A Functional Cease-Fire Needs Enforcement

The delayed response of the international community in the recent escalation of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is insufficient and should be unacceptable for an institution rooted in the establishment of peace. The United Nations has allowed Hamas-sponsored terrorism to fall upon Israel ever since the last cease-fire in 2005 without even speaking out against it. Over 1500 rockets have been fired into Israeli neighborhoods over the course of the past year, inciting little to no action from the general international community. Why didn’t the UN chief and the American Secretary of State rush over to try and stop the incessant firing of rockets earlier in the year? The neglect displayed towards Israel and its citizens by the common international institutions reflects a rapidly spreading and misleading ideology that has its roots in our own anti-Israel wing of the American political strongholds. These are individuals and groups that have always stood in the way of American support to Israel, and have always questioned our alliance. The rationale behind their rigid stance is that Israel provides no national interest to America to be receiving such generous aid. Conversely, they believe America’s strong association with Israel is injurious.  They claim our alliance is the single most significant reason why Islamist terrorist groups have threaten and attack America. Hence, the implied suggestion is that in order for us to have a safer America, we must abandon Israel, and ignore the real evil in the world.

            This group of people and this ideology is not invented to aid in the making of my argument; they are rather prevalent in the foreign policy circles. This ideology is best explained in John Mearsheimer’s book The Israel Lobby in which he writes,                                                                                         

"More important, saying that Israel and the US are united by a shared terrorist threat has the causal relationship backwards: the US has a terrorism problem in good part because it is so closely allied with Israel, not the other way around."

This is wrong on all accounts. Islamist terrorist organizations hate American values because they deem them to be threats to their ideal society guided by Sharia law, and not because of our alliance with Israel. The progression of this deceptive political theory puts Israel and America at risk.  If we abandon Israel in the face of evil we lose not only our ally, but we lose whatever hopes we have for peace in the Middle East.

            Hamas is a terrorist organization. America, as a friend of Israel and more importantly a friend of peace, should not compromise with terrorists. It is impossible to compromise with evil doers. What should we seek from them, less evil? If our ultimate goal is peace, how can we condone any shred of evil? It is imprudent to try and negotiate with a group committed to wiping out an entire nation of people; let alone expect to get something favorable in return from them. The cease-fire that was reached a day ago achieves very little. Hamas has a disdainful regard of the law, and they broke it minutes after it the truce was signed. More than a dozen rockets were fired into Israel from Gaza after the truce was agreed to. This cease-fire puts no pressure on Hamas to stop. The international community needs to enforce the cease-fire with stronger penalties if Hamas continues to bluntly violate the very things they agreed to refrain from doing. We should never expect to have peace if we are indulgent of any unprovoked violence against Israel.