crumbbum

Sun tzu, what information did you want specifically? I could try and find it, much are things I read at the time, but I could try looking it up. Pulling the settlements in dangerous areas out would only bring the terrorists who attack them closer to more populated Israeli areas. The settlements create distance there. They also are there so the military has a foothold- the west bank is the high ground in the area. Whoever controls the mountains can shell the whole country. There are radar stations there that give Israel advance warning if they are being attacked by air. They need to hold onto these, as it is a military necessity to properly defend themselves. Sun tzu, you say you understand both sides. But you must realize, that the Israelis are acting out of self-defense, not rage. How can you see any justification for the deliberate murder of so many innocent people? Suicide bombers blowing up teenagers in dance halls, or opening fire at a girls bat mitzva? Shooting to death a mother shielding her children with her body, and then executing the kids as they hide under their covers? It is barbaric beyond belief. It is not desperation that leads someone to strap a bomb to themself, packed with nails and bolts and rat poison, and blow themselves up among a crowd of women and kids. It is unbridled and boundless hatred and indoctrination with the belief that doing this will grant them immediate access to paradise. There can never be any justification for these massacres. It is inhuman. I don't think you fully comprehend the hatred and unbelievable cruelty involved here. The israelis are under attack, and are fighting the terrorism with one arm tied behind their backs because of international politics. Can you imagine what the US would do if they were attacked in the same way? There is no, and can never be any justification for such sickening tactics. Israel was ready to talk peace, and Arafat walked away. There is no reason for this. Arafat didn't even make a counteroffer. As far as those refusenik soldiers, this is the whole point of the terrorism- Israelis are weary and sick of fighting the arabs, and policing the palestinians. Arafat thought they were ready to crack. That was why he walked away and launched a terror campaign (which by the way, was planned long before Sharon's walk on the Temple mount- the temple mount is the holiest site in the world to jews, and his visit was even coordinated with the mosque authorities beforehand. it was an artifical pretext for the terror war. This was proven, they found many documents showing that it was being financed and planned before that happened).
In the years before the violence started again, there were peace negotiations going on things were sort of in a stalemate after Oslo, when the palestinians didn't live up to their side of the agreements, and Shimon Peres was voted out of office. Netanyahu replaced him, and there were more attempts to give military control to the palestinians, that ended disastrously. Then BArak was elected, and with Clinton he had new peace talks. This was Camp David 2. After those negotiations failed they met again at Taba, where Barak put everything on the table, even offering to divide Jerusalem, and giving them almost all of the west bank and Gaza. Arafat stormed away from the table without even making a counteroffer, presumably, because in return he would have had to give up the so called "right of return", or the destruction of Israel. Arafat also thought that to make such an offer, which crossed all previous Israeli red lines (and wasn't supported by most Israelis- but Barak was a puppet of Clinton), meant that they were weak and about to break. He planned the terror campaign. A few weeks later, Israeli elections were coming up, and Sharon made his walk on the Temple mount to show that if elected he wouldn't abandon the holiest site in Judaism. The muslim waqf had been doing "excavations" on the mount, and still are, and don't let any archaeolgists see what they are doing. They carry truckloads of gravel out daily. Many priceless artifacts and archaelogical history are being destroyed (Arafat has claimed in the past that the jews have no claims to the sight). Sharon went to see what was going on, among other things. He never entered any mosque. This visit was about as controversial as an Italian politican visiting the Vatican. Under this pretext the terror war was launched, and soon there were suicide bombing almost every day, and hundreds of Israelis were killed. At first Israeli retaliation was piddling, Barak was still trying to "make peace" and hesitated. Then Sharon was elected in a landslide victory, and I assume you know what has happened since then.
I disagree with the last post. I don't think peace is possible for awhile, until the palestinians are capable of peace. There is a great deal of societal deprogramming to do until then, but I think that perhaps after 30 or so years of an incitement and intimidation free society, peace could be made. There are no easy solutions though and it is foolish to try and force one now, and to expect Israel to give up its few bargaining chips in return for words and BS. Sharon is right about this- there can be no negotiations or army withdrawals until the terror stops. The palestinians have a huge police force, that was armed, foolishly, by Israel. They have been involved in terror themselves, not fought it. They need to fight the terror and learn as a society how to live in peace. They are not a capable partner in any peace at this time.

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Truth is peace. We are all souls in bodies.