Untitled

[loudlytinyflower-blog]

The Last Blog...

I want to start off by saying that I am very thankful that I took this course and how insightful it has been over the semester.  When I first signed up for this course I didn’t realize how the Israel/Palestine conflict affects so many other parts of the world.  I realize now that conflict there, and in the Middle East in general, definitely has a ripple effect.  Even though we spent sixteen weeks covering this conflict, I still feel like there is much more to learn.  This is in part due to the evolving nature of the situation.  Nonetheless, I am walking away from this class with further understanding and perspective of the world.  In the beginning, I felt hopeless for a solution but now I feel like there is possibility for one.  However, I think that this is going to take a significant amount of political will and coordination.  It’s possible, that is for sure, but it won’t occur effortlessly.

[loudlytinyflower-blog]

Majority of Senate pushes Obama to boost Israel aid

The majority of US Senators (83/100) wrote a letter to President Obama urging him to come to an agreement on a defense aid package.  Although the letter failed to quantify an amount, Israel would like $4-4.5 billion and US officials have given figures of about $3.7 billion.  The article stated that the administration would like to lock in a 10 year deal before he leaves office in January, due to Israel being opposed to the Iran nuclear deal.  This aid would assist Israel in having a technological advantage over its neighbors and boost its military.  Bernie Sanders did not sign the letter while Ted Cruz was among the 51 republicans who did.  Although I think that its a strategic advantage to have an ally in the Middle East, implications should be considered when we decide to prop one country up above the rest.  In addition, we should consider Israel’s military relationship with other countries and whether this is truly an organization that promotes American values before we continue to increase aid to Israel.

[bluedonkey417-deactivated201703]

Members of Hamas Arrested in Connection with Bus Bombing

http://www.timesofisrael.com/jerusalem-bus-bombing-was-suicide-attack-organized-by-hamas/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

Members of Hamas were arrested in the West Bank for the Jerusalem bus bombing that occurred on Monday. The bomber who placed the explosive on the bus received severe wounds, which he died from on Wednesday.

[loudlytinyflower-blog]

I was interested to see how this would play out and who would end up taking responsibility for the attack. I find it intriguing that the bomber was just a member of Hamas and that the group ended up not taking full responsibility for this (according to the article), yet they condone the violence against against Israelis. Wouldn't they want to claim responsibility or is there a reason why they're falling short of this? Whatever the reason is I am sure we will continue to see an increase in "lone wolf" terrorist attacks. Technology has made it easier for individuals to break away from terrorist organizations and act alone, rather than relying on the organization. I wonder if future organizations will rely on "lone wolf" terrorists to continue to do the "dirty work" while the organization's reputation will remain unscathed. However, I am unsure of how probable this actually is.

[herdonuttheorist-blog]

Yet another Tunnel

According to a article in the NYT, the Israelis have found yet another tunnel spanning from Gaza to Israel. “The state of Israel has achieved a global breakthrough in the ability to locate tunnels”. Sensibly, the Israeli government refuses to disclose any information about the technology that they have used to find and locate tunnels. Unsurprisingly, it is rumored that the tunnel was built by Hamas. According to the Israeli government, they are responsible for finding and destroying 32 tunnels by the end of the 2014 war. Later in the article, the author says that it is likely that Hamas has rebuilt much of the tunnel systems that were destroyed by Israel in 2014. Also according to the article, the tunnel spanning from Gaza to Israel was fully functional with electricity, communication lines and even a rail line to make the process easier for the builders. Do you think that tunnels are an effective mechanism against Israel? Because to me it seems that Hamas has a ton of resources and will not ever stop with the tunnel business but yet the Israeli government is getting better at finding said tunnels.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/19/world/middleeast/israelis-find-new-tunnel-from-gaza-into-israel.html?ref=middleeast 

[mysteriouslydisguisedgentle-blog]

I think that that is a tough question to answer. If these tunnels are some of the only ones that Hamas has built, and Israel keeps finding them and destroying them, then I would say that no, these tunnels aren’t effective. However, if the tunnels found by Israel are only a fraction of the tunnels, then it is possible that Hamas uses them effectively. My guess is that, overall, the tunnels are effective due to the fact that Hamas keeps building them. 

A question I have is, “What can the political wing of Hamas do to curb the terrorist wing of Hamas? Can anything actually be done? With the bus bombing yesterday, what would bring Israel to the negotiating table to deal with Hamas?

