A few brave people are calling for peace in the Middle East, but will anyone heed their call? Every day, more people are dying. The toll is more than 1000 Palestinians and 200 Israelis. Several hundred children (mostly on the Palestinian side) have been the tragic victims of this violence, as well. I know several people (myself included) who are so distraught about the daily violence on the news that they can no longer bear to watch the disintegration of the land holy to the three Abrahamic faiths-Islam, Christianity and Judaism. However, there is a solution out there that can help solve the madness and end the bloodshed, enmity, and violence that have thrived in the area since 1947.
It is simple-international law must be heeded. Israel can no longer live in defiance of the rest of the world.
The end of violence will come once the Palestinians (who are Muslim and Christian, for those who think this is solely a Muslim-Jewish issue, it is not. It is an issue of human rights and respect for people.) are no longer humiliated, discriminated against and killed. By total compliance with the United Nations resolutions, peace can be achieved. The land that Israel has occupied after the 1967 war (which is called the Occupied Palestinian Territories-West Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem) needs to be given back to the Palestinian people. This military occupation is the longest-running one in modern history. Not only is the occupation oppressive, it is also illegal. U.N. Security Council Resolution 242 told Israel to withdraw from the OPT, since under the 4th Geneva Convention this occupation has been rendered illegal. Instead of complying, Israel has been building settlements within the territories that have interrupted the contiguity of the land and effectively split up lands that should be Palestinian according to international law. These settlements are supported by separate roads, which Palestinians are not allowed to use, and are heavily guarded by troops. These settlements are also illegal according to international law. U.N. Resolution 446 called the policy illegal and an obstruction to lasting peace in the Middle East, and U.N. Resolution 465 declared the Israeli policy of settlement building a flagrant violation of the 4th Geneva Convention.
In addition, the right to return of Palestinian refugees must be granted. These people have been expelled from their homes without apology or recompense, and this situation must be rectified. Once again, this has been spelled out in the international arena. U.N. Resolution 194 affirmed the right of Palestinian refugees to return to their land or be compensated for their loss.
Israel has repeatedly flouted U.N. resolutions, which needs to end. Just as no person is above the law, no nation should be above international law. When Israel finally complies with the United Nations and returns all of the OPT to the Palestinians to form a Palestinian state, guarantees the right to return of Palestinian refugees and dismantles the illegal settlements, then lasting peace will be achieved in the Middle East for Christians, Muslims and Jews.
The first steps to this peace, though, must come now. Both sides need to cease the violence. Israel needs to stop its attack on the Occupied Territories and its grave violations of human rights, which include firing on ambulances and religious sites of worship such as churches and mosques, extrajudicial killings and the killing of civilians. The suicide bombings by Palestinians also must end. These horrific attacks on civilians are not justifiable. A climate of respect for human rights and human dignity must be fostered on both sides.
The international community has a part to play, as well. Bravo to Bush for finally stepping in and telling Sharon to withdraw from the Occupied Territories and for the recent U.S. vote supporting the creation of a Palestinian state. As the strongest and most influential nation in the world, the United States has a key role to play. For far too long we have been too one-sided in our support. While the rest of the world has come to see, sympathize and support the Palestinian point of view, we are only recently making steps in that direction. Both the Palestinians and Israelis have come to see violence as the only solution, but the international community, led by the United States, can and should step in and implement a peaceful solution that is fair and just.
The brave voices calling for peace, such as Women in Black and Not in My Name, need to be joined by a chorus of other voices from within America. When we say to our leaders that we no longer want our tax money going to kill innocent Palestinian children and civilians (since Israel’s military, which is guilty of scores of human rights abuses, is funded and supplied primarily by U.S. tax dollars) and that we want peace, perhaps then, peace can be achieved. Islam, Christianity and Judaism all have sites of significance within the Holy Land, and people of all three faiths need to be respected and allowed to live in peace.
Lubna Alam is a junior studying history.
