Israel's Disengagement Plan - Implications for Israel and the Middle East by Israel HighWay Staff

The April 2004 communiqué from the Prime Minister's office was stark: "The stalemate dictated by the current situation [with the Palestinians] is harmful. In order to break out of this stalemate, Israel is required to initiate moves not dependent on Palestinian cooperation."

After four years of fighting and no diplomatic movement on the peace process, Israel decided to take unilateral steps to disengage from Gaza and the northern West Bank. All Israeli presence - military and civilian - will be removed from these areas.

The disengagement plan has unleashed one of the most bitter and controversial domestic debates in Israel's history.

Some who support the plan argue that it contains a message to the Palestinians and the international community that Prime Minister Sharon is serious in his intention of achieving a two-state solution even at the high price of evacuating Jewish settlements. Other proponents of the plan cite a "demographic threat," explaining that in a matter of years there will be more Arabs than Jews between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River. If Israel doesn't act soon to divest itself of large Palestinian populations, they may demand Israeli citizenship, and if they were a majority, the Palestinians could overwhelm the Jewish state.

Other supporters of the disengagement simply wish to end Israel's domination over another people. Lastly, proponents argue that the disengagement plan will force Palestinian leadership to exploit this opportunity and demonstrate seriousness in their intent to implement the first stages of a peace process. After the death of Yasser Arafat, this possibility is viewed as a real possibility.

Opponents of the plan claim that Israel cannot "disengage" and surrender responsibility for the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. As long as Israel guards the perimeter of the Gaza Strip, and no one is permitted to enter or leave without inspection and approval, it will continue to be regarded by international law as responsible for the fate of the residents there.

The opponents cite the experience of the people of Sderot who endure daily bombardments from rockets emanating from the Gaza Strip. Sderot is an Israeli town inside pre-1967 Israel. The opponents argue that the same kind of attacks will continue against larger cities like Ashkelon after the disengagement. It is impossible to predict the ramifications of evacuating the northern part of the West Bank and whether a threat of rocket attacks against the populations centers of the State of Israel will result.

Opponents insist that after Israel's unilateral withdrawal, which will be heralded by the Palestinians as Israel fleeing under fire, terrorists everywhere will get the message that "terrorism works."

Lastly, but importantly, over 8,000 Jews will have to leave their homes, some of them third generation residents. They see no concessions on the part of the Palestinians that justify Israel's territorial sacrifice. They argue that decades of their lives' mission of hityashvut - settling the land at the Israeli government's behest - is being destroyed.

Additional Reading:
Prime Minister Sharon's Four-Stage Disengagement Plan (May 2004) (Ha'aretz)
The Unilateral Withdrawal: A Security Error of Historical Magnitude by Yaakov Amidror
The Disengagement Plan: Political and Security Ramifications by Shlomo Brom

Recently, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's Disengagement Plan was approved by the Knesset. The plan calls for the evacuation of Jews living in Gaza and small sections of Judea and Samaria. The IDF will withdraw from these areas, as well.

Both students and teachers at Ramaz have mixed feeling on the subject of disengagement.

Atira Kaplan '05 spends every summer in Ofra, a town in Judea. She vehemently opposes Sharon's plan. "Giving away land will not lead to peace," she said. "The Arabs are not interested in compromising."

"Think about all the Jews who will be uprooted from their homes." Kaplan said that her friends in Ofra "are frightened of being expelled from their homes."

Some students agree with Sharon regarding disengagement. "If military analysts say disengagement is the right thing to do, it must be strategically smart," Ariel Fisher '06 said.

"Israel isn't making money in Gaza, and they're losing lives. Therefore," he said, "it's logical to pull out. It doesn't make sense to have 8,000 Jews surrounded by a million Arabs."

Adam Weiler '05 is unsure of his position on disengagement. "Basically, I have no opinion," he said jokingly. "I don't believe it will bring peace, but I think it will bring some measure of security."

Ms. Barak, chair of the Hebrew department, said that the disengagement is happening "37 years too late." (Thirty-seven years ago, Israel appropriated the land it plans to withdraw from in the Six-Day War.)

"Our occupation of Gaza has caused the loss of many lives, and a rise in violence in Israel," Ms. Barak said. "It has detracted from human rights and lowered our morality as a nation. I only hope that the disengagement is the first step towards a withdrawal from all the territories."

Rabbi Weiser, who teaches Zionism to the senior class, has mixed feelings on this subject. "I think it's a temporary fix," he said. "No one is really happy with it except for the extreme left. Even the center is heartbroken."

