He was invited to participate in Saturday night's anti-war demo in Tel Aviv.
He didn't go. Why?
Read on:-
No Katyushas at Rabin Square
They called to say that there's a rally against the war on Saturday night. Which war? I used to rally with my eyes closed, the first to march in protest of the evils of the occupation - that war in Lebanon. But what kind of occupation is Lebanon under now? We withdrew from the country. We left Gaza. The Iranians are announcing that Israel must be erased from the face of the earth. They say this nation must be destroyed. Which other country in the world faces threats of destruction?
What other nation is referred to in London and Spain as an occupier and murderer, as a blood thirsty nation that commits war crimes?
Our media refer to the war as a show of strength by Olmert, who got carried away in his desire to become a military leader. A woman in my house says that the children were killed in Nazareth because Israel doesn’t build shelters for Arabs. She forgets that there are no shelters in ultra-orthodox Safed. But what cause will they have to rally for? The fact that Israel does not approve of calls for its annihilation and its unwillingness to have rockets hit Ashkelon, Sderot, Nahariya and Haifa? Is there a city in the world that sit idly by as it is hit by rockets, looking for excuses to understand the enemy and, in essence, to support it?
The Left's spiritual leader, Noam Chomsky , went to Hizbullah – a murderous, extremist, nationalistic organization by its own leaders' account – and saluted. Fascism on the Left and Right does not believe in the possibility of the righteousness of anyone else. They claim there's only one truth. We have heard this claim once before as the murderer of millions, Stalin, was endorsed as our revolution's leader.
Someone said I became a rightist. That's not true. Though what's their problem? If you're not for the destruction of Israel or forfeiting your dignity – then you’re a rightist? And what's wrong with that anyway? I am a rightist, but what is "a rightist" in the Jewish-Arab saga? Victory in this war means revealing the truth. I have read articles about how all of it derives from the occupation; that diplomacy is the way. But with whom? And what does Lebanon have to do with occupation? It is not evil and occupation that Jews launch out of their F-16s. It is obvious: We are at the tip of the Islam's Jihad against the West. We are the most convenient target, as the French and Spanish can hate us too.
Ours is the war with Arabs that started with the Balfur Declaration, since no Muslim entity can accept a different national entity in its midst. The ancient Egyptians, the Coptic Christians, are an example: they are down to seven percent of their original size and they are still persecuted, not because they're Christians but because they are an occupied nation.
I have read about the future investigation committees of this 11-day war and how the army, the country and the government are suckers for the clichés – we are all victims of emotional blackmail; imaginary existential anxiety, because the only reason Katyushas are falling is the occupation of Jenin. Hizbullah attacked us in South America and Lebanon, before they even heard of the Sheba Farms, which belonged to Syria anyway. So what do we do?
The protestors at the rally spoke of our crimes; about this cruel war where children on both sides are killed; more on their side because Israel is stronger. Yet a suicide bomber is not a Jew who drove to Nablus to blow up a movie theater. One has to be non-human to believe what I read in the newspapers. On the other hand, it's their right to print it. I do have an issue with it being presented as the whole truth. I'm not evil, but despite the mounting death toll, I support this war and Olmert who is leading an important battle, a fundamental war, perhaps even mythical. In an instant he became a military leader.
I might be wrong. G-d made a mistake creating this world. Everything is possible. What is not possible is that there's only one truth. We did not allow terrorists to lay their infrastructure in civilian neighborhoods. There's a moment when man turns into an animal. The struggle for survival in inherent to natural order, but it does not apply to cynical intellectuals or clever journalists. This is a war for our survival. We regressed to the days when I fought for independence due to the Arab rejection of the UN Partition Plan. Just days prior to the war I still belonged to a socialist youth movement supporting a two-nation state. I protested against occupation before we ever occupied anyone.
I love my daughter - the activist who protests the checkpoints and spends days helping every Palestinian who gets beaten up by the settlers and the soldiers. She does not sit at home contemplating. She believes Israel is the country of all its citizens: I too believe this is the only logical solution, though I am not willing to give up the Jewish State. Thus, I believe we will continue to fight for another century because no Arab will accept Israel – regardless of its size.
Following the slaughter in Maalot, I suggested to my Arab friends - writers, poets and painters - to jointly speak out against the terrorists and the IAF's attacks on Lebanon. They did not agree. They said the Palestinians who committed the massacre were guerilla fighters while Israel is a terror state. It took me years to get it, but when those who oppose the Israeli occupation cheer for the Hizbullah, I get it.
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