Terror in Jerusalem

The Los Angeles Times has reported the news concerning the recent shootings in Jerusalem. The world has been rocked, yet again, by the the news of a gunman who walked into a seminary in Jerusalem and killed eight students before he was shot and killed. There is no clear report of which group is claiming responsibility for the attack. Hamas has said they were in fact reposible. While on the contrary, a Lebanese group has said they were the perpetrators.

Regardless of who was responisble, the killings were a horrific reaction to the assassination of a Hezbollah operative. This again creates a large chasm in an already divided city. There will now be a thick black line dividing Israeli and Palestinian.

The Los Angeles Times also reported that many Israeli leaders are calling for restraint. They are asking Israeli students not to conduct violent acts against Palestinians. This is a testament to the ability of the Israeli people to refrain from violence and hope for justice. Others in the Zionist movement are claiming that the attacks are another example of oppression against Jews and must be stopped with the use of force. Along with the divide between Jews and Arabs there is a schism in the Israeli ranks. Olmert and Abbas are once again finding themselves in a very difficult position.

School shooting seems to be commonplace in many societies today. The U.S. has been raveged by a whole slew of attacks on both highschool and college campuses in the past five years. The level of terror that is piqued in a community by killing innocent young adults is overwhelming, this is exactly why this tactic is used.

The shootings in Jerusalem are a little bit different in that they are used by one group to prove a point to another group. Where as in the U.S. the attack is from one individual against a group or set of individuals. The Palestinians were making a point to ALL Israelis with this attack. I am a bit uneasy about the repercussions of the attacks. I think more blood will be shed on both sides. Both the Israelis and Palestinians are unwilling listen to eachother and the division is growing. Hopefully, with pressure from the global community, the violence can be stifled and peace negotiations can resume.

Condaleeza Rice to the Rescue?

BBC news has a story today in which President Mahmoud Abbas is asking for a calm to the violence in the region. Violence has escalated between both sides of the conflict this past week. A huge amount of Palestinian rockest have been flying into Israeli towns which in turn increased the amount of Israeli counterstrikes.

To say that the tensions are high is an understatement, but many leaders are calling for a calming period. Mahmoud Abbas is asking for the Palestinian people to stop the violence in order to open the door to peace talks. Really it seems that he is talking directly to the Hamas militants and other radicals who are perpetually fighting. Condoleezaa Rice has also made a trip to the region asking both sides to halt the violence and come to a peaceful agreement.

The leaders of Hamas still reject any agreement of a ceasefire because they claim Israel is reponsible for the violence. They still do not recognize the fact that their rocket attacks stir up violent responses from Israel. I think Condoleezza Rice and pressure from other countries for a peace agreement can help the situation.

Condaleeza Rice to the Rescue?

Threats Increase Tensions.

newsVOA.com had an interesting story about the recent attacks in Israel and Gaza today. The leaders of the militant group, Hamas, are threatening Israel with increased rocket attacks. Israel follows with the standard statement; Israel will do everything in their power to protect themselves.

One statement given by a Hamas leader opened my eyes today. It was a pathetic attempt to gain sympathy. On top of that, their ability to understand cause and effect is horribly deficient. Israel fires rockets AFTER Hamas kills innocent people. I do not understand why this fact is not apparent to the militant leaders of Hamas. If they would stop attacking Israel, Israel would stop attacking them, plain and simple.

Here is the statement by Hamas leadership: "So I think Israel tries to make Gaza sink in the ocean of blood and tears and suffering," said Hamas official Ghazi Hamad. "And maybe it tried to impose some collective punishment against [the] Palestinian people." (newsVOA.com)

This statement completely panders to emotion and sympathy. Hamas leaders are putting the Palestinians in harms way. They are the ones who, with their behavior and rhetoric, endanger the lives of innocent, moral, and good Palestinians. After firing this ridiculous rhetoric at the media, they then hide behind innocent people for camouflage. Their behavior is contemptible and immoral. These radically violent militants should be scorned by other people in their community. A little peer pressure goes a long way.

Can Peace be on the Horizon?

Just when we thought there may be a break through in peace negotiations, violence erupts. According to a report by Reuters, one Palestinian is dead after an Israeli soldier caught him planting a bomb. The Palestinian was shot and later died from wounds suffered in the attack.

One may ask, is peace even possible in an environment were violence is a daily occurence? For the most part it seems that Israeli forces are typically defending themselves from random bombings and missle attacks from Palestinian militants. If this is the case, then Isralie forces are justified in using force. Also, if Arab leaders truly do want a peace agreement, they must promote a hardline stance against the attacks of Palestinian miliatnts against Israel. Especially if the attacks are targeting innocent civilians.