However, he did say that he believes that "Ariel Sharon has the good of the Jewish people at heart." Citing the Israeli Prime Minister's history of strong support for settlements, Rabbi Weiser said that "despite what Sharon preached, real politik is the real solution."

Regardless of one's personal feelings on the Disengagement Plan, Rabbi Weiser said that "we should trust the Israeli government; they have our best interests at heart." (RamPage - Ramaz)

FM Silvan Shalom Addresses the UN Special Session to Mark the 60th Anniversary of the Liberation of the Concentration Camps

By convening here today in this historic special session, we honour the victims, we pay respect to the survivors, and we pay tribute to the liberators. We convene here today for those who remember, for those who have forgotten, and for those who do not know. But we also convene to remember that the Charter of this United Nations, like Israel's Declaration of Independence, is written in the blood of the victims of the Holocaust. And we convene today to recommit ourselves to the noble principles, on which this organization was founded.

Such an affirmation is needed today, more than ever. The past decade has witnessed a chilling increase in attempts to deny the very fact of the Holocaust. Unbelievable as it seems, there are those who would delete from history, six million murders.

Could anything be worse than to systematically destroy a people, to take the proud Jewish citizens of Vienna, Frankfurt and Vilna and even Tunisia and Libya, to burn their holy books, to steal their dignity, their hair, their teeth; to turn them into numbers, to soap, to the ashes of Treblinka and Dachau? The answer is yes, there is something worse: To do all this and then deny it. To do all this and then take from the victims - and their children and grandchildren - the legitimacy of their grief.

To deny the Holocaust is not only to desecrate the victims and abuse the survivors. It is also to deprive the world of its lessons - lessons which are as crucial today, as they were 60 years ago. (Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs)

Sharon: World Didn't Lift a Finger to Stop the Holocaust

In a speech marking the 60th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said Wednesday that the world "didn't lift a finger" to stop the Holocaust. Sharon said Jews learned a lesson from the genocide that they can only rely on themselves. In unusually harsh remarks to parliament, the prime minister noted that when the Nazis began deporting Jews from Hungary to Auschwitz in large numbers in 1944, Allied forces did not bomb the railroad tracks leading to the death camp in Nazi-occupied Poland. (Ha'aretz)

U.S. Rejoins Mideast Peace Quest

After four years of keeping its distance, the U.S. is jumping back in to the Middle East peace process. Envoy William Burns will visit Israel, the West Bank and Gaza this week in a new U.S. effort to revive the road map peace plan. It's an opportune time. The new Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas is close to securing a truce with Islamic militant groups, and Israel says it, too, is ready for a cease-fire. (CBS News)

Abbas: Talks with Israel are 'Promising in All Aspects' by Amos Harel, Aluf Benn and Arnon Regular

After a day of diplomatic and security talks between Israeli and Palestinian Authority officials, Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas said that the contacts were "promising in all aspects." Breaking a freeze in diplomatic contacts, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's senior advisor Dov Weisglass met Wednesday with PA Minister Saeb Erekat to discuss the transfer of four West Bank cities to Palestinian security control. During the first phase, to be implemented within a few weeks, security control of Ramallah, Jericho, Qalqilyah, and Tul Karm will be handed to Palestinian security forces. (Ha'aretz)

Congressmen Visit Sri Lanka and Discover Israeli Aid Project by Representatives Steve Israel and Joseph Crowley

Steve Israel (pictured, right) During a trip to Sri Lanka to survey the tsunami damage, one of the most unforgettable moments of the trip came when we discovered an Israeli relief center. It was nice seeing firsthand what is rarely reported, the humanitarian relief efforts of the Israeli people. The moment is another reflection of the humanity that inevitably arises from every great human catastrophe. Political, geographical, and ethnic differences disappear. Controversies recede.

Joseph Crowley (pictured, left): The Magen David Adom - the "Israeli Red Cross" - and Israeli humanitarian groups are feeding over 1,000 kids a day by giving formula to the mothers and youngsters. Every day the volunteers provide recreation for the kids, some of whom have lost their parents.

After what was an emotionally draining day of visiting miles and miles of devastation and seeing so many people who are now left with nothing, seeing these volunteers from MDA really revved our spirits.

The face of Israel in our press is always the issues of the West Bank and Gaza, and Israel's fight against terrorism. What people don't see is that the country of Israel, the Middle East's only true democracy, the only country in the region where Arabs, Jews, Christians, and others have equal rights, is a responsible, valuable, and compassionate world citizen which can show compassion as well as strength to help those in the region and developing world. (Israel HighWay)

See also: Israel's Relief Efforts in Southeast Asia by Robert Klein (The Jewish Agency for Israel)

An Israeli born-actress who studied at Hebrew University and a British director who spent time in a Zionist youth movement headed this year’s list of Jewish Oscar nominees. In addition to Natalie Portman and Mike Leigh, screenwriter Charlie Kaufman also received a nod.

