Signed declaration against Israel by Israelis

Bothsidism — a disease that appears to be incurable among a certain segment of Jews who cannot believe that Amalek is a real thing.

There are some Israeli NGOs and their “American Friends of….” who cannot bring themselves to face the evil. They cannot give up the illusion that this is a fight over land. It took until 10 October for Combatants for Peace to even speak out against the massacre. Let us give them a bit of leeway and say they were too shocked for words. When they found their words three days after the massacre, this is what they said:

The events of the past few days have shaken us all to our core. Our hearts are with all of the victims and their families, and we hope both for the safe return of those held captive and for the safety of the civilians trapped inside Gaza.

Both sides….You see? They cannot accept that what one side did that day is pure evil. Period. Evil. They end this post with:

For our movement, this is a crucial moment where we must all dig deep to find our resolve to move ahead together. The only solution is ending the occupation, uniting Israelis and Palestinians, and focusing our collective efforts on achieving peace. We call for nonviolence, a renewed sense of humanity, and better days ahead for all of our children.

They justify evil. The occupation? That is a lie. A lie repeated so often they have convinced those who do not explore the history and those who ignore what they do know — that Israel, itself, ethnically cleansed Gaza of Jewish civilians and soldiers in 2005 and that the PLO signed a contract with Israel, called the Oslo Accords, in which the administration and control over land in Judea and Samaria was divided between Israel and the newly-for-that-purpose-created Palestinian Authority.

The problem for these so-called peace NGOs is that recognition that there is no occupation would take the rug out from under their feet. The Palestinians would bolt from the organizations and the Jews would have nothing upon which to base their rationalization of the continuing terrorism against Israel. They have never called out for stopping the unprovoked missile attacks against the south, the “odd” missile here and there, to which Israel may not even respond, because it is, after all, only the “odd” missile because “the occupation” is the consistent provocation, in their view.

Where Jews live is the consistent provocation.

No occupation? No justification.

Then, two days later, they put out a joint statement with 25 other self-declared “peace” NGOs.

But before I present that declaration, let me show you one statement from a post uploaded two days ago (16 Oct) by American Friends of Combatants for Peace:

Israeli activist Itamar spoke to Palestinian activists through tears, “I know things are going to get much worse. after we witness what Israel will do to Gaza I don’t know if I will be able to look into your eyes.” A Palestinian member replied, “What sets us apart is that we can see each other. We can see each other’s pain. This is how we must stay. [emphasis in the original]

Was there no Palestinian who said he cannot look the Israeli in the eye? This is support for the idea that talking about “both sides” means the Israeli is ashamed and guilt-ridden and the Palestinian is perpetual victim who has no agency.

The conjoint statement produced by 26 Israeli NGOs

It reads as follows, with emphasis and editorial comments added:

We, members of the undersigned human rights organizations in Israel, are shocked and horrified in these dreadful days.

Hamas’ horrific crimes against innocent civilians – including children, women, and the elderly – have shaken us all, and we are struggling to recover from the unbearable sights and sounds. Some of us were in the Israeli communities on the Gaza border during the assault; many of us have family, friends, and colleagues who endured and are still in the midst of the harrowing events; and we all know people who were murdered, injured, or abducted. It will take time to fully understand the implications and consequences of Hamas’ heinous attack, for which there can be no justification. [This is the kind of unequivocal statement that is the only one possible in the face of evil. If only they could maintain this stand.]

Most of our teams include Israelis and Palestinians; therefore, some of us have relatives and colleagues in Gaza currently living under the ongoing assault of the Israeli military. [This is war.] Children, women, and the elderly are being indiscriminately [No. These are targetted attacks against Hamas leaders and unfortunately, possibly innocents nearby are killed and injured. There is nothing indiscriminate about the Israeli bombings.] attacked with nowhere to hide. [Because Hamas is keeping many of them from escaping the war zone.]

Even now – especially now – we must maintain our moral and humane position and refuse to give in to despair or the urge for vengeance. Keeping our faith in the human spirit and its inherent goodness is more vital than ever. One thing is clear: We will never surrender our belief in humanity – even now, when doing so is more challenging than ever. [It is very very difficult to acknowledge the existence of evil among us.]

Having always opposed the harming of innocent civilians, it remains our duty in these terrible times – as we count our dead on the Israeli side and worry about wounded, missing, and abducted loved ones, and as bombs are being dropped on residential neighborhoods in Gaza [from which Israel told them to flee south], wiping out entire families with no possibility of burying the dead – to raise our voices loud and clear against the harming of all innocent civilians, both in Israel and Gaza.

We call for the immediate release of all hostages and an end to the bombardment of civilians in Israel and in Gaza. Humanitarian aid must be allowed to reach civilian populations, medical facilities and places of refuge must not be harmed, and vital resources such as water and electricity must not be cut off. The killing of additional civilians will not bring back those who were lost. Indiscriminate destruction and a siege harming innocents will not bring relief, justice, or calm. [Did anyone ever call for providing humanitarian aid to Nazi Germany? Would they today were Nazi Germany to arise again?]

As individuals working to promote human rights and who believe in the sanctity of life, we urgently call for an end to all indiscriminate harming of civilian lives and infrastructure. We call for negotiations and all possible action to be taken to bring about the release of the hostages – while prioritizing the civilians held by Hamas. It is the only humane and rational thing to do, and it must be done now. [Negotiations? I am glad that they are at least prioritizing the civilians held in captivity by Hamas.]

Mothers Against Violence | Itach Ma’aki – Women Lawyers for Social Justice | Amnesty International Israel | BIMKOM – Planners for Planning Rights | B’Tselem | Gisha | The Association for Civil Rights in Israel | Public Committee Against Torture in Israel | Parents Against Child Detention | Hamoked – Center for the Defence of the Individual | Zazim – Community Action | Haqel – In Defense of Human Rights | Yesh Din | Combatants for Peace | Mehazkim | Machsom Watch | Women Wage Peace | Akevot Institute for Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Research | Standing Together | Ir Amim | Emek Shaveh | The Parents Circle-Families Forum | Rabbis for Human Rights | Physicians for Human Rights–Israel | Breaking the Silence | Torat Tzedek