viewpoints » S end letters to: letters@thejewishnews.com DETROIT JEWISH NEWS theJEWISHNEWS.com essay West Bank Palestinians Must Reject Hamas’ Terrorist Ideology I srael is a safe haven for Jews every- where, but remains a prime target for Hamas’ destructive forces, notwith- standing the Palestinian Authority’s sup- posed interest in seeking a peace deal with the Jewish state. Make no mistake about that. Hamas, which rules the Palestinian- populated Gaza Strip, is a Sunni Islamic funda- mentalist organization. It presumably is in line to Robert Sklar form a Palestinian state Contributing Editor with the P.A., which, through the Sunni Islamic secular faction known as Fatah, leads Palestinian-controlled areas of the West Bank. Discrediting Hamas is the fact that Israel, the U.S. and the European Union consider it a terrorist organization. In keeping with that inglorious dis- tinction, Hamas recently had operatives among the eight Israeli Arabs arrested by Israeli security officers on suspicion of seeking to unleash shooting attacks across Jerusalem. Alarming but not surprising, given how young Gazans have been indoc- trinated to hate, most of the suspects are younger than 18. The suspects, who hail from the Arab- dominated eastern sector of Jerusalem, apparently had been angling for possible targets, including an Israel Defense Forces (IDF) base next to Hebrew University’s Mount Scopus campus. The eight were part of a terrorist cell that sprouted after they served time in Israeli prisons for riot- ing against Israel, according to the Shin Bet, Israel’s domestic security agency. The Shin Bet made the arrests in November but held off announcing them until Dec. 9 pending further investigation. In a statement, the Shin Bet underscored the “grave danger” posed by “assailants with Israeli documentation who enjoy free movement and access to weapons.” Most disturbing was the Shin Bet’s concern about “the relative ease” with which those assailants “can carry out attacks.” LOUDER DRUMBEAT The same week, three Palestinian teenag- ers were arrested for allegedly plotting a shooting attack against a military outpost near the West Bank settlement of Ofra. It’s not clear if the teens had links to Hamas, but they all were well-versed in the usage of homemade weapons, a hallmark of Hamas operatives. The week also saw two Hamas fight- ers die in a collapsed tunnel dug between Gaza and southern Israel. Hamas is sus- pected of digging a tunnel network to facilitate terrorist attacks and the kidnap- 6 December 22 • 2016 Arthur M. Horwitz Publisher / Executive Editor ahorwitz@renmedia.us F. Kevin Browett Chief Operating Officer kbrowett@renmedia.us Chanukah is a good time to ponder the sobering notion that a Palestinian state, should one ever emerge via direct, bilateral negotiations, wouldn’t dissolve Palestinian leadership-induced fi ssures in the feelings of younger Palestinians toward the Jewish state. pings of soldiers and civilians inside Israel. The Shin Bet further used the week to reveal an October bust of a Hamas terror cell plotting to kidnap IDF soldiers around Hebron and turn them into bargaining chips “for the release of prisoners.” Six cell members were arrested. The seventh member, Ibrahaim Abdallah Ghnimat, is believed to have masterminded the planning of the kidnap- ping operations from prison, where he’s serving a life sentence for engaging in a series of 1990s terror attacks, including the kidnapping and murder of IDF soldier Sharon Edri, according to the Times of Israel. “The discovery of this cell,” the Shin Bet announced in a telling statement, “points to the high motivation of Hamas opera- tives, both in the field and in prison, to carry out serious attacks, including shoot- ings and kidnappings.” And there’s more. Though the rate has slowed, young Palestinians from the West Bank and east Jerusalem continue to attempt to stab Israeli civilians and security person- nel. Ostensibly motivating these youth- ful attackers is frustration about their languishing way of life, Israel’s 50-year administrative presence in the West Bank and the lack of movement in realizing a Palestinian state. The real motivation, however, is the utter hatred toward Israel they have learned through Hamas-spewed vitriol, which has infested Fatah thinking as well. HOPEFILLED MESSAGE Chanukah, the holiday of religious free- dom, beginning after sundown Saturday, is a good time to understand a Palestinian state, should one ever emerge via direct, bilateral negotiations between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization, the Palestinian people’s official negotiating arm, wouldn’t dissolve the deep resent- ment among younger Palestinians toward the Jewish state — resentment fomented by both Hamas and Fatah. That’s why revival of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks must start with Palestinian recognition of the Jewish state, an obvious prerequisite. The Jewish people cannot expect complex final-status negotiating issues like borders, settlements, refugees, Jerusalem, security arrangements, water rights and holy sites to evolve without a credible peace partner. On the Dec. 11 episode of CBS TV’s 60 Minutes, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated his support for a two-state solution — two states, one Jewish and one Palestinian, living side by side in peace with safe, secure borders. Observing the crisis living conditions in Aleppo, Sanaa, Mosul and other terrorist- controlled areas of the Middle East, Netanyahu told TV viewers in regard to the Palestinians: “Our intention is coexis- tence.” It would behoove Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, positioned by the West as a political moderate, to embrace the spirit of that intention on behalf of all Palestinians this holiday sea- son — Hamas and its intractable ideology notwithstanding. * Yiddish Limerick | Editorial Managing Editor: Jackie Headapohl jheadapohl@renmedia.us Story Development Editor: Keri Guten Cohen kcohen@thejewishnews.com Arts & Life Editor: Lynne Konstantin lkonstantin@renmedia.us Senior Copy Editor: David Sachs dsachs@renmedia.us Editorial Assistant: Sy Manello smanello@renmedia.us Senior Columnist: Danny Raskin dannyraskin@sbcglobal.net Contributing Editor: Robert Sklar rsklar@renmedia.us Contributing Writers: Ruthan Brodsky, Suzanne Chessler, Annabel Cohen, Don Cohen, Shari S. 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Phipps Corporate Creative Director: Deborah Schultz dschultz@renmedia.us | Fulfillment circulationdesk@thejewishnews.com | Departments HAPPY CHANUKAH! We add a licht* in yeder nacht.** It’s ein, tzvay, dri*** until it’s acht.**** Mir zingen***** “Maoz Tzur” with great delight Di menora in der fentzter****** is “out of sight.” Now kum un ess******* di latkes ich hob gemacht.******** * licht — candle ** yeder nacht — each night *** ein, tzvay, dri — one, two, three **** acht — eight ***** Mir zingen — we sing ****** der fentzter — the window ******* kum un ess — come and eat ******** ich hob gemacht — I made — Rachel Kapen General Offi ces: 248-354-6060 Advertising: 248-351-5107 Advertising Fax: 248-304-0049 Circulation: 248-351-5174 Classifi ed Ads: 248-351-5116 Advertising Deadline: Monday, 2 p.m. Editorial Fax: 248-304-8885 Deadline: All public and social announcements must be typewritten and received by noon Tuesday, nine days prior to desired date of publication. 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