The world forgets: Israel still faces an existential threat.
At four a.m. on May 31, 2010, Israeli forces descended onto the deck of the Mavi Marmara, a Turkish vessel attempting to break the joint Israeli-Egyptian blockade of the Gaza Strip. The Israelis did not anticipate resistance but were attacked by masked "activists" wielding sharpened pipes, clubs and knives. After 40 minutes of struggle during which an Israeli was thrown overboard and a pistol was taken from a defense force member and fired at the Israelis, the Israeli defense force was given permission to use firearms to defend themselves. Ten activists lost their lives.
Predictably, many Palestinians claimed these people were murdered and within hours the United Nations denounced Israel. Responding to this rapid condemnation, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu commented on June 2, 2010 that Israel "is guilty until proven guilty."
Censure is not new to Israelis. They successfully defended their very existence against Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria in 1947. In 1967, they again defended their original borders and, also in the act of repulsing their aggressors, captured what the world has branded Occupied Territory. Israel was almost immediately directed by the United Nations to give back territories legitimately captured in the course of their defense against the attacking armies of a multitude of aggressors.
For over 40 years, Israel has suffered under the designation Occupying Power, even though it holds the land reluctantly and has been willing to negotiate with responsible, non-aggressive states. For example, the Israelis returned the Sinai to Egypt in 1979.
In August of 2005, Israel unilaterally and completely withdrew from the Gaza Strip, using their military to forcibly remove their own heartbroken citizens, whose homes were bulldozed because they knew the Palestinians would refuse to live in them. The Israelis did leave the greenhouses used to grow flowers supplied to Europe, but this valuable infrastructure that would have contributed to a successful economy was demolished by the Palestinians who refused to use anything Jewish.
Despite such evidence of Israel's compliant attitude, the world community, including the United States impatiently expects Israel to withdraw, reacting as if Israel is no longer threatened by her neighbors, when in fact the parties are still at war.
For decades, the world has expected to achieve peace in the Middle East through negotiation, which basically consists of concessions on the part of Israel,ignoring the Khartoum Resolution, which was signed in 1967 between Syria and the Joined Arab League nations. Paragraph three of the Resolution clearly states the main principles by which the Arab States abide, "namely, no peace with Israel, no recognition of Israel, no negotiations with it...."
The Khartoum Resolution, which the Arab League has never renounced, is such a clear statement of opposition and non-cooperation that it is known as "The Three Nos." But the rest of world wants to imagine that the parties are at peace-that if Israel would only follow the "road map" and offer land for peace the problem would be solved.
History illustrates the absurdity of this suggestion. There were many attempts to placate Adolf Hitler in the 1930s, but the one act that crystallized the folly of appeasement occurred when Britain and France, led by Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, renounced their pledge to guarantee the borders of Czechoslovakia which allowed Hitler a free hand. Chamberlain, after negotiating the Munich Agreement which gave territory to Hitler, is captured forever on film, waving the paper with Hitler's signature and proclaiming that they had achieved "peace for our time."
In light of history, Chamberlain's claim to have achieved peace seems ironic, but the world could justifiably fool itself into believing that Germany wanted to continue to be at peace because it had signed the Treaty of Versailles which ended World War I.
Czechoslovakia was dismembered by Hitler and eventually fully captured. Czechoslovakia would have been right to resist. If the Czechs had defended themselves against German aggression and captured German territory to act as a buffer against further attack, would people have thought the League of Nations was correct in demanding that Czechoslovakia return these lands to Germany? Further, if Germany had not signed an armistice but instead had been able to forge an agreement such as the Khartoum Resolution with their allies, no reasonable person would have expected peace in the area.
Article 42 of the 1907 Hague Regulations states that a "territory is considered occupied when it is actually placed under the authority of the hostile army. The occupation extends only to the territory where such authority has been established and can be exercised." Israel is correct in asserting that it is not an occupier: Israeli armies and citizens have left Gaza. The Palestinians established and elected a government. This government has engaged in warlike acts against Israel. Israel, along with Egypt, who is also concerned about her security, has a right to institute a blockade in accordance with international law.
The world community, in condemning Israel for legitimately intercepting ships which challenge its lawful blockade, acts as if Gaza remains an occupied territory and Israel has the responsibilities of an occupier. In reality, Gaza displays the attributes of a state that has launched a war against another sovereign state.
Some say Israel, as a creation of the United Nations should abide by the organization's resolutions. It should be noted that unlike Czechoslovakians in 1938 who were dependent on France and Britain for their defense, Israelis have fought for and defended their borders. Israel has achieved true statehood. It should be allowed to conduct its affairs with its neighbors accordingly.
It is time for Israel to make it clear to the United Nations and the world community that it will not be another Czechoslovakia. Israelis cannot be expected to continue to make peace all by themselves. Peace cannot be achieved by one party—no matter how many concessions are granted—if the other party remains at war.
-Kerry and Peggy McCarthy are writers living in Indiana.
