Note :
With the war raging in Gaza
today friends ask me what is the background and what are the solution for this
ever continuing conflict. The following is my view which I held for many years
and believe it holds true today as it did for all those years. It appeared as
chapter 14 of my book,
Israel : State or Ghetto
Israel Arab Conflict (Address to the Academy for Political Development in Zagreb on 15 April 2009)
Seeking solutions for the Israel-Arab Conflict
Historical Background:
1. The Israel/Palestine conflict we
witness today started as an Arab/Jewish confrontation at the beginning of the
20th century, with the rise of nationalism. The Jews were being persecuted in Eastern Europe but found no refuge in the West. They
needed a national home and the only place they could claim any historical
connection with was the Holy Land, the ancient
home of the wandering Jew. Meanwhile, the Arabs were trying to free themselves,
first from the yoke of their Muslim brothers, the Ottoman Turks, and then from
the colonialist powers. Nationalism was the order of the age everywhere.
2. At the time, there were also the Middle Eastern Jewish Communities
who lived, co-existing with other peoples, in Arab countries, sometimes
tolerated but often not. As nationalism bubbled up everywhere they attempted to
join and identify themselves with their Arab majorities – but they were never
accepted. Their story is often overshadowed by the myriads of books written
about Europe’s Jews and the establishment of Israel. Yet today, these
descendants of Jews from Arab countries make up half of Israel’s population. Their claim to
the right to live in peace in Israel
is stronger than that of the European Jews, and even more so than that of the
Palestinians. Unlike the Palestinians, with the whole of the huge Arab world
open to them, Middle Eastern Jews have nowhere else to go but to live in tiny Israel.
Think about it in another way. Let us for argument’s sake accept the Arab
contention that Palestine, together with Israel, are all part of the Arab Land.
It follows therefore that what in fact actually happened was that Eastern Jews
have moved from one corner to another within the same Land. They are not
invaders, not settlers. They are natives, and their ancestors were natives
before the Arab conquest swept the Middle East
in the seventh century. They are not the Crusaders that the Arabs today like to
call Jews of European origin. To fully understand the present ME conflict it is
important to learn about this aspect of it to see that there is not one set of
ME refugees but two. And no better way to introduce this aspect of the conflict
than to tell my own personal story. I was both witness and victim of the cruel
process that made me a refugee in my own land.
3. I was born in Iraq,
and was immersed in its culture and shared in its national aspirations. I was
an Iraqi Jew growing up together with Iraqi Muslims. But my personal effort to
integrate into the social and political fabric of the country, and God knows I
did try, was always met with a rebuff by them. To them I was an alien. And by
the time Israel
was born in 1948, this rebuff became literally persecution. When all the doors
were closed in my face, together with so many other Jews of my generation who
were denied exit visas, we had to find a way to escape; literally to flee the
country by crossing the border on foot. In my case that was via Iran,
whose people I will always be indebted to for my safe passage at my desperate
time of need.
4. There was no other country but Israel which would give refuge to
me and to some 150 000 Jews who followed in 1950/52. These people could trace
their ancestry back through 2500 years of continuous life in Iraq – long before the Arab
Conquest. I arrived at the absorption centre in Israel in 1949. I found there a
mixture of people: all dejected, all helpless. My fellow refugees from Arab
countries were desperately trying to rebuild their lives out of nothing in a
land of nothing. But it was the sight of the remnants of the Holocaust camps
that broke my heart and my spirit. I saw frightened shadows of human beings,
dazed, confused and broken, trying to regain their existence as humans. But
worst of all, instead of natural hatred, rage and bitterness I found many of
them trying to remove the concentration camp numbers on their arms because they
felt guilty for being alive and ashamed of not having put up a fight before
allowing themselves to be led as sheep to the Gas chambers. It is the combined
images of the ethnically cleansed Arab Jews who lost their countries, and the
Holocaust remnants of European Jews who lost their dignity, that are engraved
in my being and in the mind of every Jew who says: “never again” That is why
Israelis feel the need to keep their military power and even their nuclear
shield –not because they are on a Samson-like suicidal mission. It is because
they are determined to live with the pride and dignity denied to them in other
countries throughout the ages. They are determined now that if they must die,
they want to die fighting. For the Arabs, if they want to coexist with Israel,
they should first remember this.
5. These fears, as reflected in my own personal story, must also be understood
against wider Jewish history. Two thousand years of persecution, execution and
forced conversion to Christianity and Islam, culminated in Hitler’s Final
Solution, a solution which wiped out almost half the world’s Jewish population
on the watch of the civilised world.
