Understanding Israel
Almost every responsible political leader today expresses a desire to contribute to peace in the Middle East. Easier said than done. A real effort to promote peace requires an understanding of what motivates the parties to the conflict. I can't say I quite get what makes the Palestinians tick. Like the late statesman Abba Eban, I haven't grasped why Palestinian leaders never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity. But I do believe that anyone who genuinely seeks peace, or who aspires to be a friend of the Israeli people, should consider four key factors that inform the Israeli worldview. First, geography. The throwaway line these days is that geography no longer matters in an era of long-range missiles. Not so fast. As the late Sir Isaiah Berlin famously quipped, "The Jews have enjoyed rather too much history and too little geography." Israel is a small country, about the size of New Jersey or Wales, and barely two-thirds the size of Belgium. To put it into context, Egypt is approximately fifty times larger than Israel, Saudi Arabia a hundred times. And there's more. Until its 1967 war for survival, Israel's borders, which were nothing more than the armistice lines from the 1948 War of Independence, were nine miles at their narrowest point, near the country's midsection and most populous area. When President George W. Bush first saw that narrow width from the vantage point of a helicopter, he was reported to have said, "There are some driveways in Texas longer than Israel is wide." When America let down Europe's Jews
I recently testified before a subcommittee of the US Congress on a topic of immense historical importance that continues to resonate - and haunt us - to the present day. This text is taken from the full testimony submitted to the congressional record. Time does not permit more than a brief review of US immigration policy from 1933 to 1945, the years that coincide with the rule of the Third Reich. Fortunately, there are many scholarly works on the subject, as well as personal testimonies, which fill out the picture. Upon assuming office in 1933, President Franklin D. Roosevelt was immediately confronted with two daunting challenges - one domestic, the other foreign. At home, President Roosevelt faced the devastating impact of the Great Depression and the pressing need to rebuild the economy and restore confidence in the nation. Abroad, President Roosevelt took office just weeks after Adolf Hitler ascended to power in Berlin. Dear Bishop Williamson
Dear Bishop Richard Williamson, You've been in the news quite a bit lately, haven't you? As one of the four bishops whose excommunication from the Church was recently lifted by the Vatican, you and your, shall we say, problematic beliefs have gained international attention. Chief among them is your denial of the Holocaust. The Church inexplicably missed this anything-but-secret side of your life, but after much public outcry, it now insists that you recant your views before moving forward. Hypocrisy!
Dear Ms. Trine Lilleng, You were an unknown Norwegian diplomat till this month. No longer. As first secretary in the Norwegian Embassy in Saudi Arabia, you recently sent out an email on your office account in which you declared: "The grandchildren of Holocaust survivors from World War II are doing to the Palestinians exactly what was done to them by Nazi Germany." Accompanying your text were photos, with an emphasis on children, seeking to juxtapose the Holocaust with the recent Israeli military operation in Gaza. Clearly, you are miscast in your role as a diplomat, all the more so of a nation that has sought to play a mediating role in the Arab-Israeli conflict. Shame!
There's an interesting juxtaposition this month. As Israel pursues its military operation against Hamas, preparations are under way around the world for Holocaust Remembrance Day on January 27. The two are not disconnected. Israel's policy should be scrutinized like any other state's, and the loss of any innocent life should be mourned. But some of Israel's fiercest critics go far beyond the limits of what might be termed rational debate. They have obscenely tried to turn the Holocaust on its head, portraying Israel as committing Nazi-like crimes - the ultimate libel against the Jewish state. Why are Palestinian refugees different from all other refugees?
Why indeed? Tragically, there have been countless refugees in the annals of history. Many have fled political persecution, religious harassment, racial or ethnic targeting, or gender or sexual discrimination. It's happened in just about every era. In the twentieth century alone, tens of millions of refugees, if not more, were compelled to find new homes - victims of world wars, border adjustments, population transfers, political demagoguery, and social pathologies. The 1923 Treaty of Lausanne codified the population exchange of Greeks and Turks, totaling more than 1.5 million people. Ancestral homes were wiped out on both sides. A Tale of Two Leaders
What a week! Two European leaders made headlines. As it happened, both were women, born in the postwar era. Both led pathbreaking visits to the Middle East. But they couldn't have struck a greater contrast. German Chancellor Angela Merkel traveled to Israel. It was not her first visit, but it was surely her most historic. She was accompanied by eight Cabinet ministers, an unprecedented number. She planned the visit in connection with the celebration of Israel's sixtieth anniversary. And she left no doubt that Germany was committed to elevating its special relationship with Israel to a still higher level. |
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