Sderot is a modest town in Israel, one mile from the Gaza border. A good many of its citizens are in fact immigrants expelled from the Arab countries of North Africa and the Middle East.
So far, for just this year from January 1, 2008, Sderot has been bombarded with over 500 Qassam rockets fired indiscriminately from Gaza at its civilian population. Children have been blown apart, with most families remaining in the town who cannot afford to move out of range of this never-ending devastation.
How would San Diego react to missiles from Tijuana? How would Seoul react to missiles from its nearby border with North Korea? No country committed to protecting its citizens would tolerate this inhumane barrage for one day never mind the 2650 days that has been Sderot’s nightmare.
Yet Israel largely bites its lip and bides its time in a macabre exercise of absurd patience and restraint.
WHY? Why indeed.
Because the international community complains of the cycle of violence, whines about disproportional responses, twists the clear evidence and views Israel as the aggressor and Gaza and its Hamas handlers as the victims.
The West threatens sanctions if Israel strongly responds in effective self defense.
So Israel waits, waits for a lessening of the rocket attacks or for more support and understanding from the West, neither of which are forthcoming.
The solution is far simpler than we imagine, than we care to contemplate.
One bomb for one rocket. An inviolate formula. Israel promises to deliver within 24 hours of receiving each Qassam rocket from Gaza, a reply of a single targeted bomb aimed at political (dual use) and military installations of Hamas, Islamic Jihad and their multifarious allies.
One for One – exactly, irrefutably, always.
The Israeli military press office then publishes with worldwide transparency a daily report:
Today Israel was subject to # missiles from Gaza, the times and locations of each being accurately listed.
Furthermore, today Israel responded with exactly # retaliatory bombs, again giving each time and destination thereof in Gaza. This press release reconfirms that the missiles from Gaza were fired indiscriminately at civilian targets. Israel further holds the Hamas government accountable.
The Gazan citizens, the Western and Arab Worlds and the media knowingly or otherwise conflate and obscure the issues. They all insist, disingenuously, that
- it's a continuing cycle of violence
- both Israel and Hamas are equally responsible
- Hamas is the victim and Gaza the downtrodden
- Israel initiates responses disproportionately
One for One
Israel can simply, once and for all, publicly and openly break this cycle, attribute responsibility, invest in clarity, expose the true victimhood and respond proportionately. It can and it must produce, advertise and act according to an inviolate formula, one bomb for one rocket, every day, immediately, always.
They will thereby reeducate the population of Gaza and the world media in a way that has been obfuscated to date. The new reality will be obvious, clear and irrefutable. This will lead inevitably to new linkages, new solutions.
The intended solutions are reasonable negotiations, meaningful agreements.
These can only come about when
- Hamas agrees to Israel’s right to exist, when
- women and children are not specifically targeted and when
- agreements are honored.
Any and all negotiations and agreements without the above three basic preconditions will obviously be irrelevant.
But Hamas won’t and never did entertain any of these three minimal preconditions
- their official charter openly still calls for the destruction of Israel
- they have broken every cease-fire agreement with Israel (and even broken their agreements with the Palestinian Authority, Fatah and Abbas).
Hamas therefore simply will not do so until either
- their support in the Western and Arab worlds dries up
- Israel’s response intensifies until the consequences for Hamas exceed their toleration levels or the Gazan population removes them from power.
“One for One” helps accomplish these eventualities until a defensive laser or missile system is fully and successfully implemented. “One for One” is the simplest, most pragmatic and internationally saleable solution Israel could devise.
America seems to be ready for change –
I believe Israel is, too.
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