Danger in ignorance

The Jerusalem Post
9 Jun ’05

The American people, thank God, are not likely to be bamboozled by their intellectuals, and thank God again, Israel is defended by good fundamentalist Christians.

Still, one must not underestimate the potential danger that an erosion in Israel’s moral position poses for Israel and for the American Jewish community.

This danger must be met by mounting a massive educational effort.

Filed under:

Diaspora • Zionism • media

Source: Rabbi Shimon Apisdorf

Despite Israel’s many faults and failures, American Jews are still deeply committed to its security and well-being. But they, and even their highly intelligent leadership, need to be better informed if they are to more effectively defend it.

The attack on Israel’s legitimacy is widening because US Jews, like most other Americans, get much of their information about the Middle East conflict from an ideologically slanted media – The New York Times, CNN and National Public Radio, to name a few. And the pro-Israel community lacks enough knowledge to overcome the bias.

The liberal media believes that Israel, an ally of what they consider an aggressive imperialist America, cannot do anything right. Its adversaries, the Arab Noble Savages, members of the Third World club of the oppressed can, on the other hand, seldom do wrong.

It is amazing, actually, that despite years of relentless disinformation which has blackened Israel’s image, Jews still maintain even a residue of respect and affection for it. Moreover, there is a well-funded and sophisticated Arab propaganda campaign that has indoctrinated significant elements within the American elite, especially at universities and in the media where lies and distortions undercut Israel’s moral legitimacy.

Since most Americans, including Jewish leaders, have only a general notion of the history of the Arab-Israeli conflict, Arabs and their self-hating Jewish allies have successfully sold the narrative that “Arab lands” were stolen, making indiscriminate Arab terrorism the only way they could fight a Jewish “occupation” and “ethnic cleansing”; and that Arabs deserved support because they were like a David fighting the wicked Goliath – Israel.

But the landmass that was designated as a British Mandatory Palestine (including what later became Jordan) was allotted to a Jewish national home as part of a post-World War I deal that disposed of Middle East territories that the Turks ruled for centuries. More than 99 percent of these lands were given to the Arabs, without their lifting a finger, really, to liberate them, with the understanding that Palestine, which occupied less than 1% of this landmass, was to be given to the Jews. The international community judged Jewish claims to this sliver of mostly desolate land overwhelming. Arab representatives to the post-World War I peace conference first accepted this generous deal. They objected only later after British imperialist agents incited them against it.

There were never any valid historical, legal or national claims to “Palestinian lands” and few valid claims to Palestinian private property rights either. Up until this time most of the disputed West Bank is arid and empty. Less than 7% of it is privately owned or settled. Israel barely touched privately owned land; settlements were built on 4% of empty government-owned land.

MOREOVER, THE 93% of the land which is in dispute was last the possession of the British Mandatory government, which inherited the lands from the Turkish crown. So the land was never “Palestinian.” After the demise of the Mandate in 1948 and the rejection of the UN partition plan by the Arabs, this land remained with no legal ownership. It became disputed territory, with the Jews holding prime claim to it, since it was last designated by the community of nations for a Jewish national Home.

“Occupation” is another lie. After the 1997 Oslo Accords more than 95% of the West Bank’s Arab population came under the jurisdiction of the Palestinian Authority. True, Israel has been making forays into this territory in order to fight terrorism, but they do not constitute a permanent conquest.

Lastly, the Arabs of Palestine were always the spearhead of an obsessive Arab effort to destroy Israel. When you consider that Israel is fighting the whole Arab world, which enjoys the backing of many Muslim and Third World countries, and the complicity of many European nations, it should be clear who is the David and who the Goliath.

Not only Jewish-Americans, but also Israeli spokespersons seldom challenge or counteract false Arab charges. They mostly just let them go unrefuted, so that by default Israel has come to be regarded as guilty of stealing Palestinian lands and of an occupation involving ethnic cleansing.

The erosion in Israel’s moral stature has weakened not only its international standing but its most valuable ally, the American Jewish community. Jews no longer feel the pride and self confidence that they felt after Israel’s upset victory in the Six Day War, or after the remarkable rescue of Israeli hostages from Entebbe.

But the problem is far more serious than mere loss of pride or self confidence. We see how the indoctrination of European elites by Arab propaganda has resulted in calls for Israel’s dismemberment or at minimum for an anti-Israel boycott. The indoctrination has also generated an ugly and dangerous wave of anti-Semitism.

The American people, thank God, are not likely to be bamboozled by their intellectuals, and thank God again, Israel is defended by good fundamentalist Christians. Still, one must not underestimate the potential danger that an erosion in Israel’s moral position poses for Israel and for the American Jewish community.

This danger must be met by mounting a massive educational effort to arm US Jews, especially its leadership, with a better understanding of the nature and history of the Middle East conflict.

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