JONATHAN TOBIN
And yet, as much as we might wish it not to be so, there are occasions when groups do exhibit loathsome behavior that are a clear illustration of their beliefs and values.
Over the last month, the Palestinian Arabs have done just that during ceremonies as part of the release of hostages they took on Oct. 7, 2023. Their celebrations of that orgy of mass murder, rape, torture, kidnapping and wanton destruction reached a new low this week when they turned over the remains of four murdered hostages: Oded Lifshitz, 83 when he was taken; Shiri Bibas, 32; and her little sons, Ariel, age 4; and Kfir, only 9 months old when kidnapped. However, testing later showed that the body that was supposed to be Shiri was, in fact, not her. That was just one more act of cruelty to add to so many others committed by the Palestinians.
The handover of their coffins, which reportedly stated the time of their "arrest" by Hamas terrorists and civilians who followed them into the Israeli communities that were devastated by their attack, was a wild celebration, complete with loud happy music and cheering throngs of Palestinians.
A deranged show of bloodlust
It was a bizarre, deranged show of bloodlust and hatred that ought to strain the ability of even the most dedicated apologists for the Palestinians to rationalize their behavior. But I doubt it will move them to change their minds.
The same is true for fringe elements of the Jewish community and other leftists who have taken sides against Israel. They have largely been indoctrinated by woke, leftist ideologies like critical race theory and intersectionality, and believe that the Jews alone are undeserving of rights. Having bought into the myth that the war being waged by the Palestinians to destroy the one Jewish state on the planet is somehow analogous to the historic struggle for civil rights in the United States, they believe that there is nothing its foes can do that cannot be justified.
For those not blinded by ideology, the question is what should we make of these exhibitions put on by the Palestinians. Much of the corporate mainstream media, which have often acted as Hamas's stenographers since the atrocities on Oct. 7, continue to downplay or ignore it.
These latest instances of Palestinian Arab barbarism, however, are not one-offs or outliers. When put in the context of what happened on that Black Shabbat in southern Israel, as well as the suicide bombings of the Second intifada, the celebration of baby kidnapping and killing can't be excused as merely a reaction to Israel's counter-offensive aimed at destroying Hamas.
Moreover, during the past few decades, the Palestinian education system, media and popular culture have been drenched in intransigent and virulent hatred for Jews and Israel. It has valorized brutal terrorism and a cult of death.
All of this should lead rational observers to stop pretending that there isn't something fundamentally wrong with the Palestinians, which must also be taken into account when discussing how to solve the conflict with them.
No comments:
Post a Comment