The former head of the
Mossad, Meir Dagan, has argued that it is feasible to relinquish the
Jordan Valley, which in his opinion has no security value. In the same
breath he also explains why the Palestinians cannot be trusted because
they do not customarily honor agreements -- quite the contradiction.
Other former senior
officials have preached to us over the years that we can give up the
Golan Heights, that we can live with a nuclear Iran and that a unified
Jerusalem is of no national importance.
Dagan, the man who for
years succeeded with his own bare hands, under the command of Ariel
Sharon, to obliterate the terrorist threat from the Gaza Strip, has
grown weary. He belongs to a small group of generals and Mossad and Shin
Bet chiefs, all retired, who have decided to sell the public an
illusion of peace and have begun a fear campaign that warns against
Israel becoming a binational state. They are only ignoring the two
million additional Palestinians, who will settle in the new state they
yearn to create.
Hassidic Jews tell the
tale of a fox that beckoned a white dove to come down from the tree, to
walk together hand in hand because the Messiah had arrived, and with him
the long-awaited peace. Suddenly there was a loud bark and the fox
scurried away. After a few minutes the fox returned and again asked the
dove to come down to him. The dove asked him why he ran at the sound of
the bark, and the fox answered that the barkers had not heard that the
Messiah had come and that peace was upon the world. What can we do when
our neighbors have not yet heard that peace is at the gate, and they
continue to incite against Israel and its people.
It's easy to understand
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, who is propagating the optimistic
atmosphere of an imminent peace agreement. After all, he is a guest in
the Middle East and will learn the hard and agonizing way of the manners
of conduct in our region. I cannot understand senior Israeli officials,
who stood at the forefront of the battle against terrorism and Arab
armies, people who are supposed to know how to read the geo-political
map, yet incessantly tell us that if we would only give up and retreat,
our enemies would become our friends, side by side in peace and harmony.
Modern Zionism is an
impressive movement, the most successful and just of the 20th century. A
small group of dreamers and visionaries led to the redemption of a
people in their homeland after an extended and tumultuous exile. The
path toward redemption was arduous, painful and demanded immense
sacrifice of life and spirit. Many of those first immigrants could not
shoulder the weight, became tired and returned to their countries of
origin. But the few who did persevere continued to dig, layer after
layer, until they reached the pristine water that cultivates the root of
our Jewish consciousness. Those who dreamed realized that dream, and
those who grew tired -- remained with their loss.
The Jewish people
throughout its existence have proven an extraordinary resoluteness. The
Apostle Paul, Saint Augustine, the Prophet Muhammad, Martin Luther and
many others believed it would be possible to convert the Jews, and each
failed. After each failure they became protagonists of anti-Semitism.
Jewish mothers, fathers and children, with their supreme heroism, were
prepared to pay any price to continue living as Jews. Only after finally
returning to our homeland did we find among us those who are impatient
and have lost their self-confidence.
The strength of any leadership
and its ability to fight for justice depend on the steadfastness of the
public. Knowing many Israelis, I can say with confidence that the
Israeli government can stand fast when insisting on our national rights
and security. These former senior officials cannot be allowed to
intimidate a smart, wise and strong people.
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