[loudlytinyflower-blog]

I think that the answer to your question, @herdonuttheorist, is that it depends on how effective that technology is.  If its effective, then Hamas should obviously reconsider investing money in the tunnels.  However, if this is the only tunnel they’ve found, then it is not as effective as the Israelis are making it out to be.  What I found interesting about the article was that it noted that the tunnel was actually incomplete, meaning it “did not have an exit coming up to the surface, suggesting that it was detected deep underground” at about 100 to 130 feet.  Before we contribute the tunnel’s discovery mainly to technology we should also consider that Lt. Col. Peter Lerner reported that it was a combination of “technology, intelligence, engineering, and troops on the ground.”  It is difficult to tell how much weight we should give each of these components.

[adriennezalien]

Arab Deputy Commissioner

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/israel-appoints-first-ever-arab-police-officer-to-second-highest-rank-a6984046.html

After our first round of mock negotiations, I have security and peace on my mind. This article simply states that Jamal Hakrush is the first Arab police officer in Israel to rise to the rank of deputy commissioner. It is the second highest rank. While I know Israel wants to keep it’s Jewish identity, I think that they need to include more of their Arab citizens in the police force and public life in general. The article says that Israel wants to recruit 1,300 new officers and create new police stations in Arab-populated areas. I am hoping that many of these new recruits will be Arab-Israelis as well. While this potential increased inclusion is not going to fix many of Israel’s problems with violence, it would be a step in the right direction.

[loudlytinyflower-blog]

I agree with you that this is definitely a step in the right direction.  I think that if there are more Arab-Isreali police officers it will help ease tensions.  However, I don’t think it will help too much.  As you stated, they will “create new police stations in Arab-populated areas,” but if they are only interacting with a majority Arab population will this really help the tensions between Israeli-Jews and Isreali-Arabs?  I think that is unlikely.  In order to be more effective for easing tentsions between Israelis and Arabs, in my opinion, it would have to be Israeli-Jews & Isreali-Arab police officers working together and in areas populated by both demographics.

[thoughtshavei-blog]

Israel’s War on the Arabic Language

I am surprised at Israel’s apparent lack of concern with learning and understanding the Arabic language. Being in the Middle East, with neighboring Muslim countries for the sake of bettering relations with other countries and enabling diplomacy Israel should take a greater interest in encouraging citizens to learn Arabic.  Israel’s refusal to include the Arabic language in public places, despite a 2002 court ruling that all signs should be in Arabic as well, could be seen as similar to the United States reaction in incorporating Spanish.  Some Americans are vehemently opposed to learning Spanish, believing that English is American.  Israel exclusive of the Arabic language is slightly different though in that they are court mandated to post in the Arabic language.  Israel is also forcing Arab litigants who don’t understand Hebrew to pay for translation costs.  Additionally, public institutions such as hospitals, universities, transportation, the post office, and government ministries don’t translate Hebrew into Arabic.  This practice is highly discriminatory against Israeli Arabs and shouldn’t be tolerated in a democracy.

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/04/israel-war-arabic-language-160404102325547.html

[loudlytinyflower-blog]

I’m thankful that you shared this article, and encourge others to read through it.  I agree with you that the exclusion of signs in Arabic, especially in public areas, should not be tolerated.  However, the only legal action that has been taken against this is human rights lawyers in Tel Aviv threatening the city with a contempt of court action.  Surprisingly, this is happening 14 years after the legislation was passed and not sooner.  In addition, I found it interesting that last week the Palestinian members of the Knesset switched to speaking Arabic.  As you mentioned, the parliament provides no translation services and most of the Jewish members, “like the rest of the Jewish population,” do not understand Arabic.  The point was made in the article that they had sacrificed their right to speak Arabic for the sake of the Jewish members understanding, however they weren’t being listened to anyways.  Although I think the English/Spanish and Hebrew/Arabic do have their differences, I really thought that there was a strong parallel when the article reported that “The hostile attitude of offficial bodies, including municipalities like Tel Aviv, encourages a general climate that treats Arabic as an alien and despised language,” said Jamal Zahalka, a Palestinian member of the Israeli Knesset who is currently suspended from the parliament.

