No Such Thing as Peace at Any Price

Peace with Fundamentalist Islam is an oxymoron

No one wants peace in Israel more than I do. I am a firm believer that life trumps land. That’s why I had always supported almost any deal Israel would make with the Palestinians. As long as Israel’s security was assured and the Jewish people could have free and have unfettered access to all of its holy places, I was for it.  

As much as I believe that the Jewish people have a right granted to us by God Himself to settle in all the land of Israel, I am equally sure that we are obligated to prevent loss of life and limb in doing so. Until the time of Moshiach’s arrival, we must compromise in these areas. So in theory land for peace is something I would still be in favor of.

Unfortunately this formula cannot work. There is no such thing as land for peace. Not in Israel. And not when we are dealing with an Islamic Fundamentalism determined to turn Israel into an Islamic state called Palestine - at any price.

Islamic Fundamentalism is in my view, the most serious threat to world peace in our day. One need not go far from the State of Israel to see it in action. Iraq is currently in the process of being overtaken by Fundamentalist Muslims with a goal of turning it into an Islamic Republic ruled by Sharia (Islamic) Law. They are succeeding too, having taken over one city after another as Iraqi soldiers cower at their advances and run the other way. These people are brutal. And they are guided by a religious fervor unrivaled by any of the other major faiths.

A similarly motivated Fundamentalist Muslim group, called Boko Haram has kidnapped 276 school girls in Nigeria. Their goal too is to create an Islamic state in Nigeria run by Sharia law.

The events of 9/11 was a similarly motivated attack. Fundamentalist Muslims attacked America because they perceived the United States hindering those goals by among other things supporting Israel.

And let’s not forget about the Islamic revolution in Iran that happened over 30 years ago… and Iran is still going strong under Sharia law.

There are so many instances of violence in the name of Islam, it would take a book to list them all. That said, I realize that most Muslims are not radical fundamentalists. They may or may not agree as Muslims that Sharia law would be the  ideal way to govern a country. But even if they do believe in Sharia law they are not interested in the violence and carnage being done to achieve that. They would just as soon live in peace and prosperity in a live and let live world.

Unfortunately it really doesn’t matter what the common Muslim wants. Fanatic religious fervor trumps it all. Their ends justify their means. There is no compromise with religious doctrine. For them a doctrine that mandates mankind to be ruled by Sharia law means that all is fair in achieving that goal.

That’s why I am so completely opposed to any kind of peace deal in Israel right now. No matter how conciliatory moderate Palestinians leaders might be, it won’t matter in the end. Israel cannot afford to give up any of its security measures. It cannot allow any citizen to be vulnerable to attack.

Fundamentalist Muslims will do whatever it takes to take turn Israel into Palestine. There is no compromise. There is only tactics.  Giving up land for peace no matter what kind of security apparatus is set up - will be undermined by these fanatics. They will try to do in Israel what they are successfully doing in Iraq.

Of course that will not be as easy to do in Israel. Israeli soldiers fight hard. And Israel’s military might is far greater than Iraq’s. But make no mistake about it. If Israel is bombarded by rocket attacks now - if there is a land for peace deal, it will make what Hamas and Hezbollah are doing now look like child play.

Israel must therefore do whatever it feels necessary in order to protect itself. A peace deal that gives up the West Bank for example could be suicidal. At the very least it will end up spilling a lot of Jewish blood.

What I cannot understand is why good and decent people do not understand that. The United States still wants Israel to make peace with the Palestinians via a 2 state solution - where the West Bank will become Palestine. This is foolhardy. Even if Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas is sincere about wanting both sides living in peace and security, there is no way that fundamentalists will allow it. They will stop at nothing  to achieve Sharia law in the Middle East. Destroying Israel will continue to be the first item on that agenda.

Religious fanatics have no respect for politicians, like Abbas that get in their way. Anyone hindering their goals will be treated like an obstacle to be overcome by any means necessary – including assassination.

Even in the event that the fundamentalist leaders of Hamas (who have formed a unity government with Abbas’s Fatah faction) somehow agree to a peace treaty, it should be seen for what it is – a tactic towards the ultimate destruction of Israel. I don’t think there can be any doubt about that. So much as I believe in a 2 state solution in theory, it is not possible as long as Islamic fundamentalism continues to spread. And as we can plainly see, it is marching on to victory in Iraq right now.

Whenever one believes that God is in their corner – as do these fanatics, nothing will stop them. They die - and kill - for their cause with pride. I wish I could say that these people are an insignificant minority that will die out eventually. But I think it is evident that the opposite is true. They may be a small minority compared to the whole of Islam. But they are far from insignificant. And they are growing.  They are going to fight for their beliefs. Many will die proudly while trying – only to be replaced by even more fundamentalists willing to do the same.

I find it sadly humorous to see government leaders refer to various Islamic terrorist groups by name - as though Al Qaida or some other  group is the enemy. The enemy is not Al Qaida. They are just a part of the larger group of Islamic Fundamentalists that all have the same goal. If It was Al Qaida Yesterday, it is Boka Haram today.  What difference does it make what an ad hoc or even organized terrorist group calls itself? They are all united by that one goal. If one falls another two will arise to take its place under a different name.

The enemy is Fundamentalist Islam, pure and simple.  I thought that the world - especially the United States - would have learned that lesson after 9/11. But they didn’t. And they still don’t. It seems that no matter how much evidence there is to support the intransigence and extremist measures that they successfully and increasingly employ, the world seems to continue  to be blind to it.