If Palestinian militants believe they are justified in using force, then they should get in their military uniforms and fight for the country they desire. Instead they act like cowards and using terror tactics against innocent civilians.

Prejudice vs. Politics

When I read the words emitting from the leaders of Iran, Syria and other Arab countries, I cannot help thinking that these people are leading their countries with short sided prejudicial ideologies. They believe that they are the victims of a global conspiracy and that the world community is not willing to help them. Well, they are right. Countries like: Iran, North Korea, Syria, Lebanon, including many others like them, are not well-liked because they propagate violence. It's simple; the more violence a countries wields, the more civilized countries write them off as dangerous radicals.

The latest assassination in Syria was deemed to be conducted by a couple of Palestinians with no clear or apparent connection to Israel. There was no connection to the Israeli government and Israel denounced the attacks on numerous occasions. I think the burden of proof here lies on Syrian officials to show that Israel was involved. Even if they were, like I said in the previous article, Imad Mughniyah was a cold blooded murderer.

What is next- war? Will Lebanon declare war and attack Israel? They seem to be the puppet state of Syria and many inside Lebanon are not happy with the situation. Officials in Lebanon have even made some of their own people angry by spouting their war-charged rhetoric.

Peace should be on the minds of the Syrian government and others involved. The people in the Middle East are in dire need of peace. The countrysides of these nations are laden with rocket attacks by ignorant militants that are laying waste to innocent women and children, while the political elite remain unharmed. A renewed war between Lebanon, Syria, Hezbollah (with countries like Saudi Arabia, Yemen and Iran watching in the midst) and Israel can only produce a tremendous amount of suffering, and nothing else. No one will come out on top, or be declared the winner.

As the days go on, one can only hope that the rest of the global community, especially Russia, Egypt and other large countries in the region, try to solve this dilemma with peaceful diplomacy.

Can Assassination Be Moral?

The above picture is of a group that represents Hezbollah. The organization was founded in approximately 1982-1985 by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. The group was originally funded and backed by Iran as a contingent of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard. Hezbollah is a political, military and religious organization in Lebanon. The majority of members are Shia muslims and along with the establishment of an Islamic government in Lebanon, they call for the destruction of Israel.

The group has grown from a single military force to having control of radio stations, providing social reform programs and seats in the Lebanese government. They claim that Israel is ulitmately an unlawful entity and should not exist.

The picture above should bring back memories of Anti-Semitism in Eastern Europe, especially in Germany. Hezbollah is described by many as a terrorist organization with an agenda to completely destroy all Israelis.

Tuesday night, Imad Mughniyeh, a top leader of Hezbollah was killed in a car bombing in Damascus. No one has claimed reponsibility for the bombing as of yet, but some Syrian officials are claiming that it is the work of Israel. Obviously Syria, who is aligned with countries, like Iran, and organizations, like Hamas, would blaim Israel. Israel is the enemy and to be blamed for everything in the eyes of these fundamentalists.

Could Israel be innoncent? Could one who is sick of watching these terrorist organizations, like Hezbollah, have lashed out in an act of vigilantism. These two explanations do seem possible. On the other hand if it was Israel or another country who assassinated this man; was the action morally justified?

One can think of many examples where an assassination would have eliminated much of the world's suffering. For example, could have the assassinations of people like: Adolf Hitler, Idi Amin Dada, Joseph Stalin led to less suffering in the world? Assassination is NOT the way to solve any problems, but in hindsight would the world have been inflicted by less suffering? We have the ability to view these examples because they are in the past, but could it have helped? I think assassination is not warranted and is a horrible policy, but it brings an important moral question to light. If a person is known to be a terrorist or one who has caused harm, what type of justice should they dealt?

There are a few questions one must ask themselves. Did this man really pose a threat to the ones around him? Was he really a leader of a terrorist oragnization? If the perpatrator was Arab, Syrian, or affiliated with a group ither than Israel, would the truth ever come out? The counrty of Syria is going to accuse their most hated enemy and escapegoat, the Israelis. Justice cannot be served in this fashion. The facts need to be weighed and justice should be served in an even handed attempt to stop terrorism in its tracks. Terrorism is the enemy.

The killing of "innoncent" people is where we need to focus our attention. Think about this question; would you be angry at the death of the person who raped your mother? Would you be mad that the person who slayed your brother, was found dead? This man was known to kill in cold blood. He led an organization that takes part in horrible terrorist actions. This type of evidence needs to be reviewed.

The political and religious rhetoric of one counrty to another needs to stop. Terrorism is a global problem and needs to be dealt with by the global communtiy.