A Palestinian protester uses a sling to hurl stones at Israeli troops during clashes outside Ofer prison near Ramallah on "Nakba", May 15, 2012.
There’s something to be said for civilizations that rise above adversity and violence and focus on progress and prosperity. Israel is not only considered the Silicon Valley of the Middle East for its welter of technological startups and contributions, it’s also feeding hungry bellies in developing countries via its breakthroughs with drip irrigation and other agricultural advances. Even the Nigeria, Sudan and India are getting in on the action.
It’s hard to believe that one of the smallest nations in the world has accomplished so much given the volatile neighbors that surround the Jewish state. Many of these “neighbors” still can’t get over the UN’s vote on November, 29, 1947 to divide the land they termed “Palestine” into a Jewish state, Israel and an Arab state, Jordan. Though, you have to admit it’s rather interesting that Palestinians have no ill will over the creation of Jordan (which by the way is much larger than Israel). How much larger?
Jordan is approximately 34,495 sq miles (89,342 km²),
while Israel is about 8,019 sq miles (20,770 km²)
Instead, Palestinians only reserve their ill will for Israel. No one could be more disgruntled with this historical moment (when it relates to Israel) than Arabs who claim they are descendants of Palestinians. “Nakba” is the Palestinians term for “catastrophe” over Israel’s modern independence. Palestinians commemorate “Nakba” by storming Israel’s borders, lobbing rocks, and throwing Molotov cocktails.
We all know acts of war like these would be met with a barrage of bullets at the doorstep of any Arab country yet luckily today only about a dozen Palestinian protestors were injured in clashes. Last year, out-of-control pro-Palestinian rioters from Syria were not so lucky. The Syrian Reform Party reported at the time that they paid these border-jumpers a $1,000 dollars a pop. Why? Obviously, to take pressure off Syria’s human rights abuses that are still ratcheting up under the brutal “leadership” of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
“Nakba” again begs the question: Have Palestinian even read the Oslo Accords? It specifically states that protesting can only occur for peaceful purposes. Ok, so let’s examine what “Nakba” accomplishes. Did it gain Palestinians a state? No. Did it help Palestinians prosper? No. Well, it certainly cranked up the Palestinian PR machine and got the attention of the IDF, Israeli border police and pro-Israel bloggers like myself to notice yet another unnecessary act of violence. It did cause slight injuries to three border police and one IDF soldier around the Kalandiya checkpoint near Jerusalem, and also at Beitunia near the Ofer Prison. Oh, and it did accomplish one other thing: rioters were met with tear gas, rubber bullets and other crowd dispersal tools thanks to fast-acting IDF and police forces.
Sixty-four years later, accomplishments can be easily weighed with only one overriding conclusion: the conflict is not about land; it’s about the refusal to accept thy Jewish neighbor.
Photo credit: REUTERS/Darren Whiteside
