Current Situation with Hamas in Israel

[Michie]

Janet and I have been watching the situation carefully in which Hamas has attacked Israel in the south.

First, we arrived home two days ago with our our two back-to-back groups. So this has no immediate effect on us or our pilgrimages.

Second, the areas in danger are those in the south and not immediately in the areas that we habitually visit in Galilee and Jerusalem.

Third, however, the situation is very tense in all of Israel right now. I’m glad that our pilgrims are back home. Israel cannot allow this to go on for long and they will crush the opposition in short order, as they should.

Forth, we expect things to be calm in a few days since Israel cannot allow it to continue, and they certainly have the power to stop it.

Fifth, our next trip to Israel is not for six weeks, which will by then certainly have calmed down with business back as usual. In the meantime, we will be watching carefully and post updates.

Sixth, we will not be canceling our November, December, January or February trips.

Current Situation with Hamas in Israel – Defenders of the Catholic Faith

Janet and I have been watching the situation carefully in which Hamas has attacked Israel in the south. First, we arrived home two days ago with our our two back-to-back groups. So this has no immediate effect on us or our pilgrimages. Second, the areas in danger are those in the south and not...

catholicconvert.com

 

[Gnarwhal]

My protestant friends are definitely getting worked up over this one, particularly because Netanyahu actually declared war.

I hope it ends soon, whatever that may mean to God.

 

[Bob Crowley]

As an armchair watcher of online news rather than television news, my view is more long term.

I'll quote my old Protestant pastor (boring again) since we were talking about the Middle East in general -

1. "That's going to be a problem for the next 300 years!" - the Israel / Arab conflict, although he was speaking hyperbolically.

2. "Suppose you get an Arab stateman who does a bit of fence-building with his mates. Then they say to the West "Right boys, either you get Israel out of there or we turn off the taps (oil)." We'd all be broke in a week!"

The problem is not going to go away any time soon, and I think that one day we're all going to get dragged into it.

In one of his homilies he remarked "TE Lawrence (Lawrence of Arabia) was no fool! He spoke several languages, including Arabic."

T.E. Lawrence Biography |

T.E. Lawrence gained fame as a British leader of an Arab revolt against the Ottoman Empire during World War One. A charismatic figure, Lawrence threw himself into Arabic culture to befriend and sympathise with his Arab partners. It was this ability to identify with the Arab peoples which made...

www.biographyonline.net

In the Middle East, Lawrence continued his studies of languages; he learnt languages easily and could speak fluently French, German, Latin, Greek, Arabic, Turkish and Syriac.

"After the (First World) war he pleaded with the colonial powers and the big oil companies to give the Arabs their independence. But they refused. The Arabs were going to get nothing!"

He added "If they'd listened to him the Middle East could have avoided many of the problems that have so bedevilled those countries."

The West has a lot to answer for.

 

[SavedByGrace3]

"After the (First World) war he pleaded with the colonial powers and the big oil companies to give the Arabs their independence. But they refused. The Arabs were going to get nothing!"

He added "If they'd listened to him the Middle East could have avoided many of the problems that have so bedevilled those countries."

The West has a lot to answer for.

Independent Arab Nations.... are we missing something here?

 

[Bob Crowley]

After wars of liberation, and the division into colonial entities. The CIA helped to overthrow the populist General Abdel Karim Kassem, and helped to put Saddam Hussein in power.

Revealed: how the West set Saddam on the bloody road to power

The botched CIA attempt to oust the Iraqi despot last June, in which hundreds died, was not the first intervention by the US agency to have disastrous consequences. Patrick Cockburn tells of the coup it backed in 1963 that paved the way for the rise of Saddam

www.independent.co.uk

Britain only allowed Egypt independence as a result of the Suez Crisis.

The Algerians had to fight to get rid of the French. Libya didn't become independent until 1951 after Italy was defeated by the allies.

Then there is Iran which has no great reason to love the US.

Down With USA, Do Iranians really hate Americans?

Down With USA, Do Iranians really hate Americans? As a visitor to Iran, you will receive many conflicting messages, visit to make your own conclusion

globalgaz.com

The Iranians have their own valid frustrations with the United States. The U.S. engineered a coup in 1953 overthrowing the democratically elected leader, Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh, and reinstating the autocratic and freedom-suppressing Shah Reza Shah Pahlavi. And the U.S. with many other countries supported Saddam Hussein during the brutal eight year war with Iran.

If the British and French leaders, and the big oil companies had listened to TE Lawrence way back in the 1920's a lot of the tensions that so bedevil the Middle East today would never have been a factor.

It's all right pointing to "independent" Arab nations now, but that's ignoring the fact of how they got their independence.

 

[JimR-OCDS]

The conflict is complex!

Most of the problem was created by Great Britian after WWI. During WWI, Great Britian promised
the Arabs would have an Independent State. Then there was the creation of the Zionist movement in
1922, which Great Britain promised a Jewish State in Palestine. Great Britian was looking for support
from both sides to overthrow the Turkish Ottoman Empire. After WW1 when that succeeded, Great Britian
broke their promise to the Arabs and the Jews and took control of the Middle East, dividing it into separate
nations.

Then in 1946, when things didn't look like they were going the Zionists way, they began terrorists attacks
including villages and the bombing of the King David Hotel, which killed over 80 British diplomats and soldiers.

After the WWII, the UN formed and began drawing up plans for a Palestinian and Jewish State. However,
the Zionists were not satisfied and drew up their own plan and created borders for Israel that were greater
than what the UN had drawn up. In 1948 the Zionists declared and established the State of Israel.
This caused the war between the Arab League and Israel. Jordan invaded and Palestinians fled the
area to avoid being caught in the crossfire. After the conflict, the Palestinians tried to return to their homes,
but the Israeli forces prohibited them from doing so. In fact, they were put on cattle cars and buses and drove
to the Israeli border and told, "Egypt is that way, go." However, Egypt closed its border and as a result, the Palestinians
were stopped in Gaza where they have lived as exiles ever since.

Hamas, became a militant Palestinian group, who vowed for the destruction of Israel. Twice, Hamas leaders were
elected and control the Palestinians areas.

FYI, YouTube has Timeline History videos explaining the entire thing.

Also, Norm Finkelstein, a Jewish Historian, has talks on YouTube and books on the situation.

 

[JimR-OCDS]

Iran became enemies of the US during the revolution where the US embassy was overthrown
by fundamentalists and Americans were made hostages. The US via the CIA, supported
enemies of Iran as a result.

When the US supported Saddam Hussein who had a Baathists government, we
supplied Saddam with weapons to fight the Iranians.

Iran is predominantly [bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse]e and the Arab nations including Hamas, are Sunni.
[bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse]e and Sunni have been enemies for a long time.
Despite this, the US supports the Sunnis who control Saudi Arabia. I believe that
this is because most oil from the Middle East, came from Saudi Arabia. Remember
OPEC controlled oil prices for decades.

Ironically, Iran and the dominant population of Iraq, which is [bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse]e, fought against
Issis, along with Syria, which is also Baathists. So, why we support the Sunni side
has more to do with oil than anything else. President Obama saw that support
for rebel groups in Syria, would end up as supporting ISIS, and he refused to
send weapons there. The neocons protests against his reluctance to arm the
Syrian rebel groups.

The bottom line for the US should be as then candidate Pat Buchannan said.
"Foreign Policy in the Middle East, should be what's good for America only."
He was labeled antisemitic for that position, but he was right.

 

[Terri Dactyl]

What is the bless and do not curse thing?