Another Capitulation

    We have now lived in Israel for more years than we lived in the USA, and our joy in living in Israel knows no bounds. We are living in our homeland with our people. We loved America and are proud to be American citizens, but Israel is our home. We strive each day to keep our focus on the wonderful things that life in Israel offers. We are happy that Israel and the USA are allies and help each other. Unfortunately, we are often upset and concerned by the political situation and by the attitude of the world to the Jews.

 

    Israel has again been forced to make a major concession to the Arabs. The building of new structures in our community will be halted for the next 10 months (as is all building in Judea and Samaria). The Arabs have made no pledges in return. Nothing. They have not even pledged to stop murdering Jews, and they are complaining that the building freeze is not enough. These “moderate” Arabs want more before they will even sit down to talk to us. We wonder what value any agreement with “moderate” Abu Mazen would have.

 

    The main factions among the Palestinian Arabs are the “moderate” PLO terrorists and the violent Hamas terrorists. The world wants us to capitulate to Abu Mazen, but Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip and much of Judea and Samaria, has declared that the “moderates” may not negotiate in its name and that it will not be bound by any agreements.

 

    Why stop building in Judea and Samaria just because a new U.S. President wants us to? Few Jews seem to wonder how the president can, on one hand, send in thousands of new troops to Afghanistan, while demanding that Jews negotiate with the Palestinian Arabs. America’s forced rule over countries like Afghanistan and Iraq are OK because it is in America’s interest. America can invade, rule and send more troops to kill the local population and, I guess that is reasonable, even though the Afghanis are not murdering American civilians. Yet, in America’s view, Israel must negotiate with the murderers of local Jewish civilians and may not send in troops to kill the terrorists.

 

    If we must negotiate with terrorists whose main manifesto is to murder Jews and throw us into the sea, why doesn’t the president of the USA not sit down and negotiate with the Afghanis and Iraqis?  Why sacrifice American servicemen/women for these Arab terrorist countries? Let them kill each other if that is what they want. How can the president, in good conscience, send more troops to murder locals in one sector of the Middle East, while forcing Israel to negotiate with the terrorists in its sector? Sorry, Mr. President, despite all of our respect for America, you must realize that it is impossible to negotiate with Arab terrorists.

 

    Unfortunately, Israeli leaders feel that they must capitulate to incredible demands from Hamas terrorists. There is little long-range planning or thinking on the part of Israeli politicians. Israel has captured hundreds of terrorists, some before they murdered Jews, some after. The Arabs have kidnapped one soldier, Gilad Shalit. In return for this one kidnapped soldier, the terrorists are demanding the freeing of hundreds of their fellow terrorists. If the Arabs had, G-d forbid, kidnapped one of my children, I would be doing exactly what the Shalit family is doing. I would demand that Israel free all of the terrorist prisoners so that my child would be freed. Like the Shalit family, I would speak to every world politician willing to hear me out, to solicit his or her help to free my child. No price would be too high to pay.

 

    But the prime minister of Israel and his political cabinet are responsible for weighing the long-range situation. How many Jews will be murdered by the freed terrorists, or by those Arabs, who will understand that even if they commit acts of terror they will be freed when their friends kidnap another Jew? It is sad that the Israeli Government is considering freeing terrorists with Jewish blood on their hands. How many will suffer because of this capitulation?

 

    May the coming Chanukah holiday bring another miracle in freeing Gilad Shalit without having to free even one terrorist, and may the light of peace come to our country and to the world.