LETTER: Hatred of Israel cause of Palestinians' suffering

SIR – Daniel Teegan’s letter (‘Barbaric killing of amputee,’ January 6th) makes an allegation which is not supported by credible evidence. If he has serious evidence, it should be passed to the Israel military, who are extremely diligent and strict in dealing with any ‘excessive’ use of force  (contrast that with the way the Palestinians turn their killers into ‘martyrs’).

As to his generalisation about Gaza and its suffering, Mr Teegan might do well to remember that, after years of Palestinian belligerence and violence against Israel (dating back to the 1920s) and after years of getting nowhere with peace talks, Israel, in 2005,  tried the route of a complete withdrawal from Gaza. 

In the process, it withdrew all the military and settlements and gave the Palestinians the gift of a huge and thriving horticultural industry (hundreds of greenhouses) which would have given employment to many of its people. 

In response, the Palestinians trashed all the greenhouses, destroyed the horticulture, elected the Hamas terrorists to rule them, killed or expelled all the moderate Palestinian leaders and bombarded Israel with rockets, which forced Israel and Egypt, in 2007, to impose a blockade.

This follows the Palestinians’ traditional hatred of Israel, which is the cause of their own suffering. The solution has always been in their hands, yet they always rejected it.  

They were offered a state by the Peel commission in 1937 (the ‘two-states’ solution) and refused. They were offered a state by the UN in 1947 and refused and, instead, joined the five Arab armies in attacking the fledging Jewish state.  

In 1967, Israel offered to return the territories in exchange for peace and this too they refused. Why? Because they do not want a state alongside Israel, but one in place of Israel.

The Palestinians do not need or deserve our sympathy. They can resolve their problems at any time. 

All they need to do is to abandon their belligerence and aggression and declare genuine peace with Israel. When they do that, they will have a state, peace and prosperity.

Sincerely,

Joshua Rowe,

Manchester,

United Kingdom.