[ime16-blog]

Such a fascinating article… It’s always interesting to see how Israeli/Palestinian conflict reaches into all areas of life. I was really interested in the fact that Arabic as an official language is something left over from the British mandate period, since I feel like a fair amount of the legitimacy of the claims that Arabic needs to be included on the signs stems from the language’s official status. However, I think the inclusion or exclusion of Arabic on signs is less a matter of legality or even a matter of whether a large enough percentage of the population speaks the language to warrant its inclusion. I see it more as a symbolic gesture - by excluding Arabic, the message that Arabs themselves are not wanted is sent. I think the inclusion of English on signs supports this point, along with the slightly ridiculous excuse that including Arabic would mean “too much text” on signs. If they can find room for English on the signs, surely they can find room for Arabic, especially since it’s an official, widely-used language in the country. Nine times more people have Arabic as their first language than have English as their first language in Israel. (http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4335235,00.html)

[alwaysbeeneasy-deactivated20160]

I think it’s interesting to take a look at all the figures involved in this controversy. First off, only 9 million people in the entire world, according to wikipedia(some sources list the number closer to 5 million) actually speak Hebrew, and a large portion of those do not speak it fluently.  It is not even one of the world’s 50 most-spoken languages. By comparison, some form of Arabic is spoken by almost 240 million people, the 5th most spoken language world-wide.  This is not even close to the same controversy occurring over Spanish/English controversy in the U.S., as those are the 2nd and 3rd most spoken languages in the world, respectively.  The Hebrew/Arabic argument would be more like if the United States chose to enforce Lakota Sioux as its main language and if u couldn’t speak it, you were S.O.L.  It’s almost like the Israeli government wants Israel to be a secret club that nobody else can be a part of unless they know the secret language.  Every country that borders Israel, speaks Arabic.  Why would they not want to make their country as hospitable to their neighbors as possible? I understand including English on signs, because English-speakers no doubt make up a majority of their tourism faction, but not including Arabic is almost a blatant announcement that they are not welcome inside Israel’s borders.

On top of this all, Arabic is listed as an OFFICIAL language of Israel!  That should trump all other arguments.  What purpose is there for listing Arabic as an official language if the people in the country are discouraged from using that language?

[loudlytinyflower-blog]

@ime16- I agree with you that the exclusion/inclusion of Arabic language is more of a message about how Israel wants their population to look (i.e. demographics).  Although it may be more of a symbolic matter than legal, I think that the lack of legal actions behind this definitely exacerbates the problem.  I am really glad that you made this distinction.  If you hadn’t, I am not sure how much weight I would have given the symbolism of this issue.

@alwaysbeeneasy - I’m glad that you pointed out further statistics as those can always give a good overall picture and how it relates to the rest of the world.  Like I said, the whole English/Spanish and Hebrew/Arabic definitely have their differences, but the way that they refer to it as an “enemy” or even “alien” language, in my opinion, mirrors how some view Spanish in this country.  I think that @husker212 shed some light on your question as to why Israel does not want to make their country more hospitiable to their neighbors, poniting out that it could very well be a fear of Arab encroachment onto Israeli national identity.

[thoughtshavei-blog]

Israel’s War on the Arabic Language

I am surprised at Israel’s apparent lack of concern with learning and understanding the Arabic language. Being in the Middle East, with neighboring Muslim countries for the sake of bettering relations with other countries and enabling diplomacy Israel should take a greater interest in encouraging citizens to learn Arabic.  Israel’s refusal to include the Arabic language in public places, despite a 2002 court ruling that all signs should be in Arabic as well, could be seen as similar to the United States reaction in incorporating Spanish.  Some Americans are vehemently opposed to learning Spanish, believing that English is American.  Israel exclusive of the Arabic language is slightly different though in that they are court mandated to post in the Arabic language.  Israel is also forcing Arab litigants who don’t understand Hebrew to pay for translation costs.  Additionally, public institutions such as hospitals, universities, transportation, the post office, and government ministries don’t translate Hebrew into Arabic.  This practice is highly discriminatory against Israeli Arabs and shouldn’t be tolerated in a democracy.

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/04/israel-war-arabic-language-160404102325547.html

[loudlytinyflower-blog]

I’m thankful that you shared this article, and encourge others to read through it.  I agree with you that the exclusion of signs in Arabic, especially in public areas, should not be tolerated.  However, the only legal action that has been taken against this is human rights lawyers in Tel Aviv threatening the city with a contempt of court action.  Surprisingly, this is happening 14 years after the legislation was passed and not sooner.  In addition, I found it interesting that last week the Palestinian members of the Knesset switched to speaking Arabic.  As you mentioned, the parliament provides no translation services and most of the Jewish members, “like the rest of the Jewish population,” do not understand Arabic.  The point was made in the article that they had sacrificed their right to speak Arabic for the sake of the Jewish members understanding, however they weren’t being listened to anyways.  Although I think the English/Spanish and Hebrew/Arabic do have their differences, I really thought that there was a strong parallel when the article reported that “The hostile attitude of offficial bodies, including municipalities like Tel Aviv, encourages a general climate that treats Arabic as an alien and despised language,” said Jamal Zahalka, a Palestinian member of the Israeli Knesset who is currently suspended from the parliament.

