…perfect justice, Kirsch argues, would mean restoring the Land of Israel to the Jews who were driven out of it by the Romans and also to the Palestinian Arabs who have been denied sovereignty by the Jews. “But any attempt to secure the country for just one of these peoples would inflict suffering on millions…”
… the Biden administration has wanted both to support Israel at a genuine hour of need and to alleviate the humanitarian catastrophe taking place in Gaza. This proved insufficient given the nature of Prime Minister Netanyahu’s extremist coalition government and the fanatical nature of Hamas, which is singularly indifferent to the suffering of its people.
The October 7 Hamas attack has reset a new regional order in the Middle East, thanks in part to Israel’s offensive moves against Hezbollah and Iran. But these may be creating political openings for a more peaceful future.
“I came to understand that the current conflict is not all black and white as some people paint it. I learned how important Israel is to Jews worldwide, especially in the present times, why it had been created, but also how Israelis had been affected by the past decades of intermittent war with its Arab neighbours.”
A veteran Palestinian activist embraces the Olmert/al-Kidwa plan for a two state solution. He outlines a key need for both Israelis and Palestinians to “gain control over their violent tendencies.”
While the world has been focusing on the Gaza war, Israel’s right-wing government has taken alarming new steps to expand West Bank settlements and their infrastructure.
There are pitfalls to “solidarity tours” of Israel in the wake of October 7th; this one tried, albeit imperfectly, to avoid them. The trick is to cultivate compassion and understanding for both Israelis and Palestinians at this terrible time.
Yonatan Zeigen, son of our dear friend and peace activist Vivian Silver who was murdered in kibbutz Be’eri on October 7, gave this beautiful speech at the Israeli-Palestinian Joint Memorial Ceremony that was held this week in Israel.
Most demonstrators may be against the existence of Israel as a country. This can be seen as anti-Zionism, but questioning the survival of a nation is actually worse than opposing an ideology (an “ism”).
Zahra Sakkejha and her peers wore purple T-shirts and held signs that read, “Free the Hostages, “Ceasefire Now,” “Diplomacy Now,” and “Not One More Drop of Blood!” They chanted, “In Gaza, in Tel Aviv, all the children want to live!”
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