6. Today, it is worrying Israelis and Jews alike that what happened in Germany under the Nazis in the early 1930s is
being re-enacted in a startlingly similar way in Europe.
Every aspect of life in Israel, its people, its institutions, its places of
learning, even its acclaimed courts of justice, are being demonized. Recently,
this demonizing has been organized and reinforced by concerted bans and
boycotts here in Europe in protest they say against the occupation of
Palestinian lands, which in fact the majority of the people of Israel would be
happy to hand back. All this sends shivers down the spines of Jews everywhere,
reminding them of the anti-Semitic demonizing propaganda of the 1930s in Germany,
which was the precursor of, and prepared the ground for the Holocaust. As
Condoleezza Rice stated recently: Anti-Semitism is not just a historical fact
but a current event.
7. The Arab World has played and continues to play its active part, too,
in the Jewish tragedy. During World War 2 they made Jewish life in their midst
a living hell. By the early 1950’s, when the safe haven of Israel opened, some
900,000 Jews were ethnically cleansed to Israel from Arab countries leaving
most Arab countries what the Nazis called Judenrein, lands without Jews.
Therefore what the Nazis failed to do the Arab countries accomplished and
perpetuated. And the world accepts that as normal.
8. In contrast, today, 20 per cent of Israeli citizens are Arabs who
enjoy full rights. They sit in parliament and can find their way, as indeed
they have done, to sit in the various national institutions – even in the
cabinet and in the Supreme Court. Nobody denies their right to be where they
are, having lived in Israel
even before the creation of Israel.
But in Iraq,
there is not one single Jew now living there.
9. Iraqi Jews were part of the tide of 900,000 Jewish refugees from Arab
countries. Their plight and fate are forgotten because Israel did not leave them in camps
to rot and did not ask the UN to set up agencies to perpetuate their misery and
status as refugees. With help from Jews worldwide, these Jewish refugees with
their bare hands gave themselves dignity, security and a future in stark
contrast to the way rich, very rich, Arabs treated the then 700,000 Palestinian
Refugees and disgracefully continue to treat their descendents since.
Consequently, today only the Palestinian Refugees are remembered.
10. This, however, is not to gloss over the events of the 1948 War when
the Arab Armies attacked the Jews in Palestine.
Here no excuse or justification should wipe out or absolve either side of the
wrongdoings, whether these were committed by State armies or by individual
political leaders and local commanders. We need to deal not only with the
memories but also with the outcome of that war. Irrespective of which side was
to blame, the Arab countries which attacked, or the nascent State of Israel
which needed to defend itself. It is the outcome that matters. Unless a just
practical solution is found for the Palestinian refugees in the same way the
Jews dealt with their own Jewish refugees, the Middle East
will have no peace. But this will not happen until – in the words of Prince
Hassan of Jordan
– both sides begin to internalise the disaster and the suffering that befell
each of them as a result of that war.
11. The Arabs, and recently even the historians of the conflict, name
what happened to the Palestinians in the 1948 War “The Naqba”: in Arabic, the
Disaster. But they conveniently ignore the Arab Jews’ corresponding Naqba. The
reason for this is that while the Palestinian Naqba was a consequence of a war,
the Arab Jews’ Naqba had much deeper historical roots. It was the culmination
of the Judenrein process which threw the Arab Jews out of Arab countries, a
process that is still reflected right now in Arab attitudes and prevents any
compromise or solution of the Arab/Israeli conflict that has been festering
since the creation of Israel.
The
Islamist Version of Judenrein:
12.
Judenrein is land pure and clean of Jews. This is a dream that Hitler designed
for Europe, but the Arabs fulfilled it in
their countries. This is the Arab side of the Holocaust, the real tragic
“NAQBAH” of the Jews who lived for centuries in Arab countries. Today every
nation in Europe tries to apologise for this
policy. Not so the Arabs. They are proud of their achievement, which they
declare day and night as a matter of religious piety.
13.
Unfortunately for the Arabs, as was so unfortunate for the fanatical Germans
this is not helping the Arabs themselves. In fact it is at the heart of their
problems, pulling them back to the dark ages. Islamic learning and tolerance
brought the Enlightenment into Christian Europe, but recently it seems – sadly
– to be receding from their own nations.
14.
The solution to the Arab and especially the Palestinian plight in their
relationship with Israel
could have been resolved long time ago, if only their leaders had grasped the
immorality of the concept of Judenrein, and even more so if the West stopped
accepting it as the norm in Arab countries. This acquiescence fostered its
encouragement, with disastrous effects for the Arabs themselves.
