We are all biased in favor of the Israelis in the Arab-Israeli conflict. Let's be honest....
So how do we know that we [the Jews] are right??
There are a few reasons.
1] If one looks at contemporary Halachic literature discussing questions relating to the army, one sees unbelievable questions that display tremendous moral sensitivity. Is it permitted to take food from trees in areas captured from the enemy or is it stealing? Is it permitted to bomb the enemy when they use women and children as human shields? Is it permitted to harm a terrorist who has been neutralized and disarmed etc. etc. It is simply incredible how careful Jews are, despite the fact that we are essentially at war with an enemy that won't rest until we are [ח"ו] eradicated from the planet, to never overstep the bounds of what is moral and proper in the eyes of Hashem. Even Jews who aren't frum, leftists and the like, display tremendous moral sensitivity [too much to the taste of many but their intentions are good, misguided may they be]. In general, the Israeli army does whatever it can to protect civilians.
2] If it were up to the Jews, there would be peace today. You guys put down your guns - we will put down ours. Whatever we give them is never enough. It is the other side that is not agreeable. How did Alan Dershowitz put it? "The Palestianians don't know how to take yes for an answer. They never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity."
3] "To understand whether violence is inherent in the doctrine of Islam, it is important to look at the example of the founding father of Islam, Mohammed, and the passages in the Quran and Islamic jurisprudence used to justify the violence we currently see in so many parts of the Muslim world. In Mecca, Mohammed preached to his fellow tribesmen to abandon their gods and accept his. He preached about charity and the conditions of widows and orphans. (This method of proselytizing or persuasion, called dawa in Arabic, remains an important component of Islam to this day.) However, during his time in Mecca, Mohammed and his small band of believers had little success in converting others to this new religion. So, a decade after Mohammed first began preaching, he fled to Medina. Over time he cobbled together a militia and began to wage wars.
Anyone seeking support for armed jihad in the name of Allah will find ample support in the passages in the Quran and Hadith that relate to Mohammed’s Medina period. For example, Q4:95 states, “Allah hath granted a grade higher to those who strive and fight with their goods and persons than to those who sit (at home).” Q8:60 advises Muslims “to strike terror into (the hearts of) the enemies, of Allah and your enemies, and others besides, whom ye may not know, but whom Allah doth know.” Finally, Q9:29 instructs Muslims: “Fight those who believe not in Allah nor the Last Day, nor hold that forbidden which hath been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger, nor acknowledge the religion of Truth, (even if they are) of the People of the Book, until they pay the Jizya with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued.”
The Torah of course also mandates war but only in certain circumstances and after we first pursue peace [see Rambam Hilchos Melachim 6-1]. The Jews lived among barbarians and the only way to stay alive was to fight fire with fire.
אנו מסתכלים בדורות הראשונים, המסופרים בתורה, בנביאים ובכתובים, אותם הדורות שהיו עסוקים במלחמה והם הם הגדולים שאנו מתיחסים אליהם בידידות וגדולת קודש. הננו מבינים, שהזיק הנשמתי הוא היסוד: אותו מעמד העולם, שהלך במרוצתו אז, שהיתה המלחמה כל כך נחוצה בו, הוא גרם להופיע את אלה הנשמות, שהרגשתן הפנימית בתוכן שלם היתה. מלחמת קיומם, קיום האומה, מלחמת ד' היתה בהכרה פנימית. עזיזים היו ברוחם וידעו בעמק החשך לבחור בטוב ולסור מן הרע, "גם כי אלך בגיא צלמות לא אירע רע". כשאנו מתבוננים אליהם, הננו, בכל ההופעה הרוחנית שאנו כל כך שוקקים לה, משתוקקים לאמוצם, לכח החיים החטוב והגבוש, האיתן והמוצק, ששכן בקרבם, ומתוך תשוקה זו, כחנו הרוחני מתאמץ וכח גבורתנו מתעדן, ואותן הנשמות החזקות חוזרות לחיות בנו כימי עולם. [שמונה קבצים]
The guiding principal of the Torah is "דרכיה דרכי נועם וכל נתיבותיה שלום" - Our ideal is peace. Already in Parshas Noach we learn the rule: שופך דם האדם באדם דמו ישפך כי בצלם אלקים עשה את האדם. Man was created in the image of G-d and must be treated accordingly. If one kills then he deserves to be killed. War and violence are the exceptions and not the rules. The Messianic vision is a world of peace.
4] Chazal tell us that Hashem told the angels "My handiwork [i.e. the Egyptians] is drowning and you want to sing???" Hashem would prefer not to harm anybody. It is a pretty high moral standard when you understand that your G-d is sad when his enemies are destroyed.
5] We don't use our wives and children as human shields.
6] We don't send our our people to blow themselves up to kill and maim random innocent people - with the promise of a sexual orgy in the hereafter.
7] At our funerals and memorial services of terror victims there are not calls for revenge and violence but discussions of how to improve our middos and to learn from the good middos of the victim. When one of their people is killed the funerals are violent and scary. If a Jew would innocently walk by he would be killed.
8] When an Arab gets lost in a Jewish neighborhood he can ask for directions and doesn't have to worry for his life. When a Jew gets lost in an Arab village he is in danger of being lynched [and it has happened numerous times].
9] Arabs [patients and doctors] are treated equal to Jews in Israeli, Jewish run, Jewish paid for hospitals. What would happen to a Jew if he found himself in an Arab hospital???
10] We don't call for the destruction of the Arabs in any way shape or form. We don't even seek out converts. We just ask that they let us live in our small country in peace. Tens of millions of Arabs would LOVE to see a world with no more Jews - and many work towards that nefarious goal.
And many more reasons....
This doesn't mean that Jews and Israelis are perfect people. Just that in this conflict we are usually on the side of Hashem and justice.
More to say. Hopefully in the future. [And see the previous post]
