Guest Post by a High Ranking US Military Officer
I have mentioned in the past that even though my blog deals mostly with issues that impact Orthodox Judaism, there are non Jews that read it too. Last week I received an e-mail from a high ranking US military officer, who is Christian (not a Christian Zionist). It was in response to my post condemning Rabbi Shmuley Boteachs’s ad with respect to Susan Rice in the New York Times. He has a unique perspective on the Arab (Muslim) Israeli conflict in that it is based on observations of a more than 30 years involvement in the Middle East (including Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, the Palestinian authority, and the current regime in Iran).
He assured me that everything he wrote was reviewed both at the Pentagon and at the White House. This does not mean their approval or agreement, but rather that he has not violated any security or confidentiality restrictions.
I thought it would be valuable to see the views of someone who has had direct experience in the Middle East over the long term. I asked him if I could publish his views. He agreed provided that he remain anonymous.
As always, the views expressed here - do not necessarily reflect my own. His words follow:
Rather than go into a full discussion I would like to present you with observations of a non-Jewish US military leader who has had more than 30 years experience (in the Middle East).
The key is the HATRED FOR JEWS that existed well before Israel existed. It is a hatred for Jews, ……ALL JEWS….. anywhere in the world.
A peaceful Palestinian state living side-by-side in peace with a Jewish state----What's not to like?
Painful concessions for peace (and I emphasize FOR PEACE) ---What's not to like?
Get out of Sinai and Israel will have peace with Egypt. (So far, so good, but tenuous and very unpopular in Egypt.) And Sinai is a launching pad for terror attacks on Israel.
Get out of Lebanon and they have no reason to attack Israel. Israel got out of Lebanon and exposed its population to attacks from Hezbollah.
Get out of Gaza and they have no reason to attack Israel. Hamas missiles and rockets were the result.
Get out of the Golan and Assad would have no reason to attack Israel. This was advocated by the highest levels of planning in the IDF. Is there a single Israeli who now thinks this would have been a good idea?
Unfortunately compromise is not in the vocabulary of the Palestinians. It is that Israel blinked and they gained the victory on that path of one nation, Islamic from the river to the sea.
No matter what Mahmoud Abbas obtains, the Palestinians will keep demanding more and more.The Arabs on every opportunity rejected any approach to a 2-state solution. Current polling by Palestinian academics indicate more than 85% of West Bank Palestinians reject a 2 state solution and an overwhelming majority view a 2 state solution as a step toward redeeming sacred Moslem lands ( 100 % of the current state of Israel).
Painful concessions for peace (and I emphasize FOR PEACE) ---What's not to like?
Get out of Sinai and Israel will have peace with Egypt. (So far, so good, but tenuous and very unpopular in Egypt.) And Sinai is a launching pad for terror attacks on Israel.
Get out of Lebanon and they have no reason to attack Israel. Israel got out of Lebanon and exposed its population to attacks from Hezbollah.
Get out of Gaza and they have no reason to attack Israel. Hamas missiles and rockets were the result.
Get out of the Golan and Assad would have no reason to attack Israel. This was advocated by the highest levels of planning in the IDF. Is there a single Israeli who now thinks this would have been a good idea?
Unfortunately compromise is not in the vocabulary of the Palestinians. It is that Israel blinked and they gained the victory on that path of one nation, Islamic from the river to the sea.
No matter what Mahmoud Abbas obtains, the Palestinians will keep demanding more and more.The Arabs on every opportunity rejected any approach to a 2-state solution. Current polling by Palestinian academics indicate more than 85% of West Bank Palestinians reject a 2 state solution and an overwhelming majority view a 2 state solution as a step toward redeeming sacred Moslem lands ( 100 % of the current state of Israel).
The release of prisoners signified to the Palestinians and to the world that Jews accept the shedding Jewish blood as not being of great importance. The reaction from the Jewish PEACE NOW/J St community has been “it is a small price to pay to refresh the negotiations”…..We have to give Mahmoud Abbas a victory that he can demonstrate because by releasing the prisoners in the Shalit situation we handed Hamas such a massive victory.”
For Israel to bank on commitments as promises that will be kept by the United States is suicidal.
Israeli and American Jews would be well advised to review history of nearly every US administration and realize that US assurances such as that “we will not permit Hezbollah to re-arm” will be frequently reneged upon. One example is when Pres. Obama and Secretary of State Clinton 1st claimed that the letter that George Bush give Israel concerning the settlements did not exist.
Then when Israel proved the existence of the letter, they then explicitly reneged on the commitment claiming it was no longer operational. Another example is Pres. Johnson's reassurance to Israel about preserving Israel's free-navigation rights. Then, Johnson lied directly to the Israelis telling them that he was actively organizing an international maritime force to prevent the blockade of the Strait of Tiran , when in fact no such force was ever actually planned or even contemplated.
The As long as the Palestinians demand that any area they takeover should be Jew-free. ; maintain that even if they get a State, the residents of the camps on the West Bank, in Jordan, Syria, etc. would not be citizens of this new state but would have the right of unlimited return to the state of Israel; and that all of Israel is unredeemed Islamic territory... THERE WILL NEVER BE PEACE.
The As long as the Palestinians demand that any area they takeover should be Jew-free. ; maintain that even if they get a State, the residents of the camps on the West Bank, in Jordan, Syria, etc. would not be citizens of this new state but would have the right of unlimited return to the state of Israel; and that all of Israel is unredeemed Islamic territory... THERE WILL NEVER BE PEACE.
Concerning Susan Rice in particular, you might want to read Samantha Powers book where Samantha claims that Susan Rice influenced Clinton to ignore the genocide in Rwanda for political purposes.
Susan Rice started out as a management consultant in Canada. On the personal level I knew her as a wife and a mother. In a social setting she is very pleasant. However, she is always looked the other way to condone evil. Her current influence is very much the same: political supersedes moral.
When Samantha Powers was 1st mentioned for the United Nations I opposed her appointment. She met with Rabbi Boteach and convinced him of her genuine convictions and that she was not knee-jerk anti-Israel. He endorsed her appointment.
In the Susan Rice issue, my view is very simple: when you encounter evil, you fight it …or you are letting it prevail. Therefore, when you encounter evil you have no choice but to fight it.