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Thursday, June 28, 2007

If Israel is serious about peace...


The oppression of the occupation helps create the radicalisation of the Palestinian people and gives radical groups legitimacy and support, if Israel is serious about peace and not have the West Bank fall to 'extremists' then one way of doing that would be to let the West Bank be free of the brutal roadblock and checkpoint regime the Israelis use for daily humiliation.

Israel urged to leave checkpoints
Israeli peace activists are calling for dozens of military checkpoints and hundreds of unmanned roadblocks to be dismantled in the occupied West Bank. Peace Now said if Prime Minister Ehud Olmert was serious about negotiations with the Palestinians, he should begin by removing the internal obstacles. A spokeswoman said such controls were unnecessary for securing Israel and would improve Palestinian daily life. The call applies to 58 manned barriers and almost all the 467 roadblocks. Peace Now says only 35 checkpoints can be justified as controlling access between Israel and the West Bank, which has been under Israeli occupation since 1967. The permanent roadblocks established by the army included gates, earth mounds and cement blocks. They restrict the freedom of movement for the majority of Palestinians and turn short journeys into lengthy trips which involve waiting periods at each checkpoint, the group says. Trips between Palestinian cities in the West Bank which used to take just one hour can now take three times that because of delays at checkpoints, the group says. It adds that for the Israeli soldiers manning checkpoints there are dangers from coming into close contact with the Palestinian population, increasing the risk of suicide attacks. The Israel government defends its travel restrictions as being necessary to prevent such attacks on Israel and Jewish settlements in the West Bank. The settlements are illegal in the eyes of international law.

Checkpoints to Israel (manned): 35
Internal West Bank checkpoints (manned): 58
Permanent unmanned roadblocks: 467

11 Comments:

At 28/6/07 11:08 am, Blogger karlos said...

If only it were this simple.

The danger here is that, since the Palestinians have been so marginalised, so impoverished and brutally treated, that they will now accept less than what is entitled to them.
It goes like this: Since we have been treated as cockroaches our whole lives, let us now accept to be treated as animals. To be treated as human beings fades from their consciousness.

That is the problem with Israeli peace groups, they neglect core issues.
Yes, lifting the roadblocks would improve Palestinian life. But there is more to justice than lifting the roadblocks. Removing the illegal Jewish-Only Settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Granting those that have been dispossessed compensation.

The recent Sharm el Shiekh meeting between Israel, Egypt, Jordan and Fatah is a point in case. Israel indicated they may release 250 Palestinian prisoners and release 18 months worth of taxes Israel had with held from the PLO. Wow. What a true victory for Palestine. They get barely a fraction of what is rightfully theirs. That is all Israel is willing to give for peace.
Check my recent posts for more on the Sharm el Shiekh meeting.

I suggest the following tagline for such a post Bomber:
If Israelis were serious about peace, they’d sack their racist government.

 
At 28/6/07 2:21 pm, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Lets face it Karlos, you actually want Israel to cease to exist...wonder what would happen to its Jewish inhabitants then?

Oh yeah thats right Jews don't actually want another Holacaust...for shame.

 
At 28/6/07 2:23 pm, Blogger karlos said...

Excellent point Simon g.
See my comment above about the core issues.

Without resolving those, the conflict goes on.

But think about eliminating the support base for radicalism by settling the grievances of the common people. . .

There lies the prospect for peace.

The Palestinians have not given up their rights, enduring 40 years of persecution. They're not going to give up now.

If Israel is not willing to compromise its agenda (Jewish State / Apartheid State), it is going to have to exterminate the Palestinians.

No. The irony of persecution and extermination is not lost on me.

 
At 28/6/07 3:44 pm, Blogger karlos said...

simon g,

Our comments are getting crossed because of 'comment moderation'.

In response to you actually want Israel to cease to exist.
No. I want the injustice Israel has caused to cease to exist.
I want the brutal repression that Israel engages in to cease to exist.

In response to wonder what would happen to its Jewish inhabitants then?
I have always maintained that all Israeli citizens have a right to remain in their homes. You don't make peace by making more refugees. I say this even though many of those Israelis are living in homes that were once inhabited by Palestinians. I say this even though the Palestinians were driven from their homes, their land populated by mass immigration.

I have also always maintained that resolving the Palestinian grievances (in particular dispossession) is crucial to resolving the conflict.

Let's face it simon, you actually want the Palestinians to shut up and go away, and forget about their rights, just as you have forgotten about the Israeli brutality that led to this point.

 
At 29/6/07 8:24 am, Anonymous Anonymous said...

um... in case people have forgotten, Israel gave back the settlements int eh Gaza, in the hope of gaining peace.

What did they get?

More war.

Concessions only work if there is some agreemnet from the other side.

so now you ask them to make more concessions ... get what they will get .. yep, more war.

Every concession by Israel has been met by a ramping up of militarization by the palestinians.

The Palestinains have shown themselves to be too corrupt and incompetent to run their own territories, imagine what they would do if they had a country?

Probably the best thing thats happened in recent years has been the wall.

Look at how the desire for peace has been coming only from the ISrael side...

[quote]Frequent mortar and bombing attacks on the Gaza crossings lead Israeli authorities to conclude that Hamas is trying to fabricate a humanitarian crisis for international consumption.

The Karni crossing was shut down by Palestinian attacks and then Kerem Shalom. The Sufa terminal which is still functioning is under threat of bombing.

At Sharm al Sheik Monday, June 25, Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert pledged not to cut off electricity, water, food and medicines from Israel to the Gaza population.