[pecca-fortiter-blog1-deactivate]

Abbas’s Call for Peace

In response to the recent escalation of violent knife attacks dating back to mid-September, Mahmoud Abbas stated today that he hopes to resume to a peace process with Israel. In total, stabbings, shootings, and car-ramming assaults have taken the lives of 28 Israelis. Israeli security forces have killed 188 Palestinians— most of whom they claim were attackers. Though these numbers remain tragic for both Israelis and Palestinians, the recently surfaced video footage of the apparent “execution” of Abed al-Fattah Yusri al-Sharif no doubt influenced the decision of President Abbas. Abbas announced, “I want to see peace in my life,” and therefore, he aims to “give [his] people hope” so that “nobody would dare go and stab or shoot.” Abbas continued by urging Netanyahu to meet with him “at any time.”

While Abbas’s call to resume the peace process should be regarded positively, one can doubt its ability to immediately end violence— particularly the recent trend in youth violence. As the presidential term of Abbas drags on, Palestinian youth feel frustration not only toward Israeli occupation, but the Palestinian government itself. Additionally, Abbas’s call to resume the peace process does little to address the problem of Hamas in Gaza.

http://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2016-03-31/israel-demolishes-home-of-palestinian-who-killed-israeli

[unlpols2]

Part of Abbas’ problem is he himself has become a figurehead of a movement with a decreasing social significance. A solution of the Palestinian problem requires a Palestinian leader and that Abbas is not. In fact, the last two decades of the Palestinian Authority is largely a story of decline. Losing the elections in Gaza and the ensuing civil war between Fatah and Hamas underlined the deep divisions the Palestinian people must bridge in order to form a coalition that can work together and negotiate with the Israelis. 

What that coalition would look like, I do not know. Certainly the radical wings of Hamas cannot be part of it. In a sense, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict first requires a solution of the Palestinian-Palestinian conflict. This is an ambitious goal and one that will likely take years to achieve. I do believe, however, that it is the only solution. And Abbas may not be the one to do it. 

[rightistheleftsmuse-blog]

“A figurehead of a movement with decreasing social significance.” That’s very succinct. I believe I agree with you. I would add that such significance as it carried in the past was often a result of outside forces lending status to leaders who were not really standard bearers. The apparent goal of much of the Palestinian “leadership” is similar to that of many US congressman - stay in power by catering to forces likely to help them maintain and enhance prestige and status. 

The problem with the Palestinian leaders is there is no Dr. King, General Washington, Mahatma Ghandi or Theodor Herzl (I’ll throw him in to be relevant :).  No specific leader who’s ambition is to build a lasting legacy on behalf of his people. Instead they are all modern day Pharaohs building useless monuments to themselves on the backs of the impoverished. Should such a real leader ever arise, there is enough moral capital to make something happen - assuming he lasts a few years before he’s assassinated. But it truly is a dearth of leadership that is at the heart of the failures in the region. It’s not all on the Palestinian side of course, but they have the most egregious examples I think.

[lmepal-blog]

As Wittes quoted in the third chapter, there’s “leaders, but no leadership”. I agree with the above statement that this will not end the violence any time soon. If anything, I think we’ll be seeing a few more incidents (hopefully not, but I expect the worst) before anything really starts happening and then probably when negotiations start again. (Who knows - maybe the third intifada will finally rear its ugly head.) But in the meantime, I think that this is a very positive step in the right direction! I’ve often wondered if Rabin was honestly just tired of the same arguments back and forth and petty squabbling and that’s how he was so effective - he listened, he insisted, and got stuff done.

“The Palestinian issue is the core of the conflict in the region and the world,” Abbas says and is quoted in my article below from J-Post, in accordance with this subject. In response to this I agree with the comment above that the Palestinian-Palestinian conflict must be resolved first (not just between the people, but the government and the people). There is absolutely no way in my mind that there will be any kind of resolution to anything, really, if the party and people are not a united front. Now this will take a lot of work since they just don’t have the experience that the Israelis do - as we discussed in class today - but nothing bad has ever really come out of trying (except Oslo..and Oslo II.. the idea is nice). 

I really can’t wait to see how this may pan out in the years to come! This is super exciting because as Dr. Kohen has mentioned in class, we’ve never witnessed any negotiations that have resulted in much. I’ll be looking for updates!

http://www.jpost.com/Arab-Israeli-Conflict/Abbas-calls-for-international-parley-in-meeting-with-visiting-Indian-FM-441860

[loudlytinyflower-blog]

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4787310,00.html Building off the original post, Netanyahu has "dared" Abbas to meet with him and subsequently cleared his schedule, according to the article below. It will be interesting to see if Abbas takes Netanyahu up on his offer or not. If he does, then hopefully peace can start to unravel. If not, then again....stagnation. Either way, it's almost relieving that both leaders have publicly announced and opened a road of communication between the two countries. Although this may not happen, it still, in my opinion, gives hope to both the Palestinians and Israelis (and international community) that want to see an end to the conflict. I'm eager to see how this will end or if it will continue.

