by Stephanie K

Created on: July 23, 2008

There are many comparisons between South Africa and Israel on the Internet. These commentaries usually related to the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories, including the illegal settlements, land seizures, human rights violations and other issues pertaining to Palestinians.
While these commentaries are worth considering in a certain political context, they are not related to the issue of a country's right to self-defense against aggression.

Many people oppose Israel's right to self-defense and security because they disagree with their right to exist. I do not support or oppose any country. It is up to a group of people to determine their sovereignty. The argument about 'stolen land' is fruitless. North Americans in Canada and the U.S. live on land that formerly belonged to aboriginal peoples. Nobody calls for the destruction of the U.S. or Canada. Nobody would justify the use of terrorism against residents and citizens in these countries. The Israelis are not going to get up and leave. They have just as much a right to the land they live on as the Palestinians have a right over the land in Gaza and the West Bank. The Palestinian refugees in Syria, Jordan and other Arab countries have to live there and are not awarded citizenship, land rights and self-rule. If people argue for Palestinian rights, they must accept Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state. This is in the spirit of political egalitarianism.

Nobody can change what happened sixty, two hundred or five thousand years ago. One can rectify certain situations. As for refugees, they exist on both sides. There were 850,000 Jewish refugees from former Arab colonies of the Ottoman Empire. Nobody argues that the land once occupied by the Ottomans, or the modern Turks, belongs to Turkey. The Arabs and other groups live there and the land belongs to them. If one accepts the existence of a country like Jordan or Egypt, one must accept Israel's right to exist. This anti-Zionist extremist sentiment has held up the peace process for decades. It inspires anti-Semitism and militancy. It gets in the way of creating democracy, peace and prosperity in the Palestinian territories.

Ahmadinejad claims to support the sovereignty of the Palestinian people. His denial of Israeli self-determination and the Holocaust indicate his level of anti-Semitism. He calls for the liquidation of Israel and has made direct threats against the state. The country of Iran funds militancy in Lebanon and Palestine. The U.N. has brought

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