The Roots of the Misery in Gaza
To the Editor:
“Trapped by Gaza Blockade, Locked in Despair” (front page, July 14) clearly and graphically describes the deplorable conditions in Gaza — the squalid, listless existence of its inhabitants — and the intense discord between Hamas, which controls Gaza, and the Palestinian Authority, which governs the West Bank.
Add to this the rampant corruption and ineptitude of the leadership of both groups, and the fact that Hamas denies Israel’s right to exist, aptly expressed by a resident of Gaza: “All the land is ours. We should turn the Jews into refugees and then let the international community take care of them.”
All of which raises the question: What is the point of pushing for any peace talks when the likelihood of anything positive resulting from them is virtually zero?
At an absolute minimum, the Palestinians need to put their own house in order and unequivocally recognize Israel’s existence. Without that, peace talks that once again raise unrealistic expectations may be worse than no talks at all.
Jerry Rapp
New York, July 14, 2010
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To the Editor:
The situation in Gaza as described by your article illustrates the real tragedy the Palestinians face in Gaza: leadership that prefers to demonize Israel and the Palestinians controlling the West Bank, to build nostalgia for a Palestine of the past and to hold a kidnapped Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit, than to offer positive steps for economic and social development.
These leaders point with pride to a tunnel-based smuggling culture and prepare for the next war instead of teaching the people of Gaza about peace. Instead of fulminating about the Israeli occupation, we need to help the Palestinian people to overthrow the Hamas leadership that has brought them war and despair.
Samuel Heilman
New Rochelle, N.Y., July 14, 2010
The writer is a professor of sociology and Jewish studies at Queens College, CUNY, and the Graduate Center. (and I went to university with him)
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To the Editor:
The most chilling part of your report from Gaza is this observation: “Direct contact between the peoples, common in the 1980s and ’90s when Palestinians worked daily in Israel, is nonexistent.”
Travel restrictions between Israel, Gaza and the West Bank not only undermine the economic stability of the region, but also foster a continued “us versus them” mentality. Imposed by Israel as security measures, they will ironically undermine Israel’s security by prolonging and deepening the conflict.
Ryan Gee
Brooklyn, July 14, 2010
[Ryan, so, if the Arabs would first resign from the path of terror, rocket-building and launching, etc., there'd be no security problem, right?]
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To the Editor:
Heart-wrenching civilian deprivation in Gaza is paralleled by similar and worse conditions in many other places in the world where despotic regimes reign. Innocent residents of Gaza, though, have the right to feel particularly dejected, as their murderous, peace-rejecting Hamas government came about through votes cast by a majority of their fellow Gazans.
May we one day soon see a broad Arab endorsement of peaceful co-existence with Israel, after which prosperity will quickly come to Gaza and the entire region.
(Rabbi) Avi Shafran
Director of Public Affairs
Agudath Israel of America
New York, July 14, 2010
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