LIONEL THWAITES
Letter from Lionel Thwaits, Summerstrand, Port Elizabeth
The debate on Israel has many facets. Ran Greenstein has a point of view which sympathises with the “Palestinians” and fails to mention that they have committed many crimes against defenseless Israeli citizens over the years.
He could argue that if Israel had not taken land from them, they would not have killed anyone; but who the land belongs to is a matter of debate.
However, in a previous letter he mentions that Jews have murdered Bedouins but he fails to mention that when the Jews started returning to that part of the world in the early part of the 20th century and legally purchased land in order to rebuild what was at that point a virtual wasteland, the Bedouins repeatedly attacked and killed the Jews each time they tried to make a life for themselves.
When the Romans destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple in 70 AD, they went on to massacre close to 600 000 Jews. Afterwards, in approximately 135 AD, they renamed Israel “Palestine”, which was a way of kicking sand in the faces of the Jews because the Philistines who were the enemies of the Israelites had become extinct approximately 700 years prior to that and no longer existed as a people.
Yasser Arafat gave the name “Palestinians” to the Arabs who were living in that part of the world but in fact they were the remnant of the Ottoman Empire and had no historical claims to the land.
When the Balfour Declaration was implemented at the San Remo Convention in 1920, the parameters concerning the division of the future Land of Israel were drawn up and endorsed by 55 nations. It is interesting to note that Israel today only occupies 22 per cent of the land which was given to them. However, that seems to be too much for its enemies.
What is important to realise is that the Jews were hated prior to Israel becoming a nation and are still hated today; anti Semitism is far worse today in Europe than it was prior to the Second World War; !967 is not the problem – May 14 1948 is the problem for the enemies of Israel.
Members of the PLO were allowed to return to the West Bank in 1994 by request of the UN after the Arab Nations of Lebanon,Syria and Egypt kicked them out because of their crimes and Tunisia had to be stuck with them. They murdered and raped Christians in the West Bank and accused those who had Jewish friends of being collaborators.
The impasse in Israel has nothing to do with land for peace, but has everything to do with Jew hatred. The “Palestinians” will not be happy with whatever they are given.
The letter has been shortened. – Editor
Mark Molker
Nov 8, 2013 at 6:05 am
‘I’ll go one step further regardless of our historical right to own the land of the current Israeli borders : as you stated correctly, when early 20th century Jews re-settled in the Land of Israel, they mostly found a wasteland. They worked the Earth and struggled hard to defend what suddenly had become a ripe fruit to steal in the midst of Arab laziness and jealousy.
Some will say that prior to the establishment of the State of Israel Jews and Arabs lived together side by side without hating each other. Although this interpretation is opened to questioning, the fact remains that when there is nothing to steal everyone carries on sharing the slums and the dirt.
Historically, when a family, a tribe or a State has become successful it has suffered the envy, antagonism and ultimately a conflict from its less successful neighbours.
This is probably our main problem in life : when we go for it, in Arts, Commerce or Sciences, we end up by gathering most of the prizes.’