Sabeel and Friends of Sabeel also distort history, international law and the situation on the ground – casting Israel as “oppressors” and responsible for every “injustice” that allegedly afflicts Palestinian-Arabs. Everyone else is apparently blameless for their claimed suffering. Moreover, there is no mention of Palestinian-Arabs’ and Arabs’ repeated rejections of their own state if it means living alongside a Jewish state. Also escaping the finger-pointing is the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) which has maintained a long-term “refugee” status for these individuals rather than resettling them, as is its directive.
In Sabeel’s view, history begins in 1948, and thus it accuses Israel of existing on “78% of historic Palestine leading to the displacement of most of its Palestinian inhabitants … .” Ironically they fail to acknowledge that Jordan (nee Transjordan) was created from the eastern 78% of the territory that the League of Nations had set aside for a Jewish homeland.
Further, Sabeel considers all of the land as “Palestinian,” accuses Israel of practicing “apartheid” and dates the “occupation” to 1948. The fact that the Palestinian Arabs rejected the U.N. Partition Plan in 1947 that offered them a state of their own, that the international community gave the land to the Jewish people for “close settlement” (as per the Mandate for Palestine issued by the League of Nations), that Judea and Samaria and the eastern half of Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip were illegally occupied respectively by Jordan and Egypt from 1948 to 1967, and that the charge of “apartheid” is laughable do not seem to matter. It is truly a case of “Don’t let the facts get in the way.”
While much of this battle is an internal Christian matter, the Jewish community can play an influential role. Activities such as the Philadelphia Jewish Community Relations Council’s Interfaith Mission to Israel introduce Christian clergy to Israel, offering an opportunity to see and hear Israel for themselves rather than through anti-Israel propaganda.
The Zionist Organization of America frequently interacts with Christians on an organizational level and individually. Other Jewish groups do likewise. Contacts at the grassroots level and one-on-one conversations with friends and colleagues to convey the historical facts and current realities are also important.
As the peace process ramps up and the deadline set by America to at least reach a “framework” toward peace approaches, we who support Israel’s shared democratic values as an asset and ally of the U.S. can and must reinforce American support for an Israel that is strong, secure and thriving.