In his editorial in last week’s edition of The Lawrentian, Saleh Hijazi declared his support for the Palestinians and their suicide bombings. His tribute is thoroughly ridiculous, and needs to be addressed.Their love of Palestine, asserts Hijazi, justifies and even glorifies the martyrs who blow themselves up in Israeli busses, pizzerias, and shopping malls, killing civilian innocents. Exactly what did they love about Palestine before the state of Israel came into existence? The Jews who migrated to what was then the Palestinian Mandate (which was not a sovereign state) arrived in a barren wasteland, purchased land from the Arabs, and created a thriving, democratic state between Arab dictatorships. Everything of value in Israel was created by Israelis, and only they have a right to live there.
Hijazi goes on to list a number a gruesome atrocities, all of which we are to assume the Israelis commit against Palestinians. This rant is a classic example of the Palestinian disinformation campaign, of which Yasser Arafat is the most prominent contributor. In English, Arafat tells the press that he is against suicide bombings and committed to ending them, only to speak to his people and call for “A million martyrs!”
Another, more blatant example of PLO lies was broadcasted March 31, 2002, on CNN, when anchor Arnand Naidoo interviewed chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat and Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Emanuel Nachson. Erekat screamed at Nachson, demanding an end to a siege of Arafat’s compound. When Nachson replied that there was no current siege at Arafat’s compound, Erekat screamed even louder to end the siege. Thankfully, CNN reporter Michael Holmes was at Arafat’s compound just then, and he reported that “There were no gun-battles. No Israeli soldiers blasting their way in. No tank shells.
The suicide bombers that Hijzazi honor and decorate are nothing more than terrorists motivated by their hatred of Western culture. Iran, the world’s biggest supporter of terrorism, was recently caught red-handed shipping $50 million worth of weapons to the PLO. Arab nations reward the families of suicide bombers with cash, and Saddam Hussein just increased the amount to the equivalent of $25,000 last week. The members of the PLO are neither heroic nor courageous, but embody the essence of militant Islam: the hatred of life.