Mahmood is asking why Israel is still bombing lebanon after it proved its point. I join his question, though i’m not sure i have the answer he wants to hear. Israel is under attack, and the only way to save it is to stop the fighting. In order for us to be at peace we have to be sure than once we stop bombing Hizbullah’s targets in lebanon we will not be fired rockets again
In the meantime, our ministers aren’t doing a very good job at presenting the public opinion. Saul Mofaz, the former Military chief of staff, and former minister of defense, currently holding the position of minister of transportation. Following the missile attack on the Haifa rail station, he commented that the missiles are Syrian, showing his ‘expertise’, and today he commented in Ma’ariv, Israel’s second largest newspaper, that:
The world must understand: Hizballah is Al-Qaeda. Nasrallah is Bin-Laden. No less. And out of that, it must be clear that no Hassan is Immune. Not out of revenge, but from an enlightened view of reality. Israel shall not rest and shall not be silent until the soldiers will return healthy and at whole to their homes, and until order and peace will return to the northen border, and this time for the long run.
How do i make myself clear, Mofaz, though he is a senior participant in the government, acts like a general, he does not understand the israeli public good. The world has to understand that though Israel has many voices, the only voices that people are hearing now are the voices of the extremists. Guns are the uncivilised way of arguing.
Whilst Uri Avnery writes against this war, i cannot agree with him in full. I think that this war is not a planned one. I know that the Israeli leadership didn’t plan it. Whether the army planned it or not is another question. Though i seldomly trust my government, i know that it is not in our interest to go to war. Israel’s economy has started to recover and the high-tech industry is booming, we are not in a state where we have to gain something from this war. We do not wish for further territory and we do not want to hold another nation, again, under occupation. There is no justification for this war, and we did not initiate it.
On the other hand, even though we did not plan this war, we have to do whatever it takes to stop it as soon as possible.
Jonathan..
I think (!) i posted once on your Hebrew blog (that was an interesting enterprise as I don’t read or speak the language). I went back to see if you answered my comment, but couldn’t figure out how to find it! lol
So ..IF that was you, I am glad that you decided to do one in english. As a matter of international discourse, it is so helpful that so many people can speak, read and write it. It is my second language, my first being Dutch.
I have followed the discussions on Mahmoud’s site, I have been ‘sucked’ into the emotions of it and decided today that I am not going to post on the situation other than to refer blogs or other links that either will show different viewpoints (if I can find them or if people send them to me) or those that will educate myself and my regulars who visit my site. I’ve had thoughts swirling in my head ranging from participating in the blame game to feeling very very sad that this is going on, again.
I won’t bore you with my background and the many many thoughts I had, suffice it to say that, since I don’t live in the region, I just want to acknowledge those who do and step aside.. if you want peace, you have to apply it to yourself and that means, non judgement and not getting ‘sucked’ into emotional debates.. keep posting, I’ll come back to read your perspectives!
Ingrid
I too hope it ends soon. Is there anything people from both sides of the border can do together? I feel we just got sucked into all of this!
Rampurple,
I think that the best we can do is start spreading the word that there are people whom are ready for peace and are working for it (I was already contacted by some israeli media in this matter) and to say what we believe in (BTW: the israeli media started to cover arab blogs as well).
While people here are working on the Israeli coverage and public opinion, i believe that working on the arab media would be harder.
As for the other things that we can do, I am still considering it, but i think that the best way is to get people to talk. as long as people are talking they refrain from fighting.
Ingrid,
Thanks. I couldn’t find your comment in my hebrew blog. But what i said there is that i opened this one since i understood that as long as i keep writing in hebrew i can only affect the israeli opinion, and i want to help israel by changing it – but not only it. The fact that you’re not from the region doesn’t matter, as long as you have your opinion and as long as you are willing to help others make peace.
Very well said, Jonathan, and thanks for posting this in english so us lazy, self-centered Americans can read it, sincerely. Thanks Ingrid, because I followed her here.
I’ve commented in several places that peace has to be truly wanted before it is achieved, by both sides.