Deadly Mideast clashes
The deadly clashes between Israeli and Palestinian troops across the West Bank and Gaza Strip on Thursday were truly intolerable. The actions of the Israeli government under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu caused the clashes which killed more than 60 people and injured hundreds of others.
The incident, sparked by the opening of a controversial archeological tunnel in Arab East Jerusalem, not only showed the brutality of Israeli soldiers shooting Palestinian protesters, it has also endangered the peace accord which Israel and Palestine reached in Washington three years ago, after a long, bloody process.
The opening of the tunnel near the Moslem shrine of Al Aqsa mosque angered the Palestinians who saw it as a profanation of Islamic holy sites in Jerusalem, stirring them to protest.
Being arrogant and insensitive to the protests, the Israeli government did not heed the Palestinians' call. Instead it reinforced its troops to face the protesters. Reinforcement of troops to maintain stability and order is one thing, but shooting and killing 50 Palestinians, including a 13-year-old girl, is another.
It is understandable that condemnation of the Israeli troops' brutality was voiced across the world yesterday. The bloody incident would not have happened if the Israeli soldiers, who lost 12 of their own men, had not opened fire at the angry, stone-throwing Palestinian protesters.
Israel, we believe, should stop provoking and humiliating the Palestinian people whose right to an independent and sovereign state has been recognized worldwide.
We also believe that Netanyahu should stop arrogantly turning a deaf ear to the call from many world leaders to close the tunnel once and for all. The Israeli government's action to temporarily close the tunnel yesterday was just to defuse the bloody crisis. It will not lead to a comprehensive and peaceful solution.
Worse incidents are likely to arise in future if Netanyahu and his government continue to oppress the Palestinian people, prompting more violence in an area where Israeli troops and 30,000 Palestinian paramilitary police could again exchange fire.
Moreover, the Likud government has to respect the inalienable rights of the Palestinians if it wants to see peace prevail in the region. It must sincerely implement what was agreed between the Palestinian Authority and the former Labor government under Shimon Peres and the slain Yitzak Rabin. This includes the curtailment of Jewish settlements in the West Bank.
Too many tears have been shed and too many victims have fallen for the Middle East peace process, as was acknowledged by the late Rabin himself at the signing of the Israeli-PLO peace accord at the White House in September 1993: "The time for peace has come. We, the soldiers who have returned from battles stained with blood, we who have seen our relatives and friends killed before our eyes...we who fought against you, the Palestinians -- we say today in a loud and clear voice: Enough of blood and tears. Enough."
Thursday's deadly clash resulted from the despicable actions of the Israeli government, and is a great setback for what their towering leader Rabin had undertaken.