It’s Not All Bad

Overall, the narrative of the Jewish experience in Israel, in modern times, is largely bad when considering interaction with Palestinians.

Too many times, Arabs have participated in violent attacks on Jews.

In the last century, thousands have been murdered and maimed by people with a blind, spiritual hatred. The attacks on Jews in Palestine in 1929 and 1936 were so ferocious, they haven’t been forgotten.

And the ghastly “Oslo Accords” ensured that Yasser Arafat’s Murder, Inc. (the PLO) could continue killing Israelis unchecked. American diplomats helped that along, by the way.

But all this doesn’t mean there is no good in the Palestinian population. In fact, there’s quite a lot of it. Living under a totalitarian regime could never be easy. Routinely, citizens of the PA are detained for questioning. Some are killed for selling land to Israelis. Journalists are imprisoned and harassed.

And more than once, Palestinians have shown a completely different side to their Jewish cousins. Such an example came this week.

“’I was driving, and suddenly I found myself in the opposite lane with strong pains and blood flowing from my head,’ she told Ynet. ‘I went back into my lane, and It’s a miracle there wasn’t another car.

“’When I stopped the car, and I was dripping blood, I tried to see what happened. And that’s when I saw a huge rock that hit my foot… I started to cry and scream, those were difficult moments. I tried to call the police and ambulance, but there wasn’t any reception,’ she said.

“’Suddenly three Palestinians arrived and tried to help. One of them told me he was a doctor and stopped the bleeding in my head, while another tried to call the rescue forces because he had a Palestinian network that had reception in the area. It went on like this for ten minutes with me just sitting there and them waiting with me.’”

The incident happened near Hebron. The mother of six was obviously in a vulnerable situation, in a dangerous area. After the Israelis turned Hebron over to the PA in the 1990s, the security situation deteriorated.

I well remember visiting Bethlehem for the first time not long after that. My friends and I visited a tourist shop and when we came out, we were walking down the street, heading back to our van. The others went ahead when I stopped to look at a poster of Arafat in the middle of the street. I took out my camera and raised it to take a photo (which I did).

I heard what sounded like grunts from the sidewalk and I glanced over to see PA police sitting at an outdoor table. They didn’t like me taking a photo! By the time I dived into the van and the door slid shut, they were chasing me.

And this was the “police.” I cannot imagine what life is like for average Palestinians. Like the KGB, PA thugs spy on citizens and report activity. If anyone discovers who it was that helped this woman near Hebron, there will be repercussions.

In 2016, a rabbi was murdered, again near Hebron. His wife and two children were seriously injured. A Palestinian couple that lived nearby emerged and helped the family out of their vehicle and administered aid until help arrived.

Afterward, Israeli gave the man a visa to work, since he had been threatened by other Palestinians for his help to the Israeli family. When the visa lapsed, he actually became homeless and could not work. In 2019, he was granted residency, along with his wife and son, in Israel.

Such incidents underscore the truth that Palestinians are capable of great compassion and even put their lives on the line to save Jews. No one knows the percentage of Palestinians that hate Israelis, although polls usually put the figures pretty high.

I criticize the Palestinians often, and I think for good reason. But when the other side of the coin displays itself, I am happy to spotlight it.

May the Lord protect those Palestinians that risk themselves to aid Israelis.

Jim1fletcher@yahoo.com

China and Israel; Really?

Folks in Israel seem giddