Letter to the Editor: Doron Lubinsky
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Bob Bahr quotes Prof. Wolpe asserting that Israel is lacking in equal treatment of Palestinians. A proposed peace center at Emory aims to address that and encourage peace. Elsewhere, in the same edition, Jan Jaben-Eilon quotes visiting Prof. Nachman Shai on Israel needing to separate itself from Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.
Both professors seem to place all onus on Israel while ignoring that the core Palestinian goal (supported by several regional powers) is to destroy Israel. If the Palestinians were content with a state in the West Bank, they could have had it in 1948, 1967, 2001, and 2008. Israel has already withdrawn from Gaza and got rockets in return. Palestinian leaders have rejected every peace process that would have given them a state in the West Bank, lest they have to accept a permanent Israel in some form. They have also made clear that such a state will be used for further hostilities. No number of Israeli concessions can bring peace when their foes will only accept Israel’s disappearance.
Israel remains the freest country in the Middle East. Moreover, in recent years, Israeli Arabs have made substantial economic progress within Israeli society. At the same time, their majority rejection of Israel has remained, and there have been periods of increased violence, not least during the last Gaza war when a dozen synagogues were torched. Economic and societal advancement is not going to change identity in the Middle East. That does not mean that Israel should not try to improve its society. Nor does it excuse racism from a few Israeli politicians, which, apart from being wrong, is always exploited by Israel’s enemies.
Support for Israel‘s mere existence faces evermore challenges in the US. Many university courses demonize Israel. The propaganda is steadily moving down the curriculum into high schools. People inherently hostile to Israel are being elected in greater numbers to Congress and more State Houses, including in Georgia. If Jews abroad want Israel to survive, they should not target Israel with double standards and a hostile microscope, while ignoring the real abuses in every one of its neighbors and the unwavering hostility of its foes.
Doron Lubinsky, Atlanta
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