And a short documentary about Sister Rose Thering, a Roman Catholic nun who has devoted her life to fighting anti-Semitism, won a nomination as well.

The diminutive Portman, born in Jerusalem and the granddaughter of Holocaust survivors, was nominated for best supporting actress for her role in “Closer.”

Leigh, best known for his penetrating working-class dramas, was nominated for directing “Vera Drake.” He was a longtime member of Habonim, a labor Zionist youth movement, and has spoken fondly of his time there.

Kaufman was nominated in the best original screenplay category for the romantic comedy “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.” His most notable past credits include “Being John Malkovich” and “Adaptation.”

"Sister Rose's Passion," a short film by Oren Jacoby and Steve Kalafer, is about the life and work of the nun, a professor emerita at New Jersey's Seton Hall University, where she helped establish the school's graduate department of Jewish-Christian studies. Thering, who went to Israel more than 30 times, was a strong and vocal supporter of the Jewish state. (JTA)

Students Find Mideast Trip 'Eye-Opening' by Megan Hawkins

It's been tough for Drew Gulley and Sophia Magill to return to American college life this month.

For nine days during winter break, the student body presidents from Drake University and Iowa State University debated with Israelis and Palestinians about ongoing political clashes. They floated in the Dead Sea, attended Jewish religious services in Jerusalem, and met Middle East political leaders.

"It was really an eye-opening experience," said Gulley, 21, a senior English major from Downers Grove, Ill. "We were able to experience this part of the world through the eyes of its people." (DesMoinesRegister)

Health Initiatives Can Help Peace Building in The Middle East

An article published online by The Lancet on Tuesday, January 25, describes how health initiatives have led to Arab and Israeli cooperation in the Middle East. Harvey Skinner (University of Toronto, Canada) and colleagues outline the work of the Canada International Scientific Exchange Program (CISEPO), which has successfully fostered collaborative work in the region involving Israeli, Jordanian and Palestinian health professionals since 1995. In its first initiative CISEPO identified hearing loss as an important health issue for the region and helped broker the creation of the Middle East Association for Managing Hearing Loss (MEHA)-the first joint Arab and Israeli professional association.

The cross-border project led to Palestinian and Israeli basic science research programs between Bethlehem University and Tel Aviv University in the genetics of hearing loss, and generated joint-publications. From this followed a project to screen and habilitate 17 000 Israeli, Jordanian and Palestinian newborns for hearing loss. (Medical News Today)

Israeli Humanitarians Tour Canadian Campuses by Sheri Shefa

Representatives from Israeli humanitarian groups were in Toronto last week to raise awareness and funds for people in need. The members of IsraAID, the Israel Forum for International Humanitarian Aid, spoke to students at Ryerson University, University of Toronto and York University as part of their cross-Canada tour of university campuses. IsraAID is a co-ordinating body of Israeli and Jewish non-governmental organizations (NGOs), as well as other groups based in Israel, that are active in development and relief work. (The Canadian Jewish News)

Joint Israel-Jordan Biological Field Survey Launched by Judy Siegel-Itzkovich

Scientists from Israel and Jordan began the first joint biological field survey on both sides of the border in the Dead Sea region on Monday. The two-day survey – the first of its kind in the Middle East – inaugurates field-level activities of the Bridging the Rift (BTR) project.

The scientists launched the first phase of a long-term study of the biology of the region, together with US scientists from Stanford, Cornell and Harvard universities. (The Jerusalem Post)

Three Palestinian Children Transferred to Israeli Hospitals by Tsahar Rotem

Three children, two of them babies, were transferred from Shifa Hospital in the Gaza Strip to the children's hospital in Sheba Medical Center over the weekend. A special Magen David Adom vehicle equipped with an incubator transferred a week-old baby and a 9-day-old baby from the Erez Crossing to the hospital. Both babies suffer from heart malfunctions and are awaiting heart surgery. (Ha'aretz)

Students Connect With Israeli Heritage by Jacqueline Brill

Colin Sutker spent the worst night of his life during his winter excursion to Israel. He was sick and stuck sleeping in a tent shared by 200 people while touring the Negev Desert.

He wasn't ready to pack his bags, though. Instead the experience made him realize how significant this adventure was for him.

