Not recognizing facts about conflicts can be troublesome
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Scott Kelber’s letter, Consider both sides regarding Israeli, Palestinian conflicts (SN 3/18), contains a number of factual inaccuracies, but most shocking is his sin of omission.
Kelber, like many of Israel’s critics, blames only Israel for Gaza’s suffering.
Besides failing to even recognize that Gaza borders Egypt as well, he also conveniently forgot Israel said it would end the blockade the moment Hamas recognizes Israel and releases Gilad Shalit, an innocent 22 year-old Israeli-French citizen kidnapped in 2006.
Kelber calls Hamas a legitimate democratic government, but makes no mention of the hundreds of Fatah (opposition party) supporters that Hamas has tortured and murdered.
That’s not democracy to me.
Israel has done so much to work for the two-state solution, including offering Arafat all of Gaza, 93 percent of the West Bank and East Jerusalem in 2000, only to have it rejected. In 2005, Israel withdrew all troops and forced 8,000 Jewish settlers from their homes in Gaza as a step toward two states.
Believe me, I was as upset as you were when the 3,000 rockets fired by Hamas forced Israel to send troops to Gaza for a few weeks. Even you must admit, if Hamas had never fired rockets and mortars at Israeli towns every single month in 2008, there would never have been a Gaza operation at all.
No, criticizing Israel isn’t anti-Semitic; I criticize many Israeli policies myself, and agree that the IDF must be more careful with Palestinian lives.
But criticizing only Israel while touting how “understandable” Hamas’ Jew killings are might be considered anti-Semitic to some.
Geoff Levin
international relations sophomore
Commentary
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reality check:
(03/22/09 11:43pm)Report
NO ONE CARES!!! the american population is over it. We no longer care. Move on.
steven
(03/23/09 1:33am)Report
The above two comments are absurd, probably from the same ignorant person. This article is well written and I have been thinking the same thing for awhile. Thank you for writing this.
Another Person
(03/23/09 2:55pm)Report
Here’s another person checking in that doesn’t care. Although, I’m not gonna say they’re just Jews and Arabs.
BOTH SIDES
(03/23/09 5:16pm)Report
News flash: both sides are to blame. Neither is willing to live in peace with their neighbor. Anyone that believes that either side wants peace is smoking from one good peace pipe.
If they wanted peace, it would have already happened.
Solomon Rothschild
(03/24/09 8:46am)Report
It takes two to tango. Both the Arab Palestinians and the Jewish settlers share some of the blame, yet each group is right and just.
Because the Jews have all of the power, money, and U.S. Military Equipment and backing, as well as control over the western media, it is a fact that the Jews are more right on this issue than the Arab Palestinians. There should be no discussion—just don’t watch al- Jazeera or Arabia television.
Sol Rothschild