"It was the worst of times, it was the worst of times." Pardon me for modifying the quote, but I needed to convey how I feel now. Yesterday in the Middle East, two suicide bombers struck within hours of each other, killing over 40 and injuring hundreds. While the crimes seem similar on the surface, in my opinion the attacks, their "objectives", and those at fault are completely different.
I will start with the latter bombing first. In the early evening, a bus carrying many children from the Wailing Wall in East Jerusalem was torn apart by a bomber. This act killed over twenty people, including as many as 6 children (maybe more, there are hundreds of injured). Two terrorist organizations, Islamic Jihad and Hamas, have both claimed responsibility for this atrocity. Some call their organizations "freedom fighters". I myself, as a second-generation Palestinian American, used to think that way. However, a light has finally come on for me. If you want to be considered a "Freedom Fighter", then you must attack that which is denying you your freedom. I fail to see how these mothers and children were doing that. In the three years since the current fighting began (I didn't really realize that the fighting had ever ended), most of the attacks have been against soft civilian targets. These attacks are not heroic in any way, they are pure cowardice. I am sympathetic to the Palestinian's desire for their own state. I think that much of the world feels that they are entitled to at least part of the land that was taken from them by outside forces. However, attacks such as this do NOTHING to further that cause. They only serve to allow Israel to tighten their controls on Palestinians in Israel and the Occupied Territories. They give Israel justification to use military force to respond. They undermine any efforts by the Palestinian Authority to work with Israel towards a just peace. They put immense pressure on Mahmoud Abbas to "reign in" these groups, something that I highly doubt he has the power (and I have to wonder, the inclination) to do. And finally, these attacks sicken me, as a Palestinian but on a much deeper level as a human. Earlier in the day, a blast ripped through the UN Headquarters in Baghdad, killing 20, including the Brazilian head of UN Reconstruction efforts in Iraq. What a misguided, foolish attack. Most of the dead were Iraqis. This is right in line with the attacks on water and gas pipelines, in that the main victims here are the Iraqis themselves. Officially there has been no word as to who was responsible for this. Some say the Saddam Fedayeen, trying to make Iraq as inhospitable as possible for the "occupiers". Radical Muslim fundamentalists, who simply resent the West are also suspects. I say, however, that blame for this attack lays squarely on the "Coalition of the Willing", headed by our country and by extrapolation our President, George Bush. I don't see that this little foray into the desert will get better any time soon. In fact, I truly believe that it will get worse in Iraq. Much worse. I attribute this to the planners of this war who, full of hubris and arrogance, thought that we would just ride in, "free" the people of Iraq, and rebuild it in the image of our choosing. What they did not fully consider, or if they did, then ignore, was that nature abhors a vacuum, and a vacuum of leadership is what we have in Iraq now. The Bush administration did not fully appreciate the influences that would remain even after Saddam fell, and if they did they obviously did not properly plan for contingencies such as the continued attacks that we now face. If the bombing had killed 20 US Servicemen rather than UN Workers, the call would ring loud and strong to "bring our kids home". This is, however, impossible. To do so would be wrong on so many levels. It would increase the vacuum in Iraq, leaving the door open for any leader to step in. And that leader could be someone who could make Saddam look like a pussycat. It would completely destroy American integrity (what little is left) in the world's eye for us to leave without accomplishing the paramount stated goal of the campaign, removing the enigmatic weapons of mass destruction. It would leave a country of 25 million people void of many of the basic services of life, taken from them by our troops and allies. (Ironically, when a large part of our country loses power for a few hours, the story leads the news for days. These people went without reliable power and water for MONTHS.) But the main reason, in my opinion alone, is that we will not leave while there is still a possibility for large American companies to make billions of dollars rebuilding a society that we tore apart. What a sad time we live in, and I fear that we have yet to see the "darkest before the dawn". I hope that we all get to finally see that dawn, but I have my doubts. ********************************************************************** The information contained in this message is confidential and is intended for the addressee(s) only. If you have received this message in error or there are any problems please notify the originator immediately. 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