modern Israeli state. I couldn't put it down.
The journalist Amir Tibon, who lives in Nahal Oz on the border with Gaza and was trapped with his family in a safe room during the attacks, agrees with you. In an extraordinary interview by Yair Rosenberg just published in The Atlantic ("We're Going to Die Here"), Tibon says, "First of all, we have to win the war. This is the most important thing. After the war, I believe the people who went down to fight and to rescue their families, and the people who have loved ones kidnapped inside Gaza, and the people who lost their homes—these people will not allow this government to stay one more day. The protests that Israel saw in the last year are going to be a children's game compared to the anger of the public after this. But right now it's about winning the war."
Good analysis. One more thought: Bibi will likely enjoy worldwide sympathy that, like the US after 9/11, he will sadly squander on killings, tortures, and imprisonments. Those will number in the thousands, and this process will drag out for perhaps 5-7 years. So, the rest of the world may lose sympathy for Israel, and perhaps Bibi finally loses his job and perhaps a real peace process happens with PA playing an important role. But the scars will be hard and deep. And Iran will not be helpful to the peace or healing process. I would very much like to believe that good things can result from this moment - but I’m afraid we will be witnessing and participating in a messy and long new chapter before a new light really begins to dawn.
the Wall street journal is full of crap
Free Palestine!