[gbr457-blog]

Israel shuts off Palestinian power

Twice this week Israel shut off power to certain areas of Palestine with the hopes of the temporary outages helping lower the rising debt owed. The Palestinians owe close to two billion dollars to the power company, which rises at around 70 million dollars a month. By the company cutting off its service, like any company would over an unpaid debt, this will only provide fuel for the Palestinian cause and puts Israel is in a lose lose situation. They can either leave the power on and keep giving away electricity for free, to their most vocal and possibly dangerous enemy. Or, they can turn off the power until their debts they are owed are paid, which with the large amount of poverty will not be paid in a timely manner. I believe this is a situation where Israel is wrong no matter what they do.

[mysteriouslydisguisedgentle-blog]

I think your assessment of Israel’s situation is spot on. It is a lose-lose for them. Today we discussed in class how important the world’s opinion is to Israel. This headline will have many folks shaking their heads, even if the Palestinians are to blame for not paying or being able to pay their debts. 

As far as Israel’s options are concerned, do you think it would be a poor decision to allow the Palestinians to set up their own electric district? I’m not sure how feasible that would be, but it would give Israel a chance to get out of their tough position. 

[loudlytinyflower-blog]

Shutting of the Palestinian power is counterproductive.  How are they going to work or pay off their debt if they have no power to do so?  I don’t think it would be poor decision for Israel to allow the Palestinians to set up their own power district, however I do not see this as something Israel would be willing to do.  From Israel’s perspective I could see this being a step towards Palestinian sovereignty, a move they more than likely do not want to take.  I think that turning off the electricity will exacerbate the poverty and make the economic situation worse, for both parties.  If they do decide to keep the electricity on I don’t think that it would necessarily be free, only increase the debt that is owed to Israel...and who wants to be in that situation?  I think that letting the Palestinians run their own power district would be best, but I don’t think Israel will go for that.

[chocolatepiratemaker-blog]

ISIS: Where Rape is institutionalized

It amazes me just how base a person can become when an atrocity, and a moral abomination is sanctioned by the government. Daesh has become the world’s epitome of evil and base, animalistic behavior, yet the world refuses to take a major action against it. There is no major coalition to take it on, and no one wants to touch the topic of deploying forces with a 10ft. pole. The problem with the position of wanting to avoid the conflict, to a great extent, is historically we can see a very clear cycle of what happens when the world leaves weeds to grow. Lets just take a look at Hitler. We gave up Austria because we did not want to go to war. We gave up Slovakia, again, because we did not want to go to war, and then look what happened. When things really hit the fan we were launched into a major global war.  Remember, Germany, when Hitler came to power, was not powerful. It had 100,000 troops to act as basically a police force. If we continue to toy with the Daesh problem it will not stay a minor engagement for long. If we need a reason to intervene heavily, this article gives the world more than enough reason to create a coalition around the R2P principle. Sadly, this is not going to happen. Politicians are cowards. History has shown that they cower at the idea of sending troops to fight humanitarian injustice. They are unwilling to send people to war for moral reasons. Instead they show their true incentive by sending men to war for reasons such as oil and money. They then have the audacity to ask why their wars are unpopular. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/13/world/middleeast/to-maintain-supply-of-sex-slaves-isis-pushes-birth-control.html?ref=world&_r=0

[loudlytinyflower-blog]

I can definitely empathize with your anger about this.  I find it very disturbing that this organization has grown as much as it has.  It seems as if ISIS and the atrocities grow, the situation continues to leave our grasp.  I think that you have every right to furious with politicians’ inactions, which has caused millions of deaths.  However, defeating terrorists is not as simple as putting troops on the ground.  It is a complex organization and putting troops on the ground could just make the problem worse, such as it did after 9/11 by being in Iraq and Afghanistan unnecessarily wasting US lives.  I think that there are better ways to go about defeating terrorism rather than just simply putting our troops abroad.  I also think that we should also consider that anytime politicians decide to go to war, it is more than likely going to be unpopular to its’ citizens.  That being said, I do not think we should refrain from humanitarian intervention for the sake of a war not being popular.  This is the point that actually disturbs me the most, not helping people when we clearly have the ability to do so.

