Already Enough Problems with Terror

Recent press reports indicate that various Palestinian factions have been negotiating in an attempt to develop a unified strategy against Israel. The so-called "moderates," led by Yasser Arafat, wanted to limit future terror attacks to Israeli soldiers and to civilians living in settlements. The more radical groups, including Hamas and Islamic Jihad, disagreed with this idea, insisting on the right to kill Israelis anywhere they are found. The two sides could not agree on a joint policy and the talks broke down.

Also in the news was that the Palestinians, wanting to create a role model for girls, decided to name a school after a woman named Dalal Mughrabi. What did she do to gain this great honor? In 1978 she led a commando attack on a civilian bus, slaughtering 36 Israelis and an American, Gail Ruben, and was eventually killed herself. She was immediately glorified, and has since been honored in the names of schools and colleges. There have been TV documentaries about her, and she has been the subject of quiz shows, crossword puzzles and cultural programs.

The common thread between these two stories is the question: Who in their right mind could conceive of creating a Palestinian state when the only difference between the "moderates" and the "extremes" is the size of the killing field where Jews can be murdered, and where the ideal of a proper role model for young girls is someone who successfully slaughters 37 innocent people?

If a Palestinian state is ever to come into existence, it can only be when their schools stop teaching hatred of Jews from kindergarten up, when they stop glorifying violence and terror, and when they are willing and able to make the compromises for peace that Israel has already shown (at Camp David) that it is willing to make. Any attempt to prematurely set up such a state before these conditions are met will result in disaster and increased fighting, but on a vastly larger scale than occurs now.

Yasser Arafat promised at Oslo to renounce the use of terror and violence, to settle all differences with Israel through peaceful discussion, and to arrest and prosecute those who violated this pact. This solemn written agreement was ignored from day one, as terror and violence have continued unabated and the perpetrators remain at large.

If a state were to be set up under present conditions, then any promise made regarding demilitarization would similarly be quickly ignored and the new country, Palestine, would become an armed camp allied with Iraq and Iran, a haven for terror, and would soon be in possession of weapons of mass destruction. This is a sure-fire prescription for a major war, one that could easily spread, perhaps even involving nuclear weapons. Is there any reasonable person who doubts this scenario? Why would any thinking person push for the establishment of another terrorist state? Don't we have enough problems with terror already?