The Middle East conflict continues to be punctuated by terrorist attacks, unilateral demands on Israel and the rise and fall of various settlements. Few politicians or diplomats have any hope of the Oslo Accords being resurrected, let alone amount to any progress in the direction of a solid peace agreement.
This doesn’t stop worldwide anti-Semitic factions from pointing the finger at the perennial Jewish “perpetrators” and feeling “Oh-so-sorry” for the Palestinian “victims.” The message from liberals remains the same: “If only Israel would put down their weapons, we would see peace!”
Israel has been painted as the threat for so long that no longer do we need to see facts to believe reports from the media or the United Nations. The “displaced, abused and underprivileged Palestinians” continue to fight for their freedom against the “oppressor.” And rightfully so, the world tells us!
While I agree that the situation in the “disputed territories” is less than ideal, most people in the West have a preconceived notion that Palestinians live in huts, tents and slums, as they constantly get evicted from their homes. This is so far from the truth! Gaza has malls, hotels and restaurants that rival many worldwide urban areas.
So the saga continues as the evening news report of more clashes between IDF soldiers bent on hurting Arabs and innocent Palestinian victims caught in the fire. Many will say that this justifies the violence, comparing the Middle East conflict to the South African Apartheid of yesteryear. Others compare the Palestinian plight to the Civil Rights Movement in America as documented – albeit falsely – in the 2010 movie, “Little Town of Bethlehem.” Of course, evangelicals have their word to say in the matter, and so, under the guise of reconciliation, a one-sided “Christian” conference takes place in the Holy Land every couple of years under the name of Christ at the Checkpoint.
While I strongly disagree with any form of violence, I understand that once somebody feels cheated, abused and victimized, they might resort to an armed struggle, violence and even killings. This is where the Palestinians are today, convinced that they belong in the land of Eretz Yisrael that once was the land of their forefathers. Of course the fact that most of the world is helping them promote a rewriting of history is very helpful to their cause (even though it only became popular through the crafty dealings of Yassir Arafat in the ’60s).
So the Palestinians believe that they are “freedom fighters,” and so they go against IDF soldiers. But recently, it was also in the West Bank town of Psagot that little Noam Glick was shot in the neck. The question I would like to ask to those who support the “Palestinian victim syndrome” is this: Why would a Palestinian sniper shoot a 9-year-old Israeli girl playing in her backyard?
Where is the danger there? What is the rationale for shooting an innocent child? Of course, the Palestinian Authority not only refused to condemn the act but instead decided to praise the shooter.
How in the world is anybody supposed to negotiate peace with people who not only kill innocent children but also receive praise from their leaders for doing so? This is the same Mahmoud Abbas who keeps garnering the world’s attention and compassion for his people.
There are no excuses for such an act, no matter how you look at it.
If I didn’t believe in God and weren’t a follower of Yeshua (Jesus), I would see absolutely no hope for the Middle East and the whole world, for that matter. But in spite of the continuous hatred displayed against my people, in spite of the constant role reversals between the victims and the perpetrators, and the numerous killings, I have hope.
My hope doesn’t rest in a fallen world rebelling against God, but it rests in the very God that the fallen world is rebelling against. If Israeli children have become the new obstacles to peace in the Middle East – and if the “increasingly-not-so” civilized world remains silent about such an act – I am brought down to my knees even more so, and I am compelled to pray for both Israelis and Palestinians to meet the Jewish Messiah without whom they will never be able to reconcile.
Israeli children are not an obstacle to peace in the Middle East any more than Israel is. Palestinian blindness and generational indoctrination against the Jews is the obstacle.