[loudlytinyflower-blog]

Red Canyon, Eilat Mountains, Israel (Photos:  Idan Ben Haim, Kavram).  Multicolored sandstone formed by erosion from the Shani River.  The colors are created from rust and iron oxide responsible for the pinks, oranges, yellows, and reds.  Sometimes there will be manganese deposits causing the canyon to be tinted purple.  I thought a change up was needed.  There is more information on the link.

http://www.fromthegrapevine.com/nature/immerse-yourself-magnificent-red-canyon

[anti-ishihara-blog-deactivated2]

Poll: Half of Israeli Jews want Palestinians expelled

Findings by Washington-based research centre reflect gulfs between Jewish citizens and Arabs amid increase in violence.

Side post as I’m not seeing anyone else talking about this, and it’s too jarring for me to look past.

These findings are slightly terrifying. With the end of our mock Peace Summit, I’ve been thinking a lot about Israel’s relations with its neighbors, allies, and enemies. However, this poll goes to show that the Israel’s internal relations are just as unstable. We can’t treat Israelis monolithically. It’s true that most states are going to have an inherent level of diversity and pluralism. To be a bit cynical though, this level of discrimination among its own citizens is almost unworkable. It makes peace negotiations and state solutions all the more difficult to reach.

[mysteriouslydisguisedgentle-blog]

I think that this poll highlights the fact that there are drastic differences in thought among Jews about what the state of Israel is or should be. I think we tend to identify with the Jews who hold to a European vision of having a pluralistic society, but forget that this is not the only line of thinking in Israel. 

For sincerely religious Jews, Israel is to be a purely Jewish state. Palestinians, in this view, are a thorn in the side and disrupt an authentic Jewish culture. It is no wonder that religiously motivated Jews just want the Palestinians out, and might use violent means of achieving that goal, as was confirmed by our first test. 

[loudlytinyflower-blog]

Although this is upsetting, I really appreciate this point being brought up because, as you pointed out, this way thinking is more prevalent than we usually consider.  I really liked how Shibley Telhami, Anwar Sadat Professor for Peace and Development at the University of Maryland, pointed out that “seeing Arabs as a demographic problem is not only wrong because it privileges Jewishness over democracy, but it also diverts from the fact that Israel has an obligation to end the occupation.”  I think that it should be extremely important for the international community, especially the US, to consider whether or not to support this type of country.  What is even more shocking is that 74 percent of Jewish respondents did not see discrimination against Muslims, while 8 in 10 Palestinian citizens believed there was heavy discrimination in Israeli society.  Not only does this show blatant disregard and ignorance towards the experiences of their Muslim counterparts, but it also takes away the seriousness of the Israeli occupation.

[iandme1-blog]

Arab Female Unemployment

http://www.timesofisrael.com/why-barely-1-in-5-israeli-arab-women-works-and-how-high-tech-can-fix-that/

Usually when we discuss the Arab-Israeli conflict we focus on hard power, who is bombing who, why one side dislikes the other, and the current chaos that is going on throughout the Middle East. I thought this article was particularly interesting because it shows a disparity in soft power (I’m considering the employment of women to be soft power).

As the article states, only about 22% of Arab women are actively engaged in the workforce. In contrast, about 58% of Jewish women (and a similar figure of middle easter Christian women) are employed. This lack of female employment is one of the many things that contributes to a high poverty level among arab families. The reasoning why the rate of unemployed females is so low makes sense (cultural norms along with a general lack of knowledge about job opportunities), but nevertheless I feel that it is imperative for more Arab women to find work in order for their societies to progress.

Another reason I like this article is because it not only present to us the problems, but gives solutions to help fix the female unemployment problem. I agree that high-tech online jobs are beneficial for getting more Arab women employed and are a good stepping stone to help more Arab women receive an education and be able to make some income.

What are your thoughts on this article?

[thepreppypolitique-blog]

I think that the cultural norms are the biggest issue here. Whether or not there are jobs is relevant because most of the Arab women don’t want jobs. This idea that the employment of women as a measure of soft power is very American. In a culture in which a woman cannot speak to a man she isn’t related to through blood or marriage in public, it is unrealistic to believe they are going to be accepting of women in the workforce.

Even in the United States, women working outside the home was frowned upon well in the 20th century. I think change will be quite slow and a difficult, uphill battle.

