Commentary
As the world views the horrifying images of the war against Israel, false and misleading claims about the Middle East are multiplying. I discuss 11 of these here.
Overview: The two Palestinian entities are Gaza, which is ruled by Hamas, and the West Bank, which is ruled by the Palestinian Authority. Both seek to destroy Israel.
Falsehood 1: The Biden Administration Is a Friend of Israel
The Biden administration hasn’t enforced the Iranian sanctions laws. As a result, Iran, which was broke in 2020, had its oil revenue grow to $54 billion in 2022 from $8 billion in 2019, or about a billion dollars per week, allowing this horror and scores of attacks on American soldiers.Because of this and other concessions, Iran, which provides most of the funding for Hamas as well as substantial military training, is now a financial powerhouse. It’s already selling drones to Russia, thereby putting Americans on both sides of the Ukraine war, and soon will be selling ballistic missiles.
The Biden administration waived terrorism status to provide aid to Gaza. President Joe Biden has been attempting to delay the Israeli response, providing Hamas with precious time.
President Biden refused to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House and, through providing funding to Palestinians, may have violated the Taylor Force Act, a law that prohibits funding “pay for slay,” that is, providing lifetime pensions to Palestinian murderers of Jews.
Falsehood 2: ‘Humanitarian’ Aid Is Separate From Military Aid
Money is “fungible,” meaning that the result of donating “restricted” funds is that other funds will be freed up. Of course, Hamas will steal anything sent into Gaza. However, it’s completely irrelevant if the trucks provide any civilian supplies, such as food or medicines. These supplies would free up funds used to kill Jews, therefore Hamas and its allies should pay, not Israel. The rapist shouldn’t expect the victim to cover his costs.Falsehood 3: The Sickening Response of the Western Left Is Incomprehensible
It’s comprehensible. Albert Einstein purportedly said the strongest force in the universe is compound interest. The decades-long spread of leftist ideology, including moral relativism, has accumulated, much as cancer does.Falsehood 4: The Palestinians Want Peace
The Gazans themselves elected Hamas, widely support it, and hate Israel, Jews, and the United States. They aren’t innocent victims.
Speeches of Palestinian leaders are regularly translated directly into English. They demonstrate conclusively that nothing will satisfy the Palestinians except the complete destruction of Israel.
Israel transferred the Sinai Desert to Egypt. The Palestinians have been offered a state with exceptionally generous terms many times. They refused and made war against Israel.
In 2005, Israel removed its 8,000 citizens from their homes in Gaza. Hamas then launched thousands of rockets.
Falsehood 5: Israel Stole the Land
After World War I, the League of Nations divided the Ottoman Empire, utilizing legally mandated resolutions called “Mandates.” They created new countries, such as Syria and Lebanon. If Israel is illegitimate, all the other states in the area are also.The United Nations, successor to the League of Nations, preserved intact all rights granted to Jews under this Mandate.
There have been three Jewish states in history: ancient Israel, modern Israel, and Judah (Judea), from which the name “Jews” comes. This is corroborated by reliable Roman historians, DNA evidence, and archeological discoveries. There has been a continuous presence of Jews since Roman times.
There has never been a Palestinian state—Palestine is a geographical region, not a state. The current Palestinians living in the area, except for the Bedouins, are descended from citizens of Arab countries such as Egypt and have no unique culture or language.
During and after the original 1948 war, about 800,000 Jews were expelled from Arab lands. As a result, more than half of the Israeli population is of Middle Eastern ancestry itself, so Israel is not a “white” nation.
Falsehood 6: Israel Occupies Palestine
There’s no occupation: the control of another country. Palestine isn’t a country, Gaza has no Jews, and the West Bank is disputed territory.In any event, 98 percent of the Palestinians are under the jurisdiction of Gaza or the Palestinian Authority.
Falsehood 7: Israel Overreacts
To “overreact” is to use more force than is necessary. Since attacks on modern Israel have been going on for three-quarters of a century, there’s no overreaction.Israel has the lowest ratio of civilian to military casualties in history. It provides notice to its enemies through social media posts and leaflets dropped from aircraft. Ironically, Israel, as of this writing, has encouraged Gazan evacuation, but Hamas is resisting, and the Arab countries of Egypt and Jordan don’t want them.
Falsehood 8: Israel Practices Apartheid
Apartheid means extensive segregation and the denial of civil liberties. Israeli Arabs are wealthier, healthier, and more educated than most non-Israeli Arabs and are more represented in the government.Falsehood 9: The UN Can Help
The U.N. is worse than useless. Approximately one in a thousand people in the world are Israeli citizens, yet the number of resolutions against Israel alone is equal to those of all other countries combined.Falsehood 10: Israel Is a Bad Investment
Israel recycles the $3.5 billion-plus in aid it receives by purchasing weapons from the United States. It provides valuable intelligence. Israel is a powerhouse of military and technological innovation and conducts extensive tests of our armaments.Falsehood 11: This Conflict is Unique to Israel.
Muslims have had major conflicts with Christians, Buddhists, and Europeans throughout history, including alliances with the Germans in both world wars. These happened before the modern state of Israel existed.In closing, I’ve written in further detail on Israel and Palestine in the following Epoch Times articles: “The Palestinian War Against Israel” and “Anti-Semitism—The Bigotry Whose Form Changes, but Whose Essence Doesn’t.”
Views expressed in this article are opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
