History is a cruel teacher, even for those who learn. Those who dont, as philosopher George Santayana quipped, are condemned to repeat their mistakes. What, then, can we learn from the history of the Palestinian-Israeli saga? Basically, three interrelated lessons. To call the Palestinian- Israeli quagmire a «conflict» is a misnomer. As Norman Podhoretz recently … Seguir leyendo Palestinians reject peace again and again – 17/05/02 →

Beirut, Tunis and Ramallah form a pattern in which, every 10 years, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat buries himself in his own political hole only to be rescued by foreign intervention. Consider: • Beirut 1982. After prompting a full-scale retaliatory attack from the Israeli army, Palestinian forces begin to retreat. As the Israelis advance to Beirut, Arafat finds … Seguir leyendo Foreign intervention once again saves Arafat – 26/04/02 →

In 1994, a deranged Israeli settler shot to death 29 Palestinian worshipers at a mosque in Hebron. With the exception of a few right-wing extremists, Israelis unequivocally condemned the atrocity. There was no rationalization related to the «root causes» of the settler’s rage, no equivocation about the «frustration» of Israelis under constant Palestinian stoning and … Seguir leyendo One is civilized, the other barbaric – 05/04/02 →

When one realizes that some 300 foreign journalists have entered Israel in the past 10 days, joining the 500 who arrived in February — not to mention those hundreds already permanently assigned to the country — one cannot but be amazed at the fascination that this tiny nation holds for the international media. Often, this … Seguir leyendo The righteous vs. the terrorist (weak) – 15/03/02 →

Picture this dramatic scene. During a heated meeting in the Oval Office, President Bush — angered at comments made by CIA Director George Tenet — slaps Tenet across the face and pulls a gun on him, shouting, «I will kill you!» Trembling from nerves, Bush lets the gun fall to the floor a few seconds … Seguir leyendo What awaits mideast after Arafat’s passing? – 22/02/02 →

Jan. 22: A Palestinian opens fire with an M-16 assault rifle against Israelis waiting at a bus stop in  Jerusalem, killing two and wounding 40. Jan. 25: A Palestinian suicide-bomber explodes himself in a cafe near the old bus station in Tel Aviv, wounding 25. Jan. 27: A Palestinian suicide-bomber kills one and wounds more than 150 in … Seguir leyendo Corporate warfare against Israel – 01/02/02 →

Last week Israeli naval commandos seized the Karine-A freighter as it was transporting more than 50 tons of weapons – worth tens of millions of dollars – through the Red Sea. Its destination: the Palestinian Authority-controlled Gaza Strip. Evidence reveals extensive PA fingerprints. The ship was purchased in Lebanon in October 2000 for $400,000 by … Seguir leyendo An unfriendly entity – 11/01/02 →

The recent dramatic decision by the Sharon government to term the Palestinian Authority a terror-supporting entity» and to regard its leader «irrelevant» rendered redundant all the previous talk of Yasser Arafat’s inability or unwillingness to fight anti-Israel terror coming from areas under his jurisdiction. This issue didn’t really make much of a difference to Israeli … Seguir leyendo Sharon’s declaration a return to national sanity – 21/12/01 →

With the laudable exception of some prominent European individuals and organizations, Europe’s overall attitude toward Israel can be defined as contradictory at best, problematic at worst. Consider: At the dawn of the 20th Century, the British were in favor of establishing a Jewish national home in Eretz Israel (Palestine), thus allowing a Jewish state to … Seguir leyendo Why Europe continues to be so anti-Israel – 30/11/01 →

It was only a matter of time. We knew it was coming. Anyone even superficially aware of the dominant themes in Arab media knew that sooner or later they would blame the Sept. 11 attacks on the Jews. And, in vintage fashion, they have. Take Egyptian sheik Muhammad Al-Gamei’a, Al-Azhar University representative in the United … Seguir leyendo Arab press rabidly plays to its audience – 09/11/01 →