Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Stand With Israel

I have noticed a very large amount of hostility toward Israel and anyone who supports them, not just in the middle east, but on American campuses and American streets. Those that speak out like to highlight the Israeli "occupation and oppression" of the Palestinian people. Even suggesting genocide and apartheid system. It becomes obvious that many do not know the truth because they refuse to seek the true history behind the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. I'm writing this because people need to know the truth. Not the fabricated propaganda spread by anti-Semites and anti-Zionists - those that regard the Jewish people with hatred and do not accept their settlement in their ancestral land.

In the Old Testament, God promised Abraham and his descendants possession of the land that would become Israel.
(On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram and said, "To your descendants I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates..." Genesis 15:18 NIV)
As Christians, we are obligated to protect and pray for Israel. They are God's chosen people and the birthplace of Jesus Christ.
("I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse, and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” Genesis 12:3 NIV)
Jewish Civilization remained for thousands of years and this is well documented with archaeological and historical evidence. Despite numerous empires ruling over the land and hundreds of thousands of Jews exiled, the Jewish people never lost sight of their ancestral homeland.

When the Romans invaded and defeated the Jews in 70 BC, they destroyed the Temple in Jerusalem and sought to destroy Jewish society. They named the region Palestine in an attempt to erase Jewish ties to the region. For thousands of years afterward, the Jewish/Christian Holy Land was referred to as Palestine. At the height of the Ottoman Empire in 1683, the land was considered unimportant and largely unpopulated.

During the late 1800's to early 1900's, thousands of Jews returned to the region to escape the brutality and persecution happening in Europe. Many were being slaughtered by mobs in Russia and neighboring countries. Jews legally bought land that was mostly uncultivated and barren desert. Through hard work, they restored much of the land and began to thrive. Jews once again became the religious majority in Jerusalem. Arabs welcomed them and benefited much from the Jew's hard labor. As the standard of living increased, so did many Arab immigrants. It was the Jews hope to live peacefully side by side with Arabs, but peace did not last long.

After World War I, The League of Nations recognized the accomplishments of the Jews in the region and created a Palestine Mandate in which the British would assist with Jewish settlement. During the mandate, both Arabs and Jews were called Palestinians. Many Arabs hoped the Jews would revive the region, and they did. But not long after, Arab Palestinians formed riots and mobs, killing and wounding many Jews. As attacks and protests increased, the British felt the Arab pressure and violated the Mandate, giving all land east of the Jordan river to what is modern day Jordan and Syria. In 1948, the British Mandate ended and the State of Israel was formed with support from a UN resolution. The state would be partitioned between a Jewish majority and Arab majority. Arab leaders rejected it and Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, and Iraq all invaded to eliminate Israel entirely. They failed after 15 months of war. Israel continued to be attacked until 1967, when another all out invasion was launched. Israel defended itself again, capturing border regions of Egypt, Jordan, and Syria as buffer zones. After the fighting ended, Israel immediately offered to give the captured land back for peace, but all three refused to recognize Israel and their right to exist.

In 1979, Israel relinquished the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt in a peace treaty. 15 years later, Israel also signed a peace treaty with Jordan. When trying to give Palestinians their own land to rule over, Arab leaders rejected every offer, refusing to live along side a Jewish state. Without any Palestinian leaders willing to step up and rule in Palestinian territories, International law required Israel to rule the territories, when they had no wish to do so. In 1993, Israel withdrew to let Palestinians govern themselves when the PLO (Palestine Liberation Organization) promised to renounce terrorism and accept Israel's right to exist. During negotiations in 2000 to formalize borders, the PLO walked away, calling it no longer acceptable. They claim it would have left them with disconnected territories of land, while Israel and the U.S. deny this claim. Attacks against Israel continue to this day, despite complete withdrawal from Gaza and parts of the West Bank in 2005. One year later, Hamas won in Palestinian elections, whose charter calls for the complete destruction of Israel and to kill Jews whenever encountered. Just recently, Hamas and the Palestinian Authority agreed on a unity pact, further endangering Israel's security.

Why was Obama's two-state plan to return to 1967 lines rejected by Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu? 1967 lines would give complete control of Gaza, the West Bank, the Golan Heights, and East Jerusalem to the Palestinians. Israel at it's center would be only 9 miles wide. Attacks from the higher elevation of the Golan Heights can not be defended from by Israel. The main airport, Ben Gurion International, would be under constant threat from rocket attacks. Many holy sites would be closed to Jews and Christians or built over, just like they were in 1967. Netanyahu called them indefensible lines for a reason. The reason Palestinians insist on 1967 lines is because it would give them and their allies the power to completely wipe Israel out. When an entire group and several neighboring countries refuse to recognize your right to exist and continuously chant your death, it is impossible to negotiate with them. If Israel concedes even a square inch, their enemies will stop at nothing to not only take every square mile, but also kill every Jew. That is taken from their own words. We must not allow the past to repeat itself.

I have given you the facts. I hope the pattern of escalating violence tells you the threat Israel has to face constantly every day. A threat of annihilation. Israel never violently occupied or oppressed the Palestinians. Israel has never operated under an Apartheid system, no acts of terrorism, and no war crime violations. All claims to the contrary are fabrications made by radical islam, anti-Semites and those who resist learning the truth. Is Israel really as evil as they claim? No. Israel is the only stable and free democracy in the Middle East. A system radical islam and their allies can not control. History and current events tell us if can not control it, they will seek to destroy it.

I have been researching all that I can about Israel and their history. We are living in a crucial time for Israel and I believe educating people about the truth is very important. For a more in depth look, I recommend reading "Israel 101" circulated by www.cufi.org. Included are unbiased references which can be traced and fact checked.