Whatever one accuses Israel’s enemies of, one cannot say the PA (Palestinian Authority), Hamas do not express their true intentions. Correct, that at times in Hebrew or English the truth may be masked, but in Arabic the truth comes out.
In this case however, we heard it in Hebrew too, as PA Minister of Holy Sites Mahmud el-Habbash told Channel 10 that in a deal with Israel, the occupation of the Kosel must come to an end as well for all lands “occupied since 1967 must be returned”. This includes Har Habayis, the Kosel, Ramat Eshkol, French Hill and many many other areas of the capital. The PA minister was careful however to single out “al-Aqsa Mosque and the Western Wall” so he is understood loud and clear.
US Secretary of State John Kerry however continues to assure Israel as he formulates his latest secret document containing his latest formula for peace with those seeking Israel’s destruction.
Not to worry however for the minister assures us Jews wishing to daven at the Kosel will be permitted to do so, perhaps expecting us to believe this as Israel today maintains “free access” to Kever Yosef as stipulate in Yitzhak Rabin’s and President Shimon Peres’ Oslo Agreement.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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9 Responses
Do we get Mecca, Medina, Najaf and Karbala in exchange?
This is precisely why it is vital for Israel to have complete control of Har Habayis. If you give it to the Arabs (as many here have advocated), then the Kosel is their next demand.
They also want Tel Aviv, Rishon le-Tzion, Hadera and all the other settlements. Regardless of what the Israeli left believes, or what the Americans believe – the Arabs will never settle for anything other than a situation in which Eretz Yisrael is part of an Islamic state, and in which Arabs are first class citizens of that state. They will tolerate minorities that are will to accept being the second class citizens, but not ones who insist on being the “baal ha-bayis”. The means there is no way the zionists can ever make peace – they can win battles, but never the war (short of successfully de-Islamicizing the Middle East). The Arab Muslims will never agree to be ruled by non-Muslims. Being the “boss” is too deeply ingrained in their culture.
The only group in Israel that can ever be a peace partner for the Arabs are the Hareidim since the desire only sufficient autonomy to live their own lives as Torah Jews – and do not demand to rule over the Arabs (which is why if the zionists continue to persecute the Hareidim, the end result may be to finally give the Arabs someone they can talk about peace with).
We should be thankful that the PA and Hamas are so uncompromising in their desire for 100% of their land, otherwise Israel would have been divided long ago. And we should pray daily for them to maintain their strong resistance to compromise.
Three NK gold sticky stars to akuperma for the astute analysis of the first paragraph. You have a wrong read on the majority though. Most Hareidi would not accept the life of a dhimmi, they would sooner seek haven elswhere, and become self sufficient, as most torah communities in Galus are. Note that except for a notable few, they will squeal like stuck pigs (pardon the expression) when school funding, arnona discounts, and yeshiva welfare is threatened or reduced. The arabs will not provide this honeypot. Short of starving on chaluka from chul, as the old yishuv did, there will be “hareidi peace partner” either.
twisted: Israeli hareidi currently have the life style of a dhimmi. For a religious zionist, the medinah is wonderful. A kippah serugah can do almost anything in terms of profession and life style. But especially when the changes being enacted take effect (conscription of yeshiva students, restrictions on funding from overseas, use of zionist curriculum in all schools, etc.), the hareidim will be able to say with a straight face that “Yes, we would be better off as Palestinian Jews than as Israeli Hareidim” — and if that happens, the Medinah will be doomed. If the zionists persist in their “war on the hareidim”, the end result will be an Arab state from the desert to the sea.
akuperma, you are pulling your color of reality out of a hat, and you have wandered off topic. We do not feel as dhimmis. Most women work at serious jobs, and a good chunk work as daycare for those with preschool kids.There are hareidi professionals, and many in not so glamourous work, but just plain work. Anyone from anywhere coming into the market with lo ed and lo skill at 30 and up is going to face a hard time finding nice work. The kollelnickim are too busy to be out and about, the chassish are in the bais medrash, driving trucks, or entreprenuering. Most are happy and fulfilled. The rent-a-mobs you see and hear in the news are mostly from Geula, and Bet Shemesh, with some ne’erdowells from Bnei
Brak and some professional permanantly disgruntled folks like Asra Kadisha. This is a MINORTY out of a very diverse oilam and not a credible “peace partner”, dhimmi wannabes or not. The end result will be what Hashem wants for us, in the meantime, we keep to our tafkid, and keep the powder dry.
The job discrimination faced by hareidim in Israel, even now, is worse than in the US. It is very rare to find hareidim working outside of a “ghettoized” marginal economy. “Startup” Israel is almost totally hareidi-free. And unlike the United States, discrimination against hareidim is legal is Israel.
And this is before the new set of laws take effect. After they start mass arrests of hareidi teenagers, closing down hareidi schools and dragging the kids to zionist schools, and cutting off attempts to send money from overseas to hareidi tsadakkahs and schools – most hareidim will be sympathetic to NK, and perhaps even more extreme (since NK’s position was always to be neutral).
So if you don’t like that scenario, tell your zionist friends to back down. It’s no skin off their back if hareidi don’t serve in the army (the army doesn’t even want them), or if hareidi kids don’t learn to talk like Obama or Cameron – just treat hareidi no worse than you treat the Arabs and there will be no confrontation.
Wait, I have a better solution for peace. Let’s do a complete land swap! They can have Tel Aviv, Ashkalon, Be’er Sheva, Eilat and more and we will take the Yehuda and shomron. That will give them land along side Gaza and a huge infrastructure.