Sutker, along with 35 UNC students and several more from other colleges around the state, traveled to Israel for 10 days over Winter Break with the Birthright Israel program, which sent them halfway across the world at nearly no cost. (Daily Tar Heel Online)

IDF Soldiers Join Birthright Trip by Yechiel Gati

Hundreds of soldiers from dozens of different units gathered at the Museum of the Jewish Diaspora to participate in this year`s Birthright Israel trip.

Winter 2005 saw a great rise in Birthright visitors from America and several countries from Europe. Israeli soldiers and officers, who met with the participants, were first given a three hour tour of the Museum of the Jewish Diaspora where we learned about Jewish history, Jewish thinkers throughout the exile and in the Jewish Homeland.

The following day, soldiers were assigned to different groups from various countries. As an American fluent in Hebrew and English, I was chosen to join an American group of mostly college students. I knew I would be able to identify very well with the American mentality and ideals. (The Jewish Press)

Shalom From Israel: Virginia U Student Shares His Winter Break Travel Experiences by Daniel Crane

Two weeks ago, 18 university students and I traveled to Israel with students from the University of Miami on the free "birthright israel" program offered by Hillel, the Foundation for Jewish Campus Life. My expectations of bonding with Jewish students and being introduced to the Holy Land were far exceeded in the 11 days that we spent in Israel. For those of you who haven't been there, let me give you a small taste of the land we were able to sample. (The Cavalier Daily)

Allyson Gordon to Play Soccer in Israel

Allyson Gordon, a junior at North Shore High School, has been chosen for the United States Maccabiah Jr. Girls Soccer Team that will compete at the 17th World Maccabiah Games to be held in Israel from July 11-21. (Record-Pilot)

Israeli Rockers

Emok are a hard-hitting, precedent-breaking three piece whose members all originally hail from Israel, currently residing in Brooklyn. Their debut album Shove Your Head into the Ground and Feed It to the Earth will be released on Wrong Records later this Winter. Israeli expatriates produce pounding, raging music that at times reminds one of a heavier Jane's Addiction, but should be very pleasing to any Rage Against The Machine fan. (Heavy Metal Music)

Israeli Music Goes International by Yehoshua Sagi

Idan Raichel came up out of the depths to conquer America. Raichel and his dreadlocks are a success story in the U.S. Along with his five musicians, some of whom are immigrants from Ethiopia, he has already held one round of concerts in America, and has now been invited back for another tour for next month's Black Heritage Month. (Ha'aretz)

Israeli Ice Hockey Makes Tracks by Leora Eren Frucht

It could be a rink anywhere in North America. The kids, in their hockey gear, scramble onto the ice and begin practice. They've got a former NHL coach training them. And the jersey of legendary Montreal Canadiens captain Jean Beliveau is on display in the rafters.

But this is not Montreal, New York or Philadelphia. These players speak Hebrew and their uniforms bear a Star of David.

Meet Israel's junior national ice hockey team - the only team from the Middle East that competes in the International Ice Hockey Federation World Championship.

They practice three times a week in Metulla, the northernmost town in Israel, straddling the Lebanese border. Why Metulla? Because this is the site of the Canada Center, Israel's only Olympic-sized skating rink and sports complex (built courtesy of Canadian Jewry). (Israel21c)

A World Without Israel by Josef Joffe

Since World War II, no state has suffered so cruel a reversal of fortunes as Israel. Admired all the way into the 1970s as the state of "those plucky Jews" who survived against all odds and made democracy and the desert bloom in a climate hostile to both liberty and greenery, Israel has become the target of creeping delegitimization. The denigration comes in two guises. (FrontPage Magazine)

Thoughts on Jerusalem by Daniel P. Rubenstein

The Middle East dominates American foreign policy discussion. Despite the University of Texas' suspension of study abroad programs to Israel, I am spending my junior year at the Middle East's best university, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Surely there is no better way to study the Middle East than to actually be in this fascinating region. I do not equate being in Israel with being in harm's way. I feel safe here. Because of soldier-citizens like my roommate, Israel remains vigilant against external and internal threats while continuing to thrive as an open and democratic society. Rubenstein is a Middle Eastern studies junior. (The Daily Texan)

For Israel, the Wounds of the Holocaust Remain Fresh by Ravi Nessman

Though it ended six decades ago, the Holocaust remains a fresh trauma in Israel, a tragedy that darkens Israeli society and forms an integral part of the national identity.

Thousands of Israeli high school pupils make annual pilgrimages to Auschwitz and other Nazi death camps to forge a personal link to the murder of 6 million Jews. Visiting foreign leaders are routinely brought to Israel's Holocaust memorial to directly confront the dimensions of the nightmare. (SFGate)

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