Thursday, September 1, 2005
Images of Israelis wailing and protesting the evacuation of people from the Gaza Strip hit close to home for Zohar Ravid, Overland Park junior, who was born and raised on a kibbutz in Israel. Former classmates of his are in the Israeli army overseeing the pullout.
“One friend had to tell an older woman to move and she asked him to sit down and explain to her why he was doing this,” Zohar said. “My friend said ‘I have no choice, we have to do this.’”
On Aug. 15, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon ordered the Israeli army to have all Jewish settlers to leave their homes in the Gaza Strip and relocate peacefully within 48 hours. Sharon ordered the evacuation as a territorial compromise to Palestine.
For all Israelis abroad, the latest developments in Gaza continue to evoke strong feelings.
Ravid, who visits Israel every summer, was there a week before the evacuations began. He said the atmosphere throughout the country was intense. Popular opinion was almost evenly divided. Those who supported the pullout wore blue and those who were against it wore orange.
“Blue and orange were everywhere. The colors were on cars, buildings and clothing,” Ravid said. “The pull out was the only thing people could talk about.”
But Ravid said he supported the pullout because his friends in the Israeli army were trained to be peaceful and could not carry weapons during the process. The Israeli government worked to ensure that the settlers who were displaced did not encounter any financial losses.
“People were offered a house of similar value and a job offer in the places that they move,” Ravid said.
He said he agreed with the argument that because of security risks, it wasn’t worth it for Jewish settlers to remain in Gaza.
“The ball is now in Palestine’s court,” Ravid said.
But Kahlil Saad, Wichita senior and a Lebanese-American, said it was “ridiculous” to assume the Palestinian authority could take control immediately.
Saad said the evacuation was not about bringing stability to Gaza.
“Demographics are its biggest threat,” Saad said.
Saad is referring to comments Sharon made in a televised speech last week.
Sharon said that Israel could not hold on to Gaza because more than a million Palestinians live there and that the number doubles with each generation.
“The Israel government is actually setting up conditions contrary to that of a stable government,” Saad said. “Sharon wants to wash his hands from the responsibilities of the Gaza Strip but he is still required to protect basic human rights.”
But the withdrawal seems to be the first step in a long process for Palestinian stability in Gaza.
According to the CIA World Fact Book, the Gaza Strip has a population of 1,376,289, in an area that is little more than twice the size of Washington, D.C. Few natural resources add to the nation’s woes.
Saad said the evacuation actually defied provisions set forth by the Geneva Conventions by controlling economic development while neglecting to provide for the citizens’ welfare.
“Israel maintains control of water, sewage, telecommunications and electricity in Gaza,” Saad said. “But they also reserve the right to reinvade and continue to limit any sort of movement.”
In these conditions, factions such as Hamas rise to power. Hamas is a militant Islamist Palestinian organization that opposes the existence of Israel and favors the creation of an Islamic state in Palestine.
“A relative poverty and lack of opportunity for Palestinians in Gaza are one source of what seems to be the source of extremism and exclusivism in Gaza,” said Jonathan Boyarin, Jewish studies professor.
But Boyarin also stressed Palestinians “aren’t just a fanatical tribe.”
Boyarin urged understanding on all sides.
“Whatever the politics are, it seems a human imperative that the residents of Gaza be integrated into the region’s economy,” Boyarin said.
— Edited by Anne Burgard
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