A lot of
people don't know what's actually going on in the Middle East.
(I know I didn't understand anything that was going on here
before I arrived.) This page is a resource to help you understand
the basics of the Middle East Conflict.
Here's the
problem as I understand it. (And I don't have a lot of knowledge
of history, and I'm not a Biblical scholar, and I could be just
plain wrong. I can just share what I see and what I think I
know.) There are two groups of people in this area. The Israelis
and the Palestinians. The Israelis are Jewish. The Palestinians
are Christian and Muslim. The region here includes the country
of Israel and the Palestinian Territories -- the West Bank and
the Gaza Strip. (I don't know much about the Golan Heights,
but they're a Syrian area occupied by Israel as well.) Israel
gained this land in the war of 1967. It has been "occupied"
by Israel ever since.
Israel is
in control, no doubt about that. Although the country is tiny,
the Israeli army is powerful. And the US offers Israel a lot
of money. More than double what they give any other country.
Billions and billions go to Israel every year. The Palestinians
do not have an army. They do not have airplanes or helicopters
or tanks or armored personnel carriers. They don't have any
of that. They do have community groups where the men have rifles.
And they have suicide bombers.
Israel controls
the area where Palestinians live. They control all the borders.
No one comes or goes without Israeli permission. And this makes
Palestinians very angry. They would like their freedom. So this
friction has caused a lot of trouble. Bombings, military invasions,
assassinations -- there's been a lot of violence. Most people
on both sides would like to see an end to the violence that
has killed friends and family.
Israel would
like to have the West Bank territory where a few million Palestinians
live. Some of them claim it on Biblical grounds. They say that
God himself directed them to have it. So they move there. (Illegally,
according to the Geneva Convention.) They might confiscate the
property of a Palestinian farmer when they do that. This doesn't
do anything to help peaceful relationships between the people.
Other Israelis want the West Bank for the water that is available
there. Water is a very precious resource in this part of the
world.
A problem
with Israel claiming the land is that a few million Palestinians
live there and call it their home. And they have lived there
a long time. Some families have lived there a long, long, long
time. Maybe a thousand years.
So as I
see it, Israel has three options:
1) Two-state
solution: Allow the Palestinians to have their own state.
This state would include the West Bank and Gaza. What would
Israelis get? Peace, hopefully. No more suicide bombers hitting
Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. What would Palestinians get? Their freedom.
Land. This is the option preferred by most Palestinians.
2) One-state
solution: Annex the Palestinians Territories to become part
of Israel. Give the residents of the West Bank and Gaza full
Israeli citizenship, with all the same rights and privileges
as Israeli citizens. Israel gets the water resources. I think
the Palestinians would get better economic opportunities. Better
job possibilities. Freedom to move within Israel unobstructed.
Freedom to participate in and change Israeli government policy.
3) Transfer:
Force all the Palestinians to flee the West Bank and then Israel
claims the empty land. This is a crazy and terrible plan, but
it is seriously discussed as a solution by men and women in
important positions who should know better. I pray that this
never becomes a reality.
But as far
as I can tell, Israelis are stalling. They've been doing this
since 1967. They won't decide what to do about the situation.
The way it is now is clearly wrong. I can see that every day.
Israel has control of the West Bank and Gaza. They control the
lives of all Palestinians. They say where Palestinians can go.
They say what they can do. Israel can't have it all. Either
they give up the land and water in the West Bank or they offer
Palestinians the same rights as Israeli citizens.
Middle East Issues