Opinion: Israel Strikes Again

A blatant contempt for Jewish law, basic moral decency, and peace
By now, we should not be surprised

On July 31, Israeli destroyed the propagation units of the Palestinian National Seed Bank in the West Bank city of Hebron. The bank, established in 2010, preserved heirloom varieties of crops and plants of economic importance and distributed their seeds to farmers. Israel bulldozed the structure, its irrigation and monitoring systems, tools for cleaning and drying the seeds and took its documents.

Israel used for its legal justification that the structure was constructed without a building permit.  The truth of this legal fiction is that Israel rarely gives permits to build In Area C (the Palestinian area she controls under Oslo) whether it be for schools, recreation centers, and even additions to homes to house aging parents and growing families.

Another “legal rationale” was that the facility was connected to the Union of Agricultural Work Committee (UAWC) that Israel designated as a terrorist organization. If this were so, Israel could have found a way to take control of the facility and turned it over to the Palestinian Authority or find another way to continue its work.

If Israel truly wanted to build bridges for peace with Palestinians that live on the West Bank, she would be working hand-in-hand with them to create and support institutions like the seed banks to build a flourishing sustainable economy that could feed itself and earn money through agricultural exports. The irony is that the seed bank exactly represents what Israel has become famous for: innovative agricultural technology and making “the desert bloom.”

Another irony is Israel’s disregard for Jewish Law especially under a government controlled by “religious” parties. In Parshat Shoftim of Devarim (Deuteronomy) one of the laws of warfare involves the cutting down of fruit trees: “When you besiege a city for many days to wage war against it to capture it, you shall not destroy its trees by wielding an ax against them, for you may eat from them.”

This law understands that after warfare, life will continue and sustaining life is paramount in Judaism. This law is rooted in one of the basic principles of our faith: Bal Tashchit, which means “thou shall not destroy.” Israel destroyed acres of crops at this facility.  By the way, the “Civil Administration” that rules Area C is part of the IDF.

Despite what is happening within Gaza and with Iran, we must not be blind or silent to what Israel is doing on the West Bank.  We must not engage in l’hitalam that literally means “to hide oneself.”  We must not intentionally disregard what is happening. Israel’s actions like the destruction of the seed stations, schools, recreation centers, and other civil Palestinian institutions along with housing and the eviction of Palestinians from their dwellings is designed to force Palestinians to leave. It is a violent “non-violent” method to cleanse the land. This should not be a surprise. The Israeli government (and even elements of the IDF) have increasingly come under the influence of a messianic Zionism that believes that only Jews should live on the land.  This is one reason that permits the settler terrorists to operate with impunity under the protection of the Israeli military (as long as they do not attack the military.)  We must realize the nature of the warfare Israel is waging on the West Bank and act against it… for Israel’s sake and the integrity of Judaism.