I was deeply disturbed by the editorial cartoon and letters published this week. While I agree Israel’s action is a legitimate act of self-defense, Israel should not be portrayed as a victim.
Israel has been blockading Gaza since the election of Hamas in 2006, trying to starve the Palestinian population of Gaza into submission.
Israeli security officials have been spoiling for a fight since losing their campaign against Hezbollah in 2006. Hamas is no angel, either; their missile attacks against Israel provoked this conflict.
This year, nearly a dozen Israelis have been killed by missiles fired by Hamas. Since the Gaza war began, several hundred Palestinian civilians have been killed by Israeli airstrikes and assaults.
Jason Bernstein’s letter, Israel makes effort to minimize casualties (SN 1/13) is a litany of excuses but the arithmetic is simple: hundreds of civilian deaths demonstrate neither care nor caution.
Daniel Kuhn’s (Term ‘genocide’ should not be thrown around SN 1/12) recommendation for the U.S. to play Palestinian kingmaker is a failed policy — the same one that propped up Yasser Arafat.
He also exaggerates the Hamas missile strikes — their missiles are crude and ineffective. They take no expertise to construct or launch and are very inaccurate.
Hamas values them to create an environment of fear and inflict some small measure of insecurity the Palestinians live with.
Also, (the editorial cartoon on 1/13) ignored the reality of the military situation. Israel invaded the Gaza Strip and has absolute land, air and sea superiority over the Palestinians in Gaza. The picture of a single, meek soldier with a woman and child is a gross mis-characterization.
Your cartoon implies that global anti-Semitism is the chief motivator for opposition to Israel. This is dead wrong.
It waves the bloody shirt and presupposes that anyone who opposes Israel is anti-Semitic. Many nations around the world oppose the Israeli policy of occupation of Palestinian territories, not Israelis as Jews.
Had your cartoon chosen to show the Palestinians being attacked and killed with Israeli missiles, the picture would have been a lot more crowded.
No side should be viewed as the exclusive victim in this miserable war. Rather, we should pity that the Palestinians and Israelis are locked in this recurring cycle of violence.
With the division of Palestinian territories between the Fatah-controlled West Bank and Hamas-controlled Gaza, the prospects of any real peace are dimmer than ever.
Adam Wagner
international relations senior
Support student media! Please consider donating to The State News and help fund the future of journalism.
