Supporters of Israel are Hardly 'Blind'

Author: Ami Kilchevsky

This campus has been subjected to an onslaught of facile rhetoric which attempts to portray support for Israel (in its continuing struggle with the Palestinians) as "blind," uncritical, entirely one-sided, lacking in compassion and understanding for the plight of the Palestinians, etc. Can we move beyond the propaganda and spin to a reasonable discussion of opposing views?

The vast majority of Israelis, American Jews and their supporters believe in the following: a two-state solution. Territorial compromise, meaning an eventual withdrawal from occupied territories on the basis of secure and recognized borders (grounded in United Nations Resolutions #242 and #338). Support of a Palestinian state living side by side in peace and harmony with Israel. Absolute opposition to the current methods employed by the Palestinian Authority to achieve their ends — support of terror, violence and incitement of violence. A just settlement to the refugee problem.

Why does any country, let alone Israel, have to apologize for taking actions against homicide bombers and violent militants to safeguard the lives of its own citizens? Where are the condemnations against terror and atrocities from the Palestinians and Islamic clerics? When will the Palestinians be led by statesmen who are more concerned about the welfare of their own people than with killing Israelis? Israel and the Jewish people need not apologize for their persistence in desiring to survive. At the same time, our heritage teaches us never to rejoice at the fall of our enemies. Israel takes no pleasure in being forced to retaliate and to kill Palestinians, including innocents who are unintended casualties.

The United States government supports and will continue to support the security and well-being of the state of Israel for the following reasons: First, Israel and America share a common ideology based on both western political and cultural norms along with a common Judeo-Christian heritage. Israel, like America, is a multicultural nation comprised of people from more than 100 different countries. As in America, immigrants have gone to Israel in the face of religious persecution to build a better life for themselves and their families. Even with minimal resources, these citizens have achieved a relatively high standard of living and outstanding achievements in science, medicine and agriculture in a short period of time. Israel has absorbed more refugees than any other country in the world relative to its size, many of whom were displaced from Arab and Islamic countries such as Morocco, Algeria, Libya, Sudan, Iraq, Iran, Syria, Egypt and Yemen.

Second, in a region characterized by non-democratic regimes, Israelis, like Americans, have demonstrated a strong commitment to democracy and the rule of law. All citizens of Israel, regardless of race, sex or religion are granted full civil rights and equality before the law. Arab citizens vote and elect officials who represent them in the Knesset (Israel's parliament). They are free to serve in the army if they wish. They own and circulate their own newspapers. They practice religion without interference and choose their own religious leaders. There are many interest groups and human rights organizations that advocate on behalf of the Arab minority and other causes. Moreover, these rights and protections are staunchly upheld by an independent judiciary and the Israeli Supreme Court.

Third, Israel, as one of America's most dependable allies, is of the utmost strategic value to our country. Since American involvement in the Middle East began more than 60 years ago, no other state in the region with the exception of Turkey could contribute to Western defense. The United States-Israeli alliance came to full maturity at the height of the Cold War when Israel presented itself to America as a country that would keep the Soviet-aligned Arab states in check, and it came through in both the 1967 and 1973 wars deterring Soviet domination of the Middle East.

This alliance is still vital today. With the war on terror currently in progress, we cannot rely on Arab countries that harbor the very terrorists that we are pursuing to earnestly ally themselves with us. A recent CNN poll shows that nearly 80 percent of the respondents believe that Saudi Arabia, supposedly America's closest and most moderate friend in the Arab world, is not trustworthy. After all, would you trust a government whose inflammatory domestic policies, including media-saturated contempt for America and Jews, ultimately led 15 of its citizens to kill 3000 Americans? Compare this to a recent Harris poll showing that 86 percent of Americans considered Israel a close friend and a dependable ally.

Why do most American's feel this way? Because, unlike other countries in the Middle East, Israel's friendship with the United States does not fluctuate based on American foreign policy. Israel will continue to support the United States in its war on terror and that is one of the many reasons why America will continue supporting Israel. The bond between these two nations is too strong to let terror and its supporters break it.