The pro-Palestinian protest marches are the antithesis of peaceful
Much has changed in Israel in the past few weeks, whilst many things remain the same.
Dr Ron Weiser
Gidon Sa’ar has tried to rescue his political career by rejoining the Netanyahu government.
Whether it will work for him or not, time will tell, but it has certainly worked for Prime Minister Netanyahu, enlarging his coalition and providing him with at least some protection from internal rebellion.
Defense Minister Gallant, remains in his position for now. If it is possible, he is an even lonelier figure within the government, than before Sa’ar joined.
Notwithstanding international views around Netanyahu, there is a failure to understand that however popular Netanyahu is or is not, there is wall to wall agreement inside Israel, that the situation in Lebanon and the threat of Iran, both need to be dealt with.
In the absence of the international community’s will or ability to restrain Iran or her proxies, Israel is left with little choice.
It was, therefore, no surprise to see that the leaders of almost every party in the Israeli opposition, including the leftist party led by Yair Golan, jointly wrote to Prime Minister Netanyahu in late September, asking the government to send Israeli ground troops into Lebanon, to restore Israeli security.
Let us go back a little.
On July 12 2006, Hezbollah, whose then-leader was Hassan Nasrallah, launched a barrage of rockets into northern Israel as Hezbollah terrorists crossed Israel’s sovereign border, known as the Blue Line.
Eight Israeli soldiers were killed then and during the rescue attempt and two others were kidnapped.
This is how Hezbollah began what became known in Israel as the 2nd Lebanon war.
The war ended on the 14th of August 2006 after the Lebanese government, Hezbollah and Israel agreed to United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701.
The resolution called for an immediate ceasefire, Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon and the disarmament of Hezbollah in Lebanon, from the Litani River to Israel’s border.
Israel complied, even though the Israeli soldiers abducted on July 12 remained in Hezbollah’s custody.
Resolution 1701, to repeat, the disarming and removal of Hezbollah from the Israel border all the way to the Litani River, was supposed to be implemented and guaranteed, by a combination of Lebanese troops and UNIFIL (the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon).
If either or both had done their job, there would be no war in Lebanon today.
Note the similarities of international pressure currently, especially from the West and of the outcomes never delivered, despite promises to the contrary.
No wonder Israelis believe that only Israel can be trusted to ensure its security.
UN Secretary General Guterres’ calling for a ceasefire now, is the ultimate definition of chutzpa, and his own organisation’s failure to implement 1701.
It is UNIFIL and the Lebanese government who have allowed Hezbollah to build its network of terror along Israel’s border since 2006 and to launch rockets at Israel continually since October 7 last year, killing and maiming Israelis and forcing the displacement of 60,000 to 80,000 Israelis from the north of Israel.
Iran and her proxies are not out for compromise.
They seek only Israel’s destruction.
Like the playground bully, they terrorise and murder, and then scream and shout when anyone fights back, hoping that pressure will be brought on Israel to give Iran and her proxies a (temporary in their eyes) ceasefire, time to rearm and to start to bully all over again.
The Arab world knows exactly what Israel is going through and either publicly or quietly understand what Israel is being forced to do to defend herself.
It is the naïve West who do not and who repeat mantras like ‘Israel’s right to defend itself’, but then immediately make it meaningless by in the same breath, calling every method of self defense, a potential war crime.
What Israel is doing is not out of vengeance, but to ensure October 7 does not happen again.
Iran, Hezbollah and Hamas know that if they build their infrastructure under hospitals and store their rockets under schools, Western leaders will protect them.
Partisan double standard journalists, wilfully misrepresent what they purportedly present as reportage, playing right into the terrorists’ hands.
And they do so with the plight of the hostages or the displacement of Israelis as an afterthought, rather than what it is, the actual root cause of the current conflict.
It is the naïve West who also like to repeat another mantra, that of the ‘two state solution’.
It is another meaningless phrase because Iran, her proxies and the majority of Palestinians themselves all polls show, have no interest in two states.
Time and time again, the Palestinians, by their history and actions, have shown that they are more interested in denying the existence of the only Jewish state, than in establishing one for themselves.
The whole question of a two state solution has nothing to do with Iran’s aims or aspirations.
This is just a convenient front, for again, naïve western consumption.
There is no territorial dispute with Iran.
There is no territorial dispute with Lebanon.
What there is, is a radical fundamentalist ideology that wants no Jewish presence in the Middle East what so ever and indeed no Christian or Western one either.
And especially no democratic values, tolerance for difference, or ‘infidel’ influence.
It is an ideology that also has global ambitions.
The pro-Palestinian protest marches are the antithesis of peaceful. Their slogans carry hateful messages, they oppose any solution which leaves a Jewish state of any size standing and they rejoice in the barbarity that took place on October 7 last year.
The good news is that Israel has regained much of its confidence in its own capabilities in the areas of intelligence, implementation and resolve to carry the fight to the enemy.
As well, the population’s trust has been reestablished in the IDF leadership to a very large degree.
Unity of purpose and motivation to defend Israel remain at the highest level.
The resilience of the Israeli people continues to be a shining example of determination and hope for the future.
Ron Weiser is the Honorary Life Member ZFA Executive and Honorary Life President, ZC of NSW