15.
If, as recently as at the time of the evacuation of Gaza by Prime Minister
Sharon, the Palestinians had stood up and said: we claim back Gaza as land
belonging to the State of Palestine, restoring the status quo ante before the
6-day War, but we have no problem with the Jewish settlements there staying as
part of Palestinian Gaza, with Israelis living the way they live today in
Germany, England and the USA…. If the Palestinians had done this, today Gaza would have been the new Hong Kong of the Middle East,
with Israel
as its hinterland and market and source of finance. Unfortunately, they missed
this chance, because the Judenrein that shaped their attitude towards Jews got
the better of them. It continues to be the obstacle in the way of practical and
mutually beneficial solutions.
16.
Such a chance to act sensibly is still open and could prove to be the way
forward today for the Palestinians with regard to the future State of
Palestine. The ball is also in the court of the Syrians to start a process
which will bring real peace and prosperity to the region. Bashar Al-Assad, the
Syrian leader, who clamours for the Golan, should take the initiative and
suggest that the Jews in the Golan Heights could stay – after the withdrawal of
Israel – as citizens of Syria or as Israelis-in-residence in a Syrian Golan –
subject, just like other citizens in Syria, to Syrian law. This is exactly the
same way that foreigners live in England,
France or Germany today. It is then that
Israeli resistance to withdrawal on security grounds will melt away, and a
great and prosperous Golan can offer itself to millions of tourists from all
over the world, who will enjoy the fusion of Arab and Jewish culture
reminiscent of the glorious days of Cordoba and Toledo.
The
Way Forward:
17.
Unfortunately the Arab countries surrounding Israel are facing acute internal
problems of social strife, political bankruptcy and overwhelming population
explosion. The Palestinians have been left to themselves, and they are
revelling in their infighting and delusions, making it impossible to reach any
accommodation with Israel.
They have become a plaything in the hands of Arab countries who are fighting
each other for supremacy; they are also a proxy in the Islamic tug-of-war
between the Shiaa of Iran and the Sunni of Saudi Arabia and Bin Laden. New
Nassers and new Arafats are popping up everywhere without the Arabs asking themselves
what good their old heroes did for them and what purpose the new ones serve.
With this hopeless situation prevailing, it was right and practical for Israel
to build the controversial Security Wall and it was wise to act unilaterally to
give both sides time to find a solution for co-existence. Although they acted
late, Sharon and Olmert proved to be foresighted both in building the Security
Wall and in evacuating Gaza.
18.
Amidst this confusion, Arabs can only accept co-existence once it dawns on them
that Israel is there to stay, not because of its army, not because of its
history, not because of the Holocaust, but because the 6 million Jews in Israel
(more than half of whom are descendents anyway of ethnically cleansed Arab
Jewish Refugees) have nowhere else to go. They have no choice but to stand up
and fight even if it is a war of mutual destruction with their enemies. Only
this realization will convince the Arabs to seek mutually acceptable solutions.
19.
On our side, the Israeli side, our social fissures and political instabilities
are creating hesitancy and lack of resolve which are sabotaging the
implementation of our only available policy: i.e securing ourselves
unilaterally and quickly within defendable borders. These new borders have to
be defended militarily and, even more importantly, they have to be acceptable
in due course internationally through negotiation. We cannot solve these
problems without introducing real changes in our political structures. Social
divisions are impeding the process of fusing together our Jewish communities
and integrating our Arab minorities. These, together with the political
instability of governments, stand in the way both of our negotiations with the
Arabs and the implementation of our only available policy of securing ourselves
unilaterally. The new electoral system I have proposed: TR -- Total
Representation – is key to the urgent changes needed to overcome these
difficulties. At its core is the direct accountability of Parliament to
ordinary citizens, making it easy for a broadly representative parliament and a
stable government to evolve, and empowering them to make brave decisions for
peace.
Conclusions
and Solutions:
20.
Unlike Christian or Muslim countries, Israel cannot be treated in
isolation from the Jewish people worldwide. After what happened in Europe and
in the Arab countries, Jews everywhere believe that the defeat of Israel
would mean annihilation. Israel
is all the Jewish People’s refuge of last resort.
21.
Lasting Peace is not a matter of goodwill. It lasts only if it is based on the
absence of potential future conflicts on the ground. In the aftermath of the
recent tragic and unnecessary Gaza War, we Israelis, have to ask ourselves
fundamental questions. These questions need to be daring, deep and
all-encompassing. There is no doubt that for one century now our Arab
neighbours have not accepted us. In turn we, on our side ceased long ago to try
to understand them. A mental curtain has descended between the Arabs and us,
and that includes our own Arab citizens. In fact we seem to live parallel lives
– so much so that we have become accustomed to a view of each other only
through telescopic gun-barrels.
