Years ago, when I first read about The Hundred Years War in Europe, I thought the titles were ridiculous. After all, what sort of war could go on for 100 years? Today, with the fighting raging in Gaza still, it hit me that even if one dates the Arab Israeli conflict just to the date the British left Palestine and the state of Israel was born, this war has been going on for two thirds of a century. Even worse, it seems as if there is no end in sight.
Against this backdrop of death, destruction and hopelessness, I see some rays of light. For the first time that I can recall, it seems as if the majority of Arabs have actually come to no longer support the terrorists like Hamas who are currently fighting in Gaza. Egypt has done all that it can to seal the border with Gaza so as to keep weapons from getting to Hamas. Of course, Hamas has no one but itself to blame for the Egyptian position. In the last 18 months, Hamas has sent terrorist fighters to attack Egyptian military and police forces in the Sinai peninsula. Hamas has also attempted to assist those who seek the violent overthrow of the Egyptian government. At the same time, Jordan is likewise unsupportive of Hamas. After all, Hamas is an ally of ISIS, a group which seeks to amalgamate Jordan into the so called caliphate that ISIS wants to establish in Syria and Iraq. Jordan is unlikely to ally itself with those who seek its destruction. Then there are the Saudis. Here too, we have the Saudi monarchy which sees itself as the guardian of Islam under attack by those, like the Moslem Brotherhood from which Hamas grew, who wish for the violent overthrow of the Saudi government and its replacement by an even stricter Islamic ruler. Finally, there is the Palestinian Authority and the Fattah party of president Abbas. Certainly, Fatah is no friend of Israel, but Abbas seems to hate Hamas even more than it dislikes the Israelis. Remember, when Hamas took control of Gaza, it did not work with the members of Fatah. Instead, Hamas executed the senior Fatah leadership and exiled the rest of the members of that group from Gaza. For years, Hamas has been plotting the overthrow of Abbas in the West Bank area as well.
I doubt that we will soon see harmonious meetings of the Arab nations with Israel in order to coordinate strategy and tactics for dealing with the Islamist terrorists of ISIS and Hamas and Iran. It will take many years for the old wounds to heal. Nevertheless, for the first time ever, most of Israel's Arab neighbors see an Israeli victory over its terrorist adversaries as being in their own interests as well. Let's hope that this is the beginning of reality entering these relationships. Let's hope this is the beginning of the end of the seemingly endless war.
Against this backdrop of death, destruction and hopelessness, I see some rays of light. For the first time that I can recall, it seems as if the majority of Arabs have actually come to no longer support the terrorists like Hamas who are currently fighting in Gaza. Egypt has done all that it can to seal the border with Gaza so as to keep weapons from getting to Hamas. Of course, Hamas has no one but itself to blame for the Egyptian position. In the last 18 months, Hamas has sent terrorist fighters to attack Egyptian military and police forces in the Sinai peninsula. Hamas has also attempted to assist those who seek the violent overthrow of the Egyptian government. At the same time, Jordan is likewise unsupportive of Hamas. After all, Hamas is an ally of ISIS, a group which seeks to amalgamate Jordan into the so called caliphate that ISIS wants to establish in Syria and Iraq. Jordan is unlikely to ally itself with those who seek its destruction. Then there are the Saudis. Here too, we have the Saudi monarchy which sees itself as the guardian of Islam under attack by those, like the Moslem Brotherhood from which Hamas grew, who wish for the violent overthrow of the Saudi government and its replacement by an even stricter Islamic ruler. Finally, there is the Palestinian Authority and the Fattah party of president Abbas. Certainly, Fatah is no friend of Israel, but Abbas seems to hate Hamas even more than it dislikes the Israelis. Remember, when Hamas took control of Gaza, it did not work with the members of Fatah. Instead, Hamas executed the senior Fatah leadership and exiled the rest of the members of that group from Gaza. For years, Hamas has been plotting the overthrow of Abbas in the West Bank area as well.
I doubt that we will soon see harmonious meetings of the Arab nations with Israel in order to coordinate strategy and tactics for dealing with the Islamist terrorists of ISIS and Hamas and Iran. It will take many years for the old wounds to heal. Nevertheless, for the first time ever, most of Israel's Arab neighbors see an Israeli victory over its terrorist adversaries as being in their own interests as well. Let's hope that this is the beginning of reality entering these relationships. Let's hope this is the beginning of the end of the seemingly endless war.
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