Letter: True Palestinian Goals?

Dear editor:

Bruce Ticker is correct. (“Column: More Malignant Than Any Mikado” boulderjewishnews.org June 20, 2024) With Hamas promising to inflict multiple October 7 atrocities on Israelis and the Palestinian Authority asserting that maintaining the solvency of its “Martyrs’ Fund” is its primary fiscal responsibility, it is clear that, as far as the Palestinian leaders are concerned, the Palestinian goal is the destruction of the nation-state of the Jews, not building a state in which the Palestinians (including those classified as “Palestine refugees” by UNRWA) could become productive citizens. Yet, despite Israel’s exemplary efforts to avoid civilian casualties while fighting to prevent further attacks on its citizens, it is Israel which is being threatened by lawfare and accused of genocidal intentions in international media and at “pro-Palestinian” rallies on college campuses. All this, while Palestinian leaders are ignoring their people’s needs, stealing funds and supplies donated for the people’s benefit, and using the people as human shields, and Western democracies are moving to recognize the Palestinian state, blissfully unaware that Islamists won’t be satisfied with the destruction of the world’s only Jewish state but will see it as a first step toward re-establishing a worldwide caliphate under Sharia rule.

The solution to the nightmare scenario is for Western nations and Arab states to stand together with Israel, supporting Israel’s effort to achieve a decisive victory over Hamas to be followed by the demilitarization of Gaza and the deradicalization of the Palestinians who have been fed a steady diet of anti-Jewish rhetoric for generations and have grown up seeing people honored and rewarded for killing Jews. “Support” doesn’t require “putting boots on the ground” but could be expressed by denouncing anti-Israel motions at the UN and in international courts, acting to reduce Iran’s ability to fund its proxies, working to eliminate UNRWA (and to resettle the “Palestine refugees” in Arab countries or in areas under Palestinian administration), and setting up mechanisms to ensure that monies donated in an effort to lead to the eventual creation of a Palestinian state, co-existing with the nation-state of the Jews, would be used for the intended purpose. 

https://nationalinterest.org/feature/joe-biden%E2%80%99s-gaza-pier-plan-runs-aground-211515

Toby F. Block
Atlanta, GA