Dozens of trucks loaded with basic commodities from Israel routinely ply the route to Gaza through one crossing or another. [/quote]
http://www.debka.com/headline.php?hid=4353

 
At 29/6/07 10:23 am, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I've just had a crew returned from filming in Israel. Lots to talk about, obviously, but two things that struck me -

1) there is a 6 lane freeway running from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, about a 45 minute drive. Along the way there are several large cities - but no on-ramps or off-ramps to join them to the freeway... The reason for this? They are Arab cities.

2) In Jerusalem itself there are myriad religions living peacefully together because the site is so religious and special to everyone. Did you know that Jesus ascended to heaven just across the road from Muhamed?

NS

 
At 29/6/07 10:29 am, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I've just had a crew returned from filming in Israel. Lots to talk about, obviously, but two things that struck me -

1) there is a 6 lane freeway running from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, about a 45 minute drive. Along the way there are several large cities - but no on-ramps or off-ramps to join them to the freeway... The reason for this? They are Arab cities.

2) In Jerusalem itself there are myriad religions living peacefully together because the site is so religious and special to everyone. Did you know that Jesus ascended to heaven just across the road from Muhamed?

NS

 
At 29/6/07 3:14 pm, Blogger karlos said...

Oh for the propaganda people buy:

um... in case people have forgotten, Israel gave back the settlements int eh Gaza….
whilst at the same time, Israel expanded settlements in West Bank by over 50%
They then built a wall that encompasses these illegal settlements deep within Palestinian land in the West Bank.
…in the hope of gaining peace.
Yeh right. Wonder why that failed.

Probably the best thing thats happened in recent years has been the wall.
Sounds like a good nazi speaking. The best way to stop the suicide bombings is to build a wall, rather than resolve the grievances.
The wall was declared illegal by the International Court of Justice. The wall has destroyed communities and made it impossible for multitudes of people to lead a normal life. Children cannot go to schools, people cannot go to work, in some places, Churches have been enclosed in the wall and people cannot go there to worship.

Have a look at stopthewall.org

Look at how the desire for peace has been coming only from the ISrael side...
There isn’t one single honest action Israel has done for peace. Name one.

Hamas is trying to fabricate a humanitarian crisis for international consumption.
Good work anon. The International Boycott had nothing to do with starving the Palestinians. Nor did the confiscation of their tax revenue have anything to do with dividing the people.

Olmert pledged not to cut off electricity, water, food and medicines from Israel to the Gaza population.
I guess somewhere in that evil mind of his there is a shred of humanity. But do remember that Israel has repeatedly bombed Gazan electricity stations, forcing the Gazans to buy their electricity from Israel.

Dozens of trucks loaded with basic commodities from Israel routinely ply the route to Gaza
And weapons too Anon, so that makes it all alright then. Rather than giving them freedom of movement, this just keeps the Gazans on the brink of collapse and desperate.

 
At 1/7/07 2:30 pm, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Your peace loving "religion of peace" hamas are at it again. What nice people they are, spewing threats of death to all in the area.

Thats the great thing about Gaza now, they can't hide behind the fatah governmnet. This IS the governemnt of Gaza, democratically elected, and look at what a murderous barbaric dysfunctional culture they are.

Could you imagine people like this in charge of a "real" country? Welcome to the taleban and Iran #2.


quote...
Hamas reiterated Saturday that it would forcefully resist the deployment of a multi-national force in the Gaza Strip.

The group's armed wing, the Izz a-Din al-Qassam Brigades, said in a statement that they would regard "any foreign force as an occupying force, and we will respond decisively."

Hamas issued similar warnings when the proposal to deploy a multinational force was initially made after Hamas' takeover of the Gaza Strip a few weeks ago.
"We will not receive them with roses, but with rockets and shells," Hamas members vowed Saturday.

Senior Hamas officials stressed their intent to appeal to Arab nations with the demand that they too actively oppose such an initiative.

Referring to Arab entities in support of the move, and especially Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, a Hamas spokesperson said: "Only those helpless ones, who take orders from external elements, support the deployment of a multinational force (in Gaza)."

 
At 5/7/07 8:20 am, Anonymous Anonymous said...

"um... in case people have forgotten, Israel gave back the settlements int eh Gaza, in the hope of gaining peace."

This is incorrect. There was never any land for peace deal as part of the Gaza withdrawal. In fact there was a sum total of zero cooperation between the two parties (though not for lack of trying on Abu Mazen's part). The total absence of a coordinated withdrawal neatly handed Hamas a propaganda victory as it was able to step up its attacks in the preceeding weeks - giving the impression that Israel was leaving under fire - and claim it as a victory for armed resistance. Furthermore, Sharon was at least an ocean apart politically from Peace Now, the foremost proponant of the land for peace formula in Israel. The Gaza withdrawal simply formed the initial step in his plan to set Israel's borders unilaterally, and more generally reflected his concerns with the balance of Palestinian and Israeli demography. (the significance of the timing of the withdrawal can be seen in the tipping point that occurred that year in the Palestinian's favour).

"Every concession by Israel has been met by a ramping up of militarization by the palestinians." This appears to be an ill conceived generalisation with little relevance to the current situation. In fact, the recent militarisation of Fatah has been explicitely sanctioned by Israel, which has allowed arms shipments from Jordan, training trips to Egypt and the receipt of 84 million dollars (at a minimum) in military aid to reach Dahlan and his associated security service employees/militia men/gang members/thugs (delete according to preferrence) since Hamas came to power. .... You know Bomber any self proclaimed alt reporter worth his salt ought to have been on this story from the very beginning. It was never just speculation, nor was it an open secret. It was simply open and went largely unreported.

 
At 5/7/07 8:36 pm, Anonymous Anonymous said...

It was 84 million dollars (documented) in US military aid, in case anyone was wondering.

 

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