[loudlytinyflower-blog]

I’m really glad that you brought this article into discussion because it has very interesting points, including some solutions that should be tried.  I, too, believe that having more Arab women employed would allow for cultural norms to change overtime, eradicate poverty, and help end stereotypes.  However, if the high-tech sector keeps these women working at home then it may not help the last point so much.  I also think that we should refrain from the belief that “most of the Arab women don’t want jobs,” as @thepreppypolitique put it.  I think that this statement perpetuates the social norm that women are obligated to stay at home and it doesn’t account for the complexity of the issue.  As stated in the article:  “The main obstacle we need to address is the female students finishing high school who have better grades than the male students, but then ‘disappear’ and do not enter into academic fields that lead towards high-tech.”  So it seems that there is a barrier between finishing high school and then not entering into academic fields and for the sole reason of this being because they do not want to is too simple.  If an Arab woman is showing interest in an academic setting by earning good grades why would she do that in order to just stay home in the end?  I’m sure that some Arab women don’t want jobs and solely desire to just have a family and be the caregiver, but this stereotype cannot be applied to all Arab women.

[chocolatepiratemaker-blog]

Israeli Jews and their neighbors

This article shows a strong sentiment among Jews within Israel, that favors a religiously  or at least an ethnicly pure Israel. This is a response to perceived, growing anti-semitism throughout the world. The some within the Jewish community are proposing a forced deportation of all non-jews. Though I understand the sentiment to protect jews there are many problems that come with this sort of policy. First being where would you put the displaced people? In current times there are boarders that are protected and people cannot easily cross them. Secondly, there are many concerns about the ethical implications of such an action. If the Jews are deporting non-Jews, the are other countries allowed to deport all their Jews to Israel? If so, how would Israel sustain this amount of people? There is already a considerable burden on the natural resources. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/09/world/middleeast/study-israel-jews-pew-research.html?ref=world&_r=0

[bluedonkey417-deactivated201703]

I doubt the U.S. would be willing to take in the displaced, especially since some of our politicians won’t even allow those who are being persecuted by ISIS to come here. You’re right about the ethical implications of doing this. The displaced could be sent to refugee camps, which always seem to have terrible conditions for the refugees living there. Any talk of sending Jews back to Israel is somewhat alarming to me, because this seems to be something that people say because they think this is the first step that will eventually lead to the Second Coming, and they want to be part of making that happen.  

[loudlytinyflower-blog]

I am beginning to wonder if the UN Resolution 242 was a big mistake. If it hadn't happened would Jews still have a strong sense of having to create a pure Jewish state? More importantly, would the anti semitmic attitudes be relatively nonexistent if there wasn't a place to segregate Jews in the world? I seriously just wish we could all coexist. That'd be nice.

[bluedonkey417-deactivated201703]

Indonesia’s Prime Minister Encourages Muslim Countries to Show Their Support for Palestine

http://www.ibtimes.com/indonesian-president-urges-israel-end-colonization-palestine-calls-muslim-world-unite-2331435

http://news.yahoo.com/indonesia-leader-calls-muslim-world-unite-palestine-041538472.html

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo is encouraging Muslims countries to come together and support Palestine so they can be part of the solution in the Israel-Palestine conflict, not part of the problem. Widodo said this before the summit meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, an organization that concentrates on the conflict between Palestine and Jerusalem.

Indonesia has the largest Muslim population in the world, so I can see why the Prime Minister would be concerned about Palestine. Indonesia’s Muslims are similar to the Muslims of Palestine in the sense that they focus on both the spiritual and cultural aspects of Islam. Because of this, it makes sense why they would be in favor of the establishment of a state where Muslims make up the majority of the population. Indonesia was colonized by European countries, so it’s also possible that some Indonesians share the same Anti-Semitic feelings that Arabs learned from European colonists. Like Iran, Indonesia does not recognize the legitimacy of Israel’s statehood.

[loudlytinyflower-blog]

I agree with you, I can understand why Indonesia is concerned about what happens to Muslims in Palestine.  However, I think that this statement also has the power to bolster the pro-Muslim, anti-semitic attitudes, which can give the impression that Israel is solely at fault.  I think that both sides need to take responsibility for their actions.  In addition, Jokowi stated that  "The OIC should be part of the solution, and not part of the problem,” which I completely agree with, except for how are they going to do this without Israel?  Indonesia (among others) does not recognize Israel as a legitimate state and this is going to be a major barrier for coming to a solution.  We have seen how disastrous solutions have been when only one side of the conflict is present.  If these states attempt to impose a solution without Israel’s input I predict that they are going to receive backlash from Israel.  We must recognize that Israel and Palestinians are not going anywhere, and in order to come up with a solution, it is a necessity that both sides are present.

[thoughtshavei-blog]

Collapsed Tunnel Kills Hamas Operative

Earlier today a tunnel in Khan Younis collapsed killing one Hamas operative.  This is the sixth collapsed tunnel in recent months.  Operatives digging the tunnels believe that Israel was involved in at least some of the recent tunnel collapses that have claimed some Hamas operative’s lives.  Now, Hamas operatives are afraid to enter the underground tunnels in the Gaza Strip.

