Google| Subject | Middle-east again; was: Republicanism still an offence in England? |
| From | Raven |
| Date | 2002-05-14 21:58 (2002-05-14 21:58) |
| Message-ID | <G1eE8.175$%G3.4685@news.get2net.dk> |
| Client | |
| Newsgroups | alt.fan.tolkien |
| Follows | Flame of the West |
| Followups | Russ (30m) David Flood (1h & 32m) Flame of the West (3d, 1h & 27m) |
"Flame of the West" <jsolinasNoSpam@erols.com>skrev i en meddelelse news:3CE0A61D.A1F1F263@erols.com...
Flame of the WestThe Arab and other Moslem countries acknowledging Israel's right to exist is not enough as a security measure for Israel. No matter how genuine and honest the leaders are who make the peace. The Middle-east is volatile, even apart from the conflict between the Palestinians and Israel. Tomorrow there may be a new and radically different government in just about any of Israel's neighbours. Just as with Iran when Khomeini took over, much to the surprise of us in the West. If the Shah, before his fall, had militarily guaranteed Israel's right to exist, do you think Khomeini would have honoured that guarantee? Israel has kept the West Bank and the Golan heights in preparation against another Arab invasion attempt, and this is one of the reasons why many Jews plant themselves as settlers in these territories. Old-fashioned expansionism with religious justification is another, of course, and a less savoury one. But if the Israelis dismantle the settlements and permit a Palestinian sovereign state in Gaza and the West Bank, they must have something better than words in return, even signed words in a treaty. This is why I suggested NATO membership, or something similar. Alone, the Israelis are in a vise. If they give up the occupied territories, they will face a grave danger. Not here and now, of course. Their Arab neighbours other than that slaughterer Saddam Hussein have at this time no desire to rock the boat. With a few revolutions in some of the Arab countries this may change. Fancy a united front between Saddam Hussein and the revolutionary governments of Syria and Saudi-Arabia, with the Hashemites in Jordan bowing to the pressure of that front and of suddenly optimistic Palestinians in Jordan? Like I mentioned in an earlier post, their Arab enemies need to be lucky only once. But if the Israelis don't give up the territories, they will face continued terrorist attacks, and also the moral rot that comes from being masters over another people.
How about the Arab countries making genuine peace with Israel and the Palestinians foreswearing forever their claims inside Israel proper? And what about the demilitarization of the West Bank? Giving up the West Bank for anything less would put Israel in deadly danger, but I'm not sure the Arab side will buy it. They've been making noises again about a Palestinian "right of return." Anyone advocating such a thing is just not serious about Israel's right to exist.
Jon L. Beck.
2002-03-30-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