22.
The only thing that will work is maximum defensible real, physical separation
of the two states of Israel
and Palestine
on the ground. The recent wars of Lebanon
and Gaza and
all the ensuing killing and destruction make separation more urgent and
necessary – indeed mandatory. Gaza
is at the core of the problem. It needs to be developed economically along the
lines of Singapore or Hong Kong; it has to become a viable entity supporting
its population. Some of its refugees have to be given means and opportunities
and encouraged to resettle in the West Bank
and in Arab Countries, including the sparsely-populated, labour-hungry Gulf.
Its border to Sinai and Egypt
has to be opened for free trade and interaction with the world beyond.
Otherwise Gaza
will remain a pressure cooker waiting to explode.
23.
But Gaza also needs to cease being a potential
threat to Israel.
A situation has to be avoided where it can become the western arm of a future
Palestinian pincer that together with Hebron on the eastern border of southern
Israel will fuel future rising tension, leading to a conflagration that can
have only one result: either Israel or Palestine will have to be divided into
two halves, thus stoking up more violence. The solution here will have to be
for Gaza to
become an independent state. Europe has many
examples of such small states that sprang into being out of realpolitik
necessity. Today, the Palestinian President Abu Mazen’s West Bank is already
separated from Hamas’s Gaza.
Why not keep them that way for the sake of peace both for Israelis and
Palestinians? Thus, four states will arise out of the old Palestine:
Israel, Jordan, Palestine
and the republic
of Gaza. The result will
be the final end and the last nail in the coffin of the ill-conceived British
Mandate. These four states can join together in an economic Common Market that
will bring stability, peace and prosperity to all their inhabitants.
24.
How would the Egyptians react to the establishment of a separate state in Gaza? I believe they will
welcome this solution which in effect would solve their own problem which is
even more thorny and complex than that of Israel. Terrorist Gaza
as it is today is a threat to Egypt
through illegal infiltration. Hamas members find internal allies and homes
amongst the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt. The border with Sinai is
porous and out of control because both sides of it are united in their hatred
of Israel.
All this will change once it becomes the border between two Arab sovereign
states controlled by passports and visas the same way that Egypt today protects its border with Libya and the Sudan. Egypt can facilitate the filtering
of refugees to other Arab countries from the State of Gaza where the latter’s
government becomes responsible for taking back undesirable elements. The
inhabitants of the State of Gaza will be more interested in their livelihood
and sooner or later will themselves throw out Hamas. In the new situation Israel
can legitimately in the eyes of the world defend vigorously and effectively its
border against a hostile state which will be responsible for its actions. Israel and Egypt will then have identical
common interest instead of the present ambivalent attitude towards the Gazans
and towards each other.
25.
Jerusalem has to be divided into: Jerusalem
Capital of Israel; and Al-Quds Capital of Palestine
- Twin Cities with a clear SEPARATION between the two. Without this no peace
will survive. Arab inhabitants in Jerusalem
(those who were annexed after the-6 Day War) should revert to Palestine
citizenship but can live as residents in Jerusalem
if their residence falls within Israeli Jerusalem. Likewise, Jews who choose to
stay in Al-Quds can retain their Israeli citizenship but continue to live as
residents in Palestine subject to its laws after
a period of protection by Israel.
26.
Similar status should apply (after a period of protection by the Israeli army)
to all Israelis who choose to stay in the new Palestine. This includes the Jewish enclave
in Hebron. The
same arrangement should be accorded to the cluster of Jewish settlements which
fall on the borders of Palestine,
in accordance with the spirit of the exchange of letters between President Bush
and Prime Minister Sharon of 14th April 2004. If the enclave of this cluster of
settlements on the western border of new Palestine
is allowed to remain within the sovereignty of Palestine then no need remains to the
tortuous business of exchange of territories. Otherwise such exchange needs to
be carried out by negotiations.
27.
It is not our business to interfere and certainly not to decide for the
Palestinians which government or leaders are best for them. The Palestinian
President, Abu Mazen, is not in control. Hamas has to be brought directly into
any negotiation for an enduring settlement. If either or both do not accept
these or similar proposals, Israel
should unilaterally implement them on its side of the new borders the way Prime
Minister Sharon implemented the evacuation of Gaza, UNILATERALLY.