If in fact Israel is responsible for the collapsed tunnels it seems difficult to fault Israel.  Hamas shouldn’t be digging and using tunnels to conduct terrorist activities and Israel is well within their right to stop and prevent such terrorist activities.  I found it fascinating that Hamas operatives have claimed that Israel is using liquid explosives to cause the collapse as well as creating localized earthquakes to collapse the tunnels.  This seems like a far-fetched explanation that is lacking in details of what is actually occurring in the tunnels.  I wonder what Hamas will turn to as the next avenue of launching terrorist attacks if the tunnels are not considered safe and Hamas operatives refuse to go in the tunnels.  Perhaps Israel would be better off with the tunnels intact?

http://www.jpost.com/Arab-Israeli-Conflict/Exclusive-Hamas-operatives-fear-entering-tunnels-believe-Israel-behind-collapses-446836

[sunshinekitty15-blog]

I have briefly touched on the tunnel topic before. I believe that if Israel was a little bit more open with allowing people in and out of Gaza, the tunnels wouldn’t be built in the first place. I recognize that Israel does this to keep Israelis safe, but clearly just separating these people from everyone is causing issues. Hamas knows, or should know, that these tunnels anger the Israeli government. They also know, or should know, that Israel is capable of destroying these tunnels and whoever try to use them. Complaining that Israel is somehow using unfair explosives only draws attention away from the fact that the tunnels shouldn’t even exist in the first place. You mention what their next move might be, and well, who knows. They certainly can’t waste resources with rockets and missiles. Israel is currently setting up to have some of the best rocket and missile defense systems in the world. I think that Israel is well within its rights to get rid of these tunnels, but there should be another plan in place to deal with Hamas. The consequences of not having a plan could bring on something totally unanticipated that could devastate Israeli communities.

[loudlytinyflower-blog]

Indeed, Israel does have the right to protect itself from terrorist attacks.  But how justified is this method when utilizing other method would not produce casualties?  How are they for sure, with 100 percent certainty, that everyone in those tunnels are guilty?  We have seen in many countries, including the United States, how fighting against terrorism can lead to persecuting an entire group, especially when the definition of a terrorist is vague.  @sunshinekitty15 makes an interesting point that these tunnels should not even exist, and I think both sides are at fault for this.  Israel’s response by blowing up tunnels does not ensure that the terrorist organization will cease to exist.  And even after the tunnels are gone, there are many ways in which terrorism can be conducted.  Thus, blowing up tunnels will only increase tensions on both sides.

[elegantmooncollectionblog-blog]

A new approach to peace is needed

The article I found today was an opinion piece demanding a new approach for peace between Israel and Palestine.  Since Israel became a state 68 years ago, the peace carriage has not advanced even a little bit.  The author of this opinion piece goes on to talk about all of the failed efforts in the past to make peace: Madrid Conference 1991, Oslo Accords 1993 and 95, River Memorandum 1998, Camp David Summit 2000, and a few others leading up until 2014. Although the reporter believes that we are all predestined to fail, he also still believes a different approach is needed.  I would agree, but what kind of approach?  I think a good place to start is changing the upbringing and education of both Israelis and Palestinians in regards to each other.   New generations seeing each other differently as a more united people could change the way they go about getting over the history between each other and keeping in mind a coexisting future.

http://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Israel-Palestine-A-new-approach-is-needed-446479

[herdonuttheorist-blog]

I agree with you. I think education is the best way to encourage peace between Israel and Palestine. I think educating the young and new generations is feasible because educating and changing the norm in the older generations I would say is next to impossible because there is already such a stigma against each on both fronts. However, but if the younger generations can be educated, this would be tremendously positive. I also think that trying to educate both the Israeli children and Palestinian children together would further enhance the positive impact for the hopes of a peaceful coexistence between the Israeli’s and Palestinian’s. However parents may not approve of this idea, but hopefully as the older generations are less prevalent, education can improve and build a positive relationship. 

[loudlytinyflower-blog]

I think that you both have intriguing points.  There is no doubt that an unbiased education is vital in order to achieve peace.  Integration is also a key component here.  As @herdonuttheorist​ pointed out however, trying to change these stereotypes for older generations is going to be next to impossible.  But how much of a difference will the oly make?  How much of an impression is the older generation going to make on the younger one?  This question is even more pertinent because the older generation is still choosing what type of education the younger one receives, which currently contain many biases. I agree with @a-kanyeforpresident and believe that there will be another generation before seeing any major changes.