Two weeks ago I wrote an article that “a volcano was about to erupt” and I explained all about the terror that is growing daily in Jerusalem. I am sorry to state that every word I wrote in that article is, unfortunately, coming true. I wish I had been wrong but it looks like I hit it right on the head; Jerusalem is boiling over and this needs to be stopped NOW.
Remember the Crown Heights riots back in August 1991? They were not pretty and it resulted in the death of Yankel Rosenbaum, plus the injury of 43 civilians and 152 police officers. However, as crazy as those riots were, they lasted for just THREE DAYS. Yes, these were three very crazy, hectic and highly stressful days but it ended after three days.
Now try to remember the Rodney King riots in Los Angeles in April 1992. These were far worse than Crown Heights and by the time it was over, 50 people were dead and over 2,000 were wounded. How long did these riots last? FIVE DAYS, that’s it. How did such mayhem end so quickly? Many factors were obviously involved but in short, 9,800 soldiers were brought in to restore order and over 12,000 people were arrested.
In both these cases, wild, violent, hate-filled riots were brought under control and peace was restored because the authorities chose to act swiftly and with an iron fist. The same can happen in Jerusalem, if the existing leadership makes a decision to hit the rioters hard and not be afraid of how this force appears on Wolf Blitzer’s show on CNN. The problem with this logic is that everybody knows this. “Riot Control 101” is nothing new and the Israeli police don’t need me lecturing them on what needs to be done. So here’s my question: Why is this not being done? Why do riots end in Crown Heights in 3 days and in LA in 5 days but they continue in Jerusalem for YEARS?
The answer may shock you but here is the non-politically-correct truth; the existing leadership in Israel does not believe that all of Jerusalem belongs to the Jewish people and therefore, why fight for what is not yours?
Let’s put aside slogans such as “The Undivided City of Jerusalem” and “Har Ha’Bayit B’Yadenu” (the famous line said by General Motta Gur as he led his paratroopers in the liberation of the Old City and Temple Mount during the Six Day War). Let’s look at the facts and understand that ever since Hashem returned us to ALL of Jerusalem, our leadership has rejected 75% of that gift. Yes, we plowed the area in front of the Kotel and made it a beautiful plaza but that was like keeping the gift-wrapping while returning the actual, priceless gift called Har Ha’Bayit. Yes, we kept a small area in the Old City called the Jewish Quarter but we refused Jews access to the Moslem, Christian and Armenian Quarters. Who does that? Who keeps just 25% of a gift yet throws back the overwhelming majority of it? Yes, we built in Ramat Eshkol and Talpiot but we ran away from Abu Tor and Silwan, the places where King David lived and thrived for many years! Today, just a few brave families live in these areas and they literally risk their lives every single day. But the masses that would have loved to come to Jerusalem – to settle, to build, to open Yeshivot and to truly reclaim the city – were all forbidden to do so.
By implementing this policy, the Israeli government stated with its actions (which are far stronger than words) that about half of Jerusalem simply does not belong to the Jewish people. And if Jerusalem does not belong to us, then the riots are justified since it is really just a way of expression for the poor, oppressed people to state their case. This is why the violence has gotten worse year after year and why the existing Israeli leadership cannot end it. Bringing in 9,800 soldiers – like they did in Los Angeles – will only make things worse because why are you bringing in soldiers to fight for an area you don’t even believe is yours???