Yet another war

Last year, I wrote a blog about the war in Ukraine (see, "Sorry, but..." Feb. 23, 2022) and I wondered about why the airwaves and newspapers were so obsessed with it?  I really had no clue and frankly, still don't?

Now that Hamas has invaded Israel, coverage of that war will be superseded by this latest one.  Again, the Arab/Israeli conflict is so old, it too is boring.  It was actually started by the Brits, when they pulled out of the region in 1948 and handed it over to the Jews to battle with the Palestinians to create their own state.  This, of course, necessitated kicking the latter out of their generational homes, the bloody resentments about which continue to this day.

Ultimately, all wars are about real estate or religion and this one is no different.  Look at Ireland, if you want a western comparison.  

(A few years ago, I was seated next to retired Canadian General John de Chastelain at a dinner.  I asked him how he pulled off the peace accord in Ireland and he told me what he could, i.e., unclassified; it was fascinating.  That's the kind of guy you need in this conflict; too bad he's 86.  Another year, at a subsequent dinner, I was seated next to retired Major General Lewis Mackenzie -- another fascinating figure who held me spell-bound about his experiences.  Wasn't I the lucky girl.)

The Israelis, of course, have no one to blame but themselves.  Their aggressive invasion of Gaza and the West Bank over many years has left them vulnerable to such an attack.  Frankly, I'm surprised it didn't happen sooner.  There are 5,000 Palestinians languishing in Israel jails with neither charge, nor counsel.  That'll piss people off.

Shlomo Ben-Ami, former Israeli foreign minister, penned an excellent piece in today's 'Globe and Mail', in which he blames, "The destructive hubris of Benjamin Netanyahu" for the entire mess.  "Sooner or later, Netanyahu's destructive political magic, which has kept him in power for 15 years, was bound to usher in a major tragedy.  

"A year ago, he formed the most radical and incompetent government in Israel's history.  By ruling out any political process for Palestinians and boldly asserting, in his government's binding guidelines, that 'the Jewish people have an exclusive and inalienable right to all parts of the land of Israel', Mr. Netanyahu's government made bloodshed inevitable," writes Ben-Ami.

"He was blinded to the Palestinian volcano beneath his feet and his hubris has met it's nemesis in the form of Hamas's brutality.  He paid his coalition partners any price for their support.  He let them grab Palestinian lands, expand illegal settlements, scorn Muslim sensibilities regarding the sacred mosques on the Temple Mount, and promote suicidal delusions about the reconstruction of the biblical Temple in Jerusalem.  This itself could be the mother of all Muslim Jihads.

"Mr. Netanyahu's machine of poisonous political disinformation is already at work disseminating a conspiracy theory according to which leftist army officers were responsible for the negligence that led to this dirty war."

So, that's the take by a guy who knows and I agree with him.  Not one other leader or newspaper columnist has done anything but praise and defend Israel.  Not one gives the reasons behind the war, as Ben-Ami does -- reasons which should be obvious.    

The tit-for-tatism will now continue, as Israeli and Palestinian families are murdered in the streets and in their homes in brazen displays of brutality and open carnage. 

My best friend at Carleton was a Jewish girl who emigrated to Israel the summer after we graduated.  She married an Israeli and raised a family.  We have kept sporadically in touch over the years, but now, I'm afraid to email her in case she has been killed.

(Update:  I just heard back from Judy and she says they are OK so far, but that things are heating up in the north, where she lives.  She also said they are staying home, schools closed and are wholly dependent on the army and air force for their safety.)

It's all so senseless, but just try to dislodge the Israelis out of the West Bank now.  Can't be done and the slaughter on both sides will continue until....until.....the next time.

Oh well, at least we'll have new coverage of another war for a while.  How the land of Jesus has been desecrated.