Israel Matzav

A real plan for peace between Israel and the 'Palestinians'

“Actually, most of the Palestinians are angry with and hate their Arab 'brothers' more than they are angry with or hate the Jews. I have never heard about a Palestinian woman dying of cancer and one of the neighboring Arab countries, Lebanon for example, helping her. But I’ve heard of plenty of cases where hospitals in Israel have offered help,” said Mudar Zahran, 39, a lecturer and publicist — and a Palestinian blogger — in an interview with Israel Hayom. Zahran participated in an international seminar on new media and public diplomacy given by the Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs Ministry this week.

One might have expected such statements to come from a Jewish Israeli right-winger, not necessarily an extremist. But anyone who knows Zahran and attended the seminar, which was held in cooperation with the Ariel University Center of Samaria (which offers advanced studies in new media toward a bachelor's degree) was not at all surprised. This is not the first time Zahran has judged Israel favorably while speaking against the Arab states when it comes to the Palestinian question (just ask Jordan, which he accuses of practicing apartheid in one of his essays).

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Q. In other words, many Palestinians will never dare to express similar opinions in public?

“True. Among other reasons, I came to Ariel to state clearly that the settlements are legitimate. The more Israelis delegitimize the settlements, the more they’ll complicate the situation and harm more Palestinians. You, the Israelis, need to wake up and realize that most of the Palestinians in east Jerusalem, for example, want you to stay. I know polls that show that 70 percent of the residents want that. I felt it was my duty as a Palestinian to speak the truth, to present the Palestinians and to represent them. I hope I’ll succeed in changing the situation.”

During the seminar in Ariel, Zahran listened with an open mind to both sides of the Jewish-Palestinian conflict. He spoke about difficult moments at the checkpoints and the procedure that Palestinians must undergo to enter Israel. On the other hand, he says, “Every country on earth would do the same to protect its citizens if it were living under the threat of terrorism. The extremists within the Palestinian people are the ones who caused it.”

Zahran describes himself as a religious Muslim. Although his parents wanted to give him a different kind of education, he grew up in a community with an atmosphere of hatred toward Israelis and, of course, toward Jews. “My parents had different opinions,” says Zahran, setting them apart from other Palestinians and continuing in that direction.

“Usually, in reality, most of the Palestinians feel hatred toward Arabs more than they do toward Jews. We suffer because of our Arab brothers, but we are also dependent on them. It’s a bizarre situation because the Arab countries don’t really care what happens to the Palestinian people.”

He adds, “The only assistance that we have ever received from any country was from the ‘Zionist enemy.’ We really have no other options. It’s not that I’m a Zionist. I care about Israel for selfish reasons, but how long are we going to fight against the only nation that helps us?” Of course, he does not understand the Israelis who oppose the settlements, because in his words, “They’re just encouraging the terrorist groups indirectly. They’re giving legitimacy to Hamas.” Zahran, who deplores the lack of good education and good leadership among the Palestinians, is certain that only cooperation with Israel can help. “Nothing can be done without Israel’s assistance,” he says again.

Labels: Israel is a Jewish state, Palestinian state RIGHT NOW syndrome, Palestinians, two-state solution

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 11:37 AM