(National Post-Canada) Editorial - In recent weeks, Palestinians have protested at the Gaza border with Israel, demanding the right to return to the territory their ancestors once inhabited but lost long ago through a combination of emigration, military defeats, and strategic blunders connected to the Arabs' repeatedly failed attempts to expel the Jews from the land also of Jewish ancestry. When protesters have turned violent and either tried breaching the border or posing harm to Israelis on the other side, Israeli forces have responded with fire. Israel has nothing to gain from clashes along the border. Indeed, it has every reason to avoid bloodshed. It is Hamas that seeks to inflame tensions, encouraging protesters to test the border, despite Israel's warnings that it will defend its territory against invasion. Hamas leaders are sending soldiers to whip up the crowd and push them all, civilians included, toward a heightened confrontation. Israel did not seek this confrontation. It pulled out of Gaza unilaterally more than a decade ago, continues to supply the enclave with necessities of life, and routinely withstands attacks from Gazan territory. Israel has long been ready to negotiate peace, but there are still no responsible partners it can negotiate with.
2018-04-09 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive