Current Issues

Apartheid

Every so often, a word makes its way into the public consciousness, stepping from the shadows into the forefront of discussion, debate and media attention. “Apartheid” is just such a word, coming originally from Afrikaans where its literal meaning is “the state of being apart.” It is used to describe the system of racial segregation

Threat of War from Israel’s North ‘Significantly Greater’ than Gaza

Major General Yair Golan Photo by Ashernet The retiring head of Israel’s Northern Command, Major General Yair Golan, has warned that the threat of war from Israel’s northern border is “many times greater” than Gaza. In an interview on Israel’s Army Radio, he said, “in case of war with the North, the threat will be

Egypt’s War against Gaza Terrorism

Photo by Marius Arnesen/wikipedia.org Egypt is constructing a security zone along Gaza’s southern border, the so-called Rafah buffer. It is a strip 14 kilometers [8.7 mi] long and about one-half kilometer [.3 mi] wide. The rapid, even ruthless, imposition of the zone is in response to an attack in Sinai that killed 33 of Egypt’s

Prime Minister Netanyahu Speaks

On Syria Prime Minister Netanyahu photo by Ashernet “…My friends, I've come here to draw a clear line. “You know that I like to draw lines, especially red ones. But the line I want to draw today is the line between life and death, between right and wrong, between the blessings of a brilliant future

The Human Side of the Conflict

Mark Twain said, “If you don't read the newspaper, you're uninformed. If you read the newspaper, you're misinformed.” This is so true for the most complex societal issue of our time, commonly called {image_2}“The Israeli–Palestinian Conflict.” We are bombarded daily with phrases like cycle of violence, occupation, two-state solution, Palestinian refugees, illegal settlements, roadblocks to peace, Palestinian territory, and apartheid wall in the mainstream news media. Without an informed context in which to interpret these terms, the average news recipient remains woefully ill informed and swayed toward an international media bias against Israel. 

The Levy Report: Settlements Are Legal

{image_1}A special commission named this year by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has submitted some clear-cut conclusions regarding the legality of the so-called “Israeli settlements”. The three-member committee, informally known as the Levy Commission—headed by former Supreme Court Justice Edmond Levy, along with former Foreign Ministry Legal Advisor Alan Baker, and former Deputy President of the Tel-Aviv District Court Tehiya Shapira—determined that these settlements are perfectly legal within the standards of international law.

Fears Arise over Syrian Conflict

{image_3}With Syria overcome by violence, Jordanian King Abdullah has expressed the fear that sectarianism in Syria could lead to a fragmentation of the country. And that’s not the only regional fear. A sizable Syrian stockpile of chemical weapons also looms as a very real threat—both within the nation and out of it.

Other Security Fences…besides Israel’s!

{image_1}If we were to review a list of Israel’s actions that have incurred the wrath of the nations, it would actually be hard to decide which should be ranked at the top. Certainly in the running would be the decision, over a decade ago, to build a security fence, the largest infrastructure project in Israel’s history. Developed specifically to protect citizens from the infiltration of suicide bombers after years of intifada (Arab uprisings)—which left 1,226 Israelis dead and 8,341 maimed— the cost was nearly US $2 billion.

Gaza–Not the Full Story

{image_1}Perhaps no single place on earth is so misrepresented as the Gaza Strip. On September 12, 2005, the last of the Israeli soldiers and civilians left the Strip after 38 years. Not a Jew remained. Even the bodies in the Jewish graveyards were removed and reburied in Israel.

Christian Exodus from the Holy Land

Is Israel the oppressor or protector?

{image_1}Throughout their history, regardless of where they have lived, the Jewish people have been blamed for everything from the plague to the high cost of automobile insurance. They have been accused of poisoning wells, intentionally spreading the HIV virus, killing Christian children to use their blood to make Passover matzah (unleavened bread), and attempting to take over the world through their alleged control of its finances. No matter how ludicrous some of these may sound, there have always been anti-Semites at hand ready to believe the current rhetoric and incite the local populations to hatred, violence, and even murder.