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Ink Spo ts
Matt Paxton
The ongoing struggle between the Palestinians and Israelis, now lasting 76 years since the founding of the state of Israel, ratcheted up to a new level of frightfulness with the murder of over 1,200 people by Hamas on Oct. 7. Israel’s military response has been a brutal campaign in Gaza that has resulted in over 30,000 civilian deaths. In both instances, it’s been innocents who have suffered at the hands of cynical, hate-filled leadership.
The Palestinian people in Gaza have suffered under the regime of Hamas for almost 20 years. Hamas’ professed mission is the defeat and eradication of the state of Israel at virtually any cost in lives, both Arab and Israeli. Hamas gunmen have murdered Gazans who were orchestrating humanitarian relief that was not going through Hamas channels. Though it’s hard to believe anything coming from either side in this war, it’s alleged, with some corroboration, that Hamas has used hospitals in Gaza to shield its military operations. Over 130 hostages remain in Gaza – some are U.S. citizens.
While the same is not true of the Israeli people insofar as the Israeli government, the government of Benjamin Netanyahu has been shown to be incompetent, venal and, regardless of the denials, uncaring about the deaths of thousands of Gazan civilians, a large proportion of them children. Netanyahu is clinging to power to avoid prosecution on corruption charges.
I grew up during the Vietnam War, and the parallels between events of that time and today are striking. In both cases, we see protests on college campuses, the nightly presentation of grisly video from the war zone broadcast into our homes, and the intransigence of those in power to come to a solution to end it.
I sympathize with those who are protesting the war in Gaza and the pain, suffering, hunger and death being borne by the those living in Gaza. I am also horrified by what I read about the torture, rape and murder of Israeli civilians on Oct. 7. Beyond the tragedies of these events, possibly the greater tragedy is the hardening of positions on the part of people from both sides of this conflict.
We never seem to learn that terrorism and war doesn’t change people’s views for the better; it only hardens them and drives uncommitted people to more extreme positions. Israel’s war in Gaza has probably radicalized an entire new generation of Palestinians. Hamas’ attack has hardened Israeli public opinion and pushed people toward the farright politically. Neither bodes well for peace in the region.
What can the United States do in this nowin situation. Seeking a ceasefire, release of the hostages and unfettered delivery and distribution of humanitarian aid in Gaza is what we’re working for now. But what of the long-term? We have supported the two-state solution well over 20 years. I remember President George W. Bush speaking at VMI and mentioning in his speech that he favored that approach, and I thought it was the first time I’d heard a president say that publicly.
Netanyahu and the Israeli far-right oppose the two-state solution, but have not provided an alternative plan. Maybe it’s time that the U.S. began conditioning the billions we provide the Israeli government and require that they seriously examine viable strategies toward a solution.
At the same time, the Palestinians need to address their governance problem. Mahmoud Abbas, the head of the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank, is 88 years old, with no successor in sight. Hamas is just a terrorist organization, both externally and to its own populace in Gaza.
The United States needs to be viewed by both sides as an honest broker. Yes, there should be no question that we support Israel’s right to exist and to defend itself. But we should also support Palestinian efforts to form a viable, independent entity that will undercut the more radical elements in that society. That’s a tall order, and maybe impossible, but anything is worth trying to bend the future toward peace and some form of coexistence in the Middle East.
