Sociology Talk

samson · Guest

By Khalid Amayreh

The latest prisoner swap deal between Israel and Hezbollah is a
healthy indicator that at least some Arabs are beginning to understand
the depraved Zionist mentality, and act accordingly. Such mentality is
based on arrogance, insolence, and religious and ethnic superiority.

Israel, a country whose collective mindset views non-Jews as virtual
animals or at least lesser human beings, had to face a new enemy, an
enemy that will not be scared by overwhelming brutality, but one that
will meet Israel’s state terror with toughness, resilience, valor and
defiance.

This is a new reality that Israelis, especially Israeli leaders, have
yet to come to terms with, especially psychologically.

This explains the deep frustration that is apparent in the tone of
Israeli leaders reacting to the latest swap deal, especially the fact
that Israel has been forced to release the Lebanese guerilla Samir
Kuntar.

Israel, utterly ignoring her own countless murderous sins, has come to
view Kuntar as the prototype of the ultimate terrorist - as if the
tens of thousands of Jewish murderers and terrorists who have enormous
amounts of innocent blood on their hands were the Lord’s angels of
love and mercy.

Indeed, if Israel were a normal state, and its people a normal people,
it would have adopted an honest and just approach toward its
neighbors, an approach that would not discriminate between “blood and
blood” and “life and life.”

Undoubtedly, such an approach would have saved thousands of lives,
Jewish and Arab, and spared the region and its peoples decades of pain
and suffering.

But then Zionism would be losing its face, mind and heart, and would
morph into something entirely different.

Unfortunately, it is probably futile to preach morality to Zionism, a
manifestly demonic movement which experience shows is not capable of
behaving morally and humanely.

Well, let us examine some of the statements and remarks Zionist
leaders have been making with regard to the latest swap deal with
Hezbollah.

Shimon Peres, the hero of the Qana massacre of 1996, who is now
Israel’s President, has been quoted as saying that “We don’t want
murderers to go free, but we have a moral obligation to bring home
soldiers whom we sent to defend their country.”

Peres also reportedly said that “my heart is torn over the decision to
pardon Kuntar,” adding that his decision to that effect “in no way
constituted forgiveness.”

Certainly no one, Arab or otherwise, is particularly infatuated with
what Kuntar did in 1979, although the Israeli army then was at least
partially responsible for the killing by the Lebanese guerilla of
three Israelis, including a paramilitary policeman, a man and his
daughter.

The three lives, like numerous other victims, Arab and Jewish, would
have been spared had the insolent Israeli military establishment
behaved wisely.

After all, Kuntar, and his friends who were killed in that rescue
operation, didn’t come to Israel to kill and shed blood but to force
Israel to release Arab prisoners.

Nonetheless, one is prompted to ask difficult questions, questions
that most Israelis don’t like to hear - let alone answer, but when
confronted with them, they either seek to evade or prevaricate and
quibble in their answers.

Who has killed more innocent people, Shimon Peres or Samir Kuntar? Who
has more blood, including children’s blood, on his hands, Shimon Peres
or Samir Kuntar? Who has inflicted more terror, suffering and death
upon innocent people, Shimon Peres or Samir Kuntar?

If honesty is to be the ultimate arbiter among men, then one can’t
escape the inescapable conclusion that it is mass murderers like
Peres, Ariel Sharon and other Israeli leaders, dead or living, who
really need forgiveness for their horrible crimes against humanity.

In fact, Israelis should be reminded on this occasion that a
Presidential post, a business suit with a necktie, and the ability to
speak eloquent sound-bites in several languages and have audience with
statesmen and VIPs from around the world, doesn’t really transform a
criminal into a true human being.

A criminal is a criminal especially if he refuses to come to terms
with his crimes and if he refuses to apologize to his victims.
Needless to say, Peres has done neither.

But then criminals are not concerned about their sins.

One elderly Israeli woman interviewed by the Ha’aretz newspaper lashed
out at Hezbollah for having refused until the very last moment to tell
if the two Israeli prisoners were dead or alive.

“It’s the saddest day for Israel. They kept us waiting until the last
second to learn the fate of our sons,” the woman was quoted as saying.

I certainly sympathize with the woman at the personal level. However,
I would want to ask the Jewish lady why she thought that Jewish lives
were worth more than non-Jewish lives?

I also would like to ask her what she would tell the mothers, families
and relatives of thousands of Arab prisoners who have been languishing
in Israel’s dark, underground dungeons since 1967?

We are talking about POWs and MIAs and other ordinary people whose
families have no way of knowing if their beloved ones are dead or
alive. Aren’t these “forgotten prisoners” human beings, too? Are they
children of a lesser God?

Unfortunately, most Israelis, thoroughly self-absorbed and self-
centered, don’t like to be asked such questions lest their superiority
complexes and collective psychosis be exposed.

Finally, the latest prisoner swap shows that Israel only understands
the language of cold realpolitik which is by definition immoral and
coercive.

For Palestinians, who have more than 10,000 of their beloved ones
languishing in Israeli concentration camps, the message is very clear:
If you want to get Israel to release your beloved ones, take Israeli
hostages and swap them for the Palestinian captives.