I remember, back before I was a worldly man, wondering why it was that Palestine and Israel were locked in a violent struggle neither was willing to end. I couldn't understand why the Israelis wouldn't let the Palestinians have the little strip of land they want, or why the Palestinians had given up on peaceful methods towards achieving their goals.
I did research on the topic, studying current events in Israel all through 9th grade, making it my yearlong project. I still didn't totally understand it. I could see the history of animosity between the two creeds and the sacred value of the land, but I couldn't see something worth the deaths of so many. Let me make it clear that I take no official side to the conflict in Israel. I believe both sides have valid arguments and both sides have committed atrocities. The Israelis are no better than the Palestinians in my mind.
I was at a loss to understand the war being waged. Then I opened my eyes. I saw the similarities to conflicts throughout the ages, saw the connections to every underdog who waged war in any way they could. Even our own forefathers fighting Britain were not so different from the Palestinians.
Even this example is pushing it a bit. America did fight an organized war with armies, not setting off bombs in public places of the enemy. There was a better example staring me in the face. I was constantly reading articles and papers about it. Addicted to various news services around the world for information about it. It was right in front of me, happening in the country of my grandfather's family. Ireland was the perfect correlation.
But why did it take so long to see it? Truth is, we are blind to the actions of those we support. Hardcore Palestinian and Israeli supporters have a hard time admitting when their side is wrong. They see their goal as the only true one and the opposing side as intruders to be wiped clear. I was guilty of the same thing in Ireland. I supported the Republic at all costs. I would have donated money to the Irish Republican Army, had I been old enough. And now I was seeing a similarity between the IRA and the Palestinian forces.
For decades, the IRA waged a war on the supporters of Britain in Northern Ireland and in England itself. They assassinated Loyalists and exploded bombs in cities, waging a terrorist war against Britain and her Protestant supporters in the North. Casualties ran high on both sides. Civilian deaths were intermixed with military. Some Northern Ireland neighborhoods bore the scars of war, looking more like what we would expect to see in war torn Bosnia in the mid-90s. I remember seeing footage from some Belfast neighborhoods and not realizing at first that this could be Ireland.
The IRA's war, while it made progress, never fully succeeded. The power-sharing government in the North was recently suspended, and Britain has resumed direct rule. The IRA has ended its disarmament program, and both sides are blaming their opponents for the failure. In Israel, both the Palestinian Liberation Organization and the Israeli government blame each other for the cycle of violence. They say their opponents are unwilling to cooperate. I think they are unable to admit they might be wrong.
Both sides are wrong, there is no doubt. To dedicate oneself to war and ignore any chance for peace is wrong. The Israelis have to see that as long as they continue on their current path, there will be no lasting peace. The Palestinians are fighting with a passion rarely seen in this world, and it is apparent that they will never give up. On the other side, the Palestinians must see that as long as the bombings continue, the Israelis have no choice but to wage war back. They can't let their own people die without any threat of retaliation. But this is a vicious cycle. Neither side can win at this rate. A stalemate of violence will be the only result.
Applying the situation in Ireland to Palestine and Israel shows that only when the two sides can get together and admit wrongdoing and a focused passion for peace can anything be accomplished. Ireland may not be perfect, but violence is no longer the daily occurrence it once was. I can understand, and even sympathize with, the Palestinians and their war, but they will never win with their tactics. Nothing can be accomplished. The IRA had to use violence to get the attention of all focused on the problem, but the violence cannot continue indefinitely. Palestinians must recognize this. They have the attention of the world. Now show the world the true face of Islam - peaceful and godly, not violent and obstinate. Be the better man, and the day shall be yours.
