israel/palestine questions Rating Options

[brooklyneast05]

i'm going to put this in debate, just because i figure there is the possibility of one breaking out. i'm not posing a debate though, just wondering if anyone here can shed some light that i can comprehend.

basically, i don't really get the deal with Palestine and Israel. i've never been in a history class that really addressed it so i've always been confused about all of it. it's frustrating to me to see stuff all over the news and feel like i don't have an opinion one way or the other becuase i don't get what is going on. i've been reading about it, but it's still confusing as hell.

i keep reading stuff that basically just says how they Palestinians got kicked out of their home, and they are pissed and want their land back. well...that doesn't seem that irrational to me. i would too, of course not enough that i'm ok with my kids and future generations dying over it but you know. so i guess lots of the stuff i read, i sorta agree with the Palestinians. then when i say that, people are like "NO, THEY ARE WRONG, ISRAEL IS OUR ALLY, NOT THEM. YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT"

so i guess i wanna know what i'm talking about. why do we favor Israel in this mess? am i just completely missing something in not understanding why Isreal is right and the Palestinians are wrong?

[lojay]

I'm not a big buff on the Israeli/Palestine conflict, but we briefly discussed it in one of my classes.

So.. this is just from my knowledge and research.

The History:
At one point in time, there was no conflict occurring in the land of Palestine, which used to be occupied solely by Palestinians. However, time passed, and by 1948 two groups of people, the Israelis and the Palestinians, had began to battle over the land and their culture. Both the Israelis and Palestinians inhabit the same land and yet live among each other with complete disrespect and contempt. The main contributing factors to the conflict in Israel are; the land, which is considered holy by both groups, and the lack of respect by each group for each other and their culture.

According to history, during the 19th century, Palestinian Arabs occupied the land and lived in harmony. However, this changed around 1947 when United Nations allowed the Israelis to engage in a conquest for the Palestinian land. This action was strange, considering that the Israelis only made up about 30 percent of the population and owned fewer than seven percent of the land. Despite their diminutive stature, between 1947 and 1949, war broke out ending in the Israeli forces conquering 78 percent of Palestine, destroying 500 towns and villages. The Israelis called this conflict The War of Independence, while the Palestinians dubbed it The Catastrophe. As a result of the war, around three quarters of a million Palestinians were put into refugee camps and Israelis began drawing up a new map with new cities under Hebrew names. The Israelis began their efforts to erase all of Palestine, stretching so far as to deny the existence of the Palestinian population. Records show “Golda Meir once saying: ‘There is no such thing as a Palestinian.’” Later, during 1967 after the six day war, Israeli forces initiated a surprise attack on Egypt. This attack resulted in the Israelis conquering the remaining 22 percent of Palestine, known as the West Bank and Gaza Strip. However, there in an international law which states that a party is unable to acquire land by war. Therefore, this land remains as occupied territory, not bound to Israel. These issues of the past have compounded themselves and continue to present trouble today. Currently, Palestinians face two serious problems. First, the refugees who were detained years ago from the war are unable to return to their homeland, which is now a “Jewish State.” Second, the Israel’s military privately owns Israeli Settlements in parts of West Bank and Gaza Strip, the same land that the Oslo peace accords of 1993 granted Palestinian State.

The conflict:
The land, and its cultural significance, is the root of all conflict between the Palestinians and Israelis. The Palestinians feel that since they were the first people on the land, the land must be theirs, while the Israelis believe that God gave them the land and it rightfully belongs to them. Thus, both parties face a massive dilemma as they struggle for ownership of the land. This animosity continues to strengthen as the inhabitants are forced to work and live within boundaries.

Another result of the battle for land was the Intifada, otherwise known as the Palestinian Uprising, which was born in the refugee camps. The heroes were the Palestinian youth using only stones as their weapons. Palestinian refugee camps are considered very dangerous and it is unwise for an Israeli to even come near one. The land conflict turned the children of both countries into murderers and victims of murder.


I mean... that doesn't even put a dent into the issue, but it is some main points.

I think a big part of the problem is that both sides are not willing to accept each other. Both the Israelis and the Palestinians quarrel with each other over land, existence, culture, and intelligence. However, if both groups push their ignorance aside and try to get along, it would not be as hard as they believe. Accusing a party of lack of culture or intelligence is not a logical allegation considering that both of them are very cultivated and articulate. It is also ridiculous to dislike each other over existence considering that they should be able to live together in a diverse world just as every other country does. Lastly, no matter who occupies the land, they are both going to be living there. It seems that neither race is going to give up this battle, and until they take care of the matter, the only other thing that can be done is learning to live with each other or using a two state solution.

By the way; if you are looking for a good movie about the topic... I found the movie Promises really helpful. It was interesting because it is a documentary about how the Palestinian and Israeli feel about what is going on and their take on things.