November 16, 2002 8:10 AM

The same as it ever was

Israel reoccupies Palestinian areas after ambush

The calendars rolls inexorably forward, the characters and the locations change, but the story remains the same: Palestinians murdering Jews in the name of...what, exactly?? Yesterday's massacre was just another bloody chapter in the sorry history of the Middle East, but there was something unusually sinister about this attack. Palestinian gunmen ambushed a group of Jewish worshippers, and then, when Israeli Defense Force troops came to their rescue, they also attacked the soldiers.

The Israelis who were attacked were returning from a Jewish service marking the beginning of the Sabbath at the Tomb of the Patriarchs, a site holy to both Jews and Muslims. The group was escorted by Israeli security officers, according to the IDF.

The gunmen opened fire from atop a hill in a Palestinian-controlled section of Hebron, the IDF said. The victims were in an Israeli-controlled section. Hebron was divided under a 1997 agreement.

As Israeli soldiers rushed to help the victims, the gunmen attacked again, killing several of the rescuers, including the region's highest ranking military official.

The IDF said the bodies of three of the Palestinian gunmen had been recovered from the scene. According to the IDF, the 12 Israeli fatalities include two IDF officers, two IDF soldiers, four border police troops, a border police officer and three settlers.

The head of Islamic Jihad said that yesterday attack was revenge for the killing of one of their leaders. Iyad Sawalcha died after apparently opening fire on Israeli troops as they were trying to arrest him.

So, let me get this straight. Radical Islamofascists have no problem as long as the IDF allows them to kill and maim as they see fit? Do these homicidal maniacs not see the inherent conflict in their position? Or have they become so blinded by hatred and the single-minded pursuit of their political goals that the lives of innocent civilians have long-since ceased to have any meaning?

I have not generally been uniformly supportive of the IDF and their tactics in the past, but I've finally come to believe that the IDF has no other option but to brutally and aggressively combat terrorism on their doorstep. No civilized country should have to deal with the day to day senseless violence and bloodshed that Israel does. This is not to diminish the suffering of the Palestinians, but they in large part are reaping what they have sown. Yes, the vast majority of Palestinians are no doubt peace-loving folks. Nonetheless, by their silence and lack of action against those who randomly murder and maim in the name and service of Palestine, they have condoned the actions of radical Islamofascists.

Palestinian terrorists did not just crawl out from under rocks. They all have friends and families- people in their lives who know what they are doing. Yet these people stand by as these butchers strap bombs to their bodies, or set up interlocking free-fire zones so they can ambush innocent worshippers. What kind of person would tolerate a murderer in their midst? Clearly, it would be someone who either openly or implicitly supports their aims.

Until Palestinians rise up and scream "Enough!"- and this includes the Palestinian Authority- they deserve the whirlwind they are reaping at the hands of the IDF. Palestinians can no longer plead ignorance, because there is blood on all of their hands.

The IDF can, and should, continue to tighten the screws on the refugee camps and the West Bank until Palestinians see the light and begin to exercise a measure of control over their own. Absent that, there will be much tears and suffering among Palestinians, and deservedly so.

It should be clear by now that I am strongly pro-Israeli. That does not mean that I wholeheartedly endorse what the IDF and the Israeli government have done over the years. The wanton expansion of Jewish settlements is both insenstive and criminal. Israeli Jews have not exactly been good neighbors to Palestinians. Even so, they do not randomly maim and kill Palestinians in the name of "freedom". Until Palestinians can demonstrate that they can operate within the constraints of civilized society, the IDF will, and should, continue to hunt them down like the murdering criminals they are.

Yassir Arafat has a very clear choice in front of him. He can repudiate violence, and assist in the apprehension of Islamofascist terrorists. Or he can continue as the puppet leader of a duplicitous government that presents a peaceful face to the world, while murderers and terrorists run free on his watch- in which case, the IDF should place a target squarely between his eyes.

Your call, Mr. Arafat. but I think the world has long-since recognized the choice you've made. Now might be a good time to get your affairs in order.

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This page contains a single entry by Jack Cluth published on November 16, 2002 8:10 AM.

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