By, ZOA High School Fellow Avi Bryan

Throughout history and throughout the world, Jews have been subjected to forced evictions by non-Jews. In 2005, the day after the 9th of Av, on which Jews mourn the destruction of the Temple, the world watched as the Israeli military rushed into Gaza to forcibly remove Jewish families from their homes, some of which were built by hand. The pictures devastated the entirety of Israel and were a sign to the international community that Israel would bend over backward in a futile pursuit of peace. The forced evacuation did not bring peace, as proponents of the Israeli government’s decision had hoped. Instead, Israel’s terrorist neighbors launched thousands of rocket attacks towards the Israeli civilian population.

Last year was an especially dangerous year for Israelis.  “Lone wolf” terrorists butchered both Israeli and American private citizens on the streets, in markets, and in houses of worship in Israel. These acts are encouraged and celebrated by the Palestinian Authority (PA). Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reached out to PA President, Mahmoud Abbas and his government to sit down and negotiate peace, but the attacks did not sedate and the Palestinians did not sit at the other end of the oval table. Instead, the PA continued to promote the murder of Israeli civilians on government-sponsored television, documents, and even in schools. Kids^[1], as young as thirteen, were told that if they have a knife, car, or any other means of hurting someone, and they did not use it to murder a “settler,” they “do not belong in Palestine^[2].” Many of those kids did rush into the streets^[3], and their lives came to a screeching halt because their governments, Hamas, which the State Department designates as a terrorist organization, and Palestinian Authority put the murder of Israelis before the welfare of its own people. Neither are interested in peace with Israel, but rather actively seek its destruction.

Yet, Israel has continued to make what it believes to be gestures of peace, in some cases to the detriment of its people. The Israeli High Court started 2017 off with an initiative to improve the probability of peace with the Palestinian Authority.  It decided the Israeli outpost of Amona, a community in Judea and Samaria, was illegal, prompting its evacuation. Amona is a small village near Jerusalem, established in 1995. According to the order, all Jewish inhabitants would be removed from their homes by force. The shocking resemblance to the 2005 evacuation of Gush Katif was a disrespectful show of weakness that had life-shattering consequences. Hundreds of Israelis were removed from their livelihoods. Many Israelis protested and were arrested in support of the Amona residents, and violent clashes erupted. “A Jew does not expel a Jew^[4],” was exclaimed by many of the protesters.

The demolition of Amona left thousands vulnerable.

Hundreds were left homeless.

Two dozen Israeli police were injured.

Zero progress towards peace was made.

 

 

 

^[1]  https://www.idfblog.com/2015/01/22/recurring-palestinian-incitement-leaders-praise-tel-aviv-stabbings/

^[2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FA55A0pxSDE

^[3] https://www.idfblog.com/2016/03/10/creating-terrorist/

^[4] http://www.cnn.com/2017/02/02/middleeast/israel-evacuation/