-Caveat Lector-
Subject:
[imra-l] Prof. Gerald M. Steinberg: Palestinian Child Sacrifice
Date:
Mon, 23 Oct 2000 12:36:20 +0200
Prof. Gerald M. Steinberg: Palestinian Child Sacrifice
Monday, October 23, 2000
According to the Palestinians, over 40 children have been killed in
the
waves of violence and confrontations that began at the end of
September. They have been killed in the front lines, providing cover for
the armed Palestinian militias with machine guns and other weapons seeking
to overwhelm isolated Israeli guard posts. The outnumbered Israeli
soldiers, defending the civilians behind these outposts, cannot see the
children through the small slits and openings (as was clearly the case at
the Netzarim crossing in Gaza). The tragic images of these young victims
provide first-rate propaganda to use against Israel.
Interviewed by journalists after these tragedies, some parents of
these
young victims refer to their children as "shaheeds" (martyrs), whose lives
were given willingly and proudly to the Palestinian cause in fighting the
hated Zionist enemy. In a scene that was unbelievably shocking, one mother
boasted that she bore her son precisely for this purpose, and the father
proudly claimed credit for providing the training. (The parents will also
receive a sizeable financial "reward" from the Palestinian Authority.)
For a people who count Abraham (or Ibrahim) among their ancestors,
this
willful child sacrifice violates the fundamental tenets of morality and
ethics. The message of Abraham's non-sacrifice of Isaac was and remains
first and foremost the absolute rejection of such practices. This
prohibition, for the children of Abraham -- Jews, and later Christians, and
Moslems -- stands in sharp contrast to the paganism and idolatry that
existed at that time, and apparently still exists in some cultures. Child
sacrifice was the most fundamental expression of idolatry, and forms the
basis for the central Biblical message, prohibiting any contact with or
tolerance for such practices. That the Palestinian leadership could
encourage such behavior as part of their political and military campaign
against Israel, or for any other purpose, is beyond belief or explanation.
After first buying into the Palestinian propaganda, the forces of
morality
in the world are beginning to confront this horrible reality. Sweden's
Queen Silvia was among the first voices of conscience outside of Israel to
raise this issue. In a meeting of the World Childhood Foundation that took
place at the United Nations, she strongly criticized Palestinian parents
for abusing their children in this way. "As a mother I'm very worried
about this. I'd like to tell them to quit. This is very dangerous. The
children should not take part." While the Palestinian leaders were
cynically pursuing their political efforts to isolate Israel in a special
meeting of the UN General Assembly, the Swedish Queen placing the
responsibility precisely where it belongs, declaring, "The Palestinian
leaders are exploiting them and risking their lives in a political fight."
Queen Silvia's is not the only voice to be raised against this
practice. A few journalists have begun to ask difficult questions to the
Palestinian spokesmen whose presence on interview programs in newspaper
reports is so ubiquitous. There are, of course, no good answers, and the
questions themselves, as well as the very visible discomfort of the
Palestinians, speak for themselves. The dispatch of children to the front
lines, in a brutal war that has no purpose or justification, will haunt
Palestinian society for generations.
Indeed, there are also an increasing number of Palestinians who are
upset
by the high price of Arafat's adventures, and, in particular, the cynical
exploitation of their children. As these young victims are buried, and the
war produces only more suffering, primarily for the Palestinians
themselves, the promise of martyrdom seems less appealing. Suddenly, the
game of provoking the Israeli soldiers and playing before the news cameras,
while Palestinian gunmen fire from behind, has become deadly.
Eventually, enough of these parents, and the children themselves,
will
bring the sacrifices for Arafat's war to a stop. They will need the
support from many other parents and voices of morality around the
world. Instead of investigating politically based charges of Israeli human
rights violations, Mary Robinson, the commissioner responsible for human
rights for the UN can save the lives of Palestinian children by following
the lead of Queen Silvia. The committee for the Defense of Children
International (DCI), based in Geneva, has an important role to play as
well. The Palestinian branch of DCI, which is supported by donations
designed for protecting children, uses these funds for propaganda attacks
against Israel, while ignoring the abuses of children by the Palestinian
leadership. In a recent conference on the dangers of landmines that took
place In Geneva, the Palestinian members of DCI were too busy circulating
denunciations of Israel to discuss means for cooperation in protecting
children from these dangers.
When Yassir Arafat was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, it was not for
sending children to be sacrificed as part of a wider war of terrorism and
brutality against Israel. By revoking this award, the Norwegian prize
committee would reverse some of the damage it caused in the first place,
and send a powerful message in support of basic human morality. It would
also help to save Palestinian children.
<><><><><><><><<><><><><<><><
Prof. Gerald M. Steinberg
Director, Program on Conflict Resolution and Negotiation
Political Studies, Bar Ilan University
Ramat Gan, Israel
Tel: 972-3-5318043, Fax: 972-3-5357931,
http://faculty.biu.ac.il/~steing/conflict/conflict.html
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