Disclaimer: The opinions expressed here are that of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of the Union for Traditional Judaism, unless otherwise indicated.
THE GAZAN NAKABA CRISIS TODAY
In response to the moving of the American Embassy to Israel to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv, and to the Nakba, the “catastrophe” of having lost the war of aggression against Israel, Al Jazeera reports at https://www.aljazeera.com/topics/city/gaza.html that Israel is guilty of ethnic cleansing, killing Palestinians, and of winning its War of Independence in 1948.
Haidar Eid reports that he marched against Israel “for three reasons. One, we want UN Resolution 194, which calls for the return of all Palestinian refugees to their lands, to be implemented. Two, we want the genocidal siege imposed on Gaza by apartheid Israel to be lifted. Three, we refuse to accept the decision to move the US embassy to occupied Jerusalem” [https://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/march-return-14may-gaza-israeli-fence-180516124449284.html].
The return of all Palestinians to “their” lands will destroy Israel as a Jewish state. Israel is a small Jewish state and there are several Arab and Islamic nation states. There ought to a place for Jews in the Middle East, too. The Palestinians have to realize that a policy of warfare is not consistent with their own welfare. Jewry has a right to its real estate, too. At Bar Ilan University, Benjamin Netanyahu committed himself and Israel to a two-state solution. Hold him to his word. Just as there will be an Arab state of Palestine, there will be a permanent Jewish State of Israel. Neither Yasir Arafat nor Mahmoud Abbas were prepared to make peace with a Jewish state. There are conflicting eschatologies, narratives, and nationalist claims in this conflict. Both sides must realize that maximalist dreams will yield minimalist results.
The demand that all Arab refugees, now four generations of offspring of those Arabs who left Israel at the order of the united anti-Israel army coalition in 1948 be allowed to return to their lands is an intentionally ambiguous formula. The world hears that the territory Israel conquered in the 1967 Six Day War be “returned” to Arab sovereignty, but what is really being demanded is the politically agreed liquidation of the “Zionist entity.”
Mr. Eid also demands that “the genocidal siege imposed on Gaza by apartheid Israel” be lifted. First, this siege is defensive, and not genocidal. If Hamas will make peace, the siege will be lifted. Israel withdrew unilaterally from Gaza, whose leadership then declared war on Israel. When you shoot at people, expect them to defend themselves, sometimes successfully. There are no death camps in Israel, but Jews in Arab countries are made to feel much more unwelcome than Arabs feel in Israel. Calling Israel “apartheid” needs to be addressed, even though its immoral claim is unworthy of address. In Israel, Arabs are allowed to be voting members of the country’s free electorate; there is an Arab List party, and an Arab member of the Israeli Supreme Court. Israel is not perfect and can do even better. But given the treatment Israel affords its Arabs, and Mr. Abbas’s regime’s intransigence, corruption, exploitation of his impoverished constituency, and unwillingness to renew his electoral mandate, it is obscene to call multi-racial Israel an apartheid state. After all, Mr. Abbas tells us that he would not allow a Jew to reside in Palestine. In Dar al-Islam, Jews are to be dhimmi, “protected,” tolerated, second class residents who must submit and surrender to Islamic authority in order enjoy residency rights. Yet Mr. Abbas is even not prepared to allow Jews the “rights” that orthodox Islam would accept. By calling Israel an “apartheid” state when there are “Arab” and “Islamic” states, and when Israeli Jewry is a multi-racial free society, Mr. Eid testifies that his words are missiles and his adjectives are lies.
When Hamas, the terrorist Gazan government, organizes a “jail-break” led by terrorists who goaded desperate Gazans to break through the border fence to attack Israeli kindergartens, what we have here are belligerents attempting to seize land its believers have been conditioned to believe is theirs, giving them the right to kill Israeli residents who are not military combatants.
What is Israel to do? Gaza is at war with Israel for committing the “sin” of coming into and remaining in existence. The Gazan government commands residents to penetrate the border fence and take the land that is rightfully theirs. Should these people be seen as enemies or friends? Warning was given by Israel to the Gazans not to breach the security fence, and I know of no sovereign nation that would not defend its border and population. Jewish ethics require that those who come to kill are themselves to be killed [bBerachot 62a-b].
It has been argued that the protesters are not violent and should not have been shot, and Israeli retaliation is excessive. Were that the case, there would have been calls for compromise. Shulhan Aruch Hoshen Mishpat 425:1 rules that the pursuer who acts with the intent to harm another person must be stopped, even at the cost of the pursuer’s life. The force applied to arrest the pursuer is preventive and not punitive. If you choose to storm a border that you have declared enemy territory and have killed non-combatant civilians, don’t be surprised if you meet with lethal resistance. Before criticizing the Israelis who shot in defense of their lives and their homeland, the world would do well to ask Hamas, “by provoking this incident which killed or wounded so many for helpless headlines, what were you hoping to accomplish?”
Those who believe Israel does not have the right to self-defense believe that Israel’s existence is indefensible. The world would be wise to realize Hamas’s vision is not terribly welcoming, or tolerant. Before blaming Israel, Ask what you would do when confronted with the challenge that the Gazan leadership presents.
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Educated and first ordained at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, Rabbi Alan J. Yuter earned additional ordinations from Yeshiva University, supervised by Rav Moshe D. Tendler, and the Israeli Chief Rav Mordecai Eliahu. He further received Yadin Yadin from Rav David Weiss Halivni and earned a PhD in modern Hebrew Literature from New York University.
A founding member of the UTJ, Rabbi Yuter served as a faculty member at the UTJ’s rabbinical school and has held multiple pulpits, including extended stints in Springfield, NJ, and Baltimore, MD.
Rabbi Yuter is a prolific writer on ritual and philosophical issues, underpinnings of halakha, Biblical criticism, and much more. His essays can be found on UTJ’s Viewpoints . He is also a frequent contributor for The Institute of Jewish Ideas and Ideals.
In addition to his activities with the UTJ, Rabbi Yuter teaches at Torat Reva in Jerusalem and is associated with the Center for Jewish-Christian Understanding, affiliated with Ohr Torah Stone in Efrat.
Rabbi Yuter and his wife Linda reside in Israel.