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| Kotel Plaza |
In 2000 Israel made an historic and very controversial concession to the Palestinian leadership. In what began at Oslo as an agreement between Israel and the Palestinians to come to a serious and workable compromise that would end decades of conflict, Israel was willing to give up half of Jerusalem to the Palestinians as part of a peace settlement.
Palestinian leader Yassir Arafat had almost agreed to the terms of the agreement. Which – had it been implemented – may have finally seen peaceful co-existence between Israel and all of its Arab neighbors. And more importantly between Palestinians and Israelis. Imagine the possibilities of such a realtionship!
I supported that deal. I had hoped that if it came to fruition, it would effectively end all hostilities. How dare I - one may ask - support giving up half the eternal capital of Israel? Especially since that’s where the Temple Mount and the Kotel were located? For me, a true peace that would end the bloodshed was worth the price. Besides, the deal would have permitted free access to the Kotel to anyone that wanted it.
True, I was naïve then. I should have known that Islamic fundamentalists would never honor such a deal no matter who made it. Not even their hero, Arafat! Fundamentalist groups like Hamas have only one goal: to free all of all of Palestine (Israel) from Jewish control and rid it of Jews. By any means necessary. This has been their stated goal. They don’t hide it. They have implemented those means against Israel in Gaza ever since Gaza was given to them.
Fortunately Arafat could not bring himself to accept the compromise reached at Camp David. And that deal never took place. Thankfully Israel still controls all of Jerusalem.Trying to reach any kind of deal under current conditions would be suicidal.
This is an unfortunate result for the Palestinians. They will continue to live under Israeli rule indefinitely until such time that it can be demonstrably shown that a peace deal will not result in the West Bank becoming Gaza 2.0!
I do not see making any kind of peace deal in the foreseeable future. Not since Gaza has shown us what it might be like in the West Bank if we did. And not with what’s going on in many Muslim states in that region. Iran, Iraq, Syria, Libya, Yemen, all of which are in chaos to one degree or another due to Islamic fundamentalist control.
This seem so clear to me. And yet so many western nations, including the United States (under the current administration) keep insisting that Israel must make concessions for peace. For some inexplicable reason, they are ignoring the obvious. Halting settlement construction (which I actually agree with as a matter of showing good will) will nonetheless not stop the carnage from being perpetrated by fundamentalists like ISIS, Al Qaida, Hamas, and Hezbollah. They will continue to pursue their goals using terror and carnage!
If Israel were to make ‘peace’ right now, it would be an invitation to annihilation! The civilized world seems oblivious to the very likely result of the West Bank becoming Gaza 2.0. How can can they possibly believe that fundamentalists would lay down their arms and allow a Jewish state to exist in what they believe to be their legitimate territory. One that extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the Jordan River! To a Muslim fundamentalist - there is nothing Jewish about any part of Israel. Not even the Kotel.
Apparently UNESCO agrees with them. From the Times of Israel:
The United Nations’ cultural arm on Thursday passed a resolution ignoring Jewish ties to the Temple Mount and the Western Wall in a move derided in Israel as “anti-Semitic” and absurd.
The resolution, adopted at the committee stage, used only Muslim names for the Jerusalem Old City holy sites and was harshly critical of Israel for what it termed “provocative abuses that violate the sanctity and integrity” of the area.
Twenty-four countries in the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) backed the document, while six voted against and 26 abstained at a meeting in Paris.
If there was ever any proof needed that this organization is antisemitic – this is it. Which is too bad. The concept of an organization in a world body that is dedicated to preserving and promoting educational, scientific and cultural activities around the world is surely a worthwhile enterprise. One deserving to be an independent entity within the United Nations in order to assure that goal. But that is hardly how this organization seems to function when it comes to the Jewish State. UNESCO seems to recognize the culture of only one group in that part of the world. Muslims.
By their statements, there is no tie between any other religion to the holy site of Har Habayis - the Temple Mount. Where both Batei HaMikdash (Holy Temples) were located. We, the Jewish people consider this to be sacred ground to this day. The Kotel is the remnant of the outer retaining wall of the 2nd Temple and is recognized as such by Jews and Christians. To ignore that and refer to that area as culturally only as Islamic, is to deny the very bible that identifies this location in other terms.
But that doesn’t seem to bother the 24 member UNESCO countries that backed the resolution or the 26 that abstained. Truth be damned. Thankfully Estonia, Germany, Lithuania, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and United States voted against it.
It is one thing to say that a concession for peace requires sacrificing what we believe to be our sacred land. This was the case in that 2000 deal that then Israeli Prime Mister Ehud Barak agreed to. But to deny any connection to it is a lie. A lie whose only motive is to legitimize our beliefs. Which is not much different that how fundamentalist Muslims see things. And that will just fuel more terrorism and carnage. Not only against the Jewish people. Not only in Israel, But Everywhere! And that is truly sickening!