Playing the 'Nakba' Card

As Israelis watched fireworks, went to barbeques and celebrated Yom Ha'atzmaut, American media coverage of Israel's 60th anniversary was overwhelmingly canned and formulaic. For every veteran of the Haganah featured, there was an accompanying interview with a Palestinian who left his home in Israel in 1948. For every examination of the significance of six decades of Israel's independence, there was a reference to what Palestinians call the "nakba," or catastrophe.

This symmetry, evident in features, articles, op-eds and interviews that appeared over the weeks leading up to the start of the 60th celebrations, may have made self-satisfied editors believe they were demonstrating their impartiality.  In fact, they established a false moral equivalency between the founding of Israel and a Palestinian "catastrophe," feeding into a dangerous misperception of what happened 60 years ago and what must happen today.

Why the US and moderate Arabs need each other

Relating American interests in the larger Middle East to the US role in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is a necessary and sometimes controversial element of US policy making.

During the Cold War, two predominant models emerged.  Zbignew Brzezinski, President Jimmy Carter's National Security Advisor, postulated the concept that protection of key American interests -- limiting Soviet influence and retaining access to Mideast oil -- required achieving as soon as possible a comprehensive solution to the Arab-Israeli conflict.  Brzezinski and Carter saw obstacles to American interests in the continuing conflict and saw great advantages for the US in the larger region if the conflict were resolved.

The problems with this approach were many and were so evident to Egyptian President Anwar Sadat, who sought progress toward peace, that he decided to go it alone with Israel, much to the initial dismay of the Carter Administration.  First, it was unreal to expect all the Arabs, including the radicals, to reach peace with Israel.  Second, it put an unreasonable weight on the Israeli-Arab conflict to influence the many other conflicts and challenges in the region. And third, it was a process that would inevitably lead to undue pressure on Israel, the logic being that if this was the key to all America's problems in the region, and if as anyone could see the Arabs weren't ready, then advocates of such an approach would invariably play the mind game of telling themselves "If only Israel would make the appropriate concessions."

President Bush's push for peace

The underlying principle of President Bush's statement on the Israel-Palestinian peace process, probably his most definitive comments since his June 24, 2002 address, is that the conflict is not a zero-sum game. It is rather one that if appropriate steps are taken by both sides, all will benefit. To be pro-Israeli is not to be anti-Palestinian, and to be pro-Palestinian is not to be anti-Israel.

In the course of his statement, the President reiterated a number of fundamental points that are important in achieving peace and in reassuring Israel.

Most important is his clear position that a Palestinian state cannot happen if terrorism continues ("No agreement and no Palestinian state will be born of terror"). The lack of equivocation here should send important signals both to Palestinians and Israelis.

About this blog

A Point of View Anti-Defamation League (ADL) National Director Abraham Foxman on fighting anti-Semitism, bigotry and extremism.

Search this blog

Combined feed for all JPost.com blogs

Most Popular Posts

Recent Comments

ahmed, Egypt: The total arab forces that fought against the jewish irregulars were 30,000 against more than 100,000 WWII veterans including 125 generals from superpowers, the outcome of the war was clear before the begining to anyone who has a mind to think! the Jews were the upper hand and still are. For me, an Egyptian, I can never understand how a people who suffered so much under the Nazis, inflict that much suffering on other people by killing and uprooting them from their land. There is a siginicant percentage of 800,000 refugees who were forced out by the Haganah, Sturn, and Argon.
Toby Schwartz, Queens, NY: Let's be clear - in the Balfour Declaration, the Palestinian state was JORDAN!!!! The world has a short memory and at the very least, WE should remember correctly. We should gather round our Israeli leaders and help them get out the truth. At the end of the day, the best solution for the future is cooperation and truth. Hashem should continue to bless us.
EGW: I forgot to say that the Arab "nakba" is the fact that they just "CAN'T" destroy the Jews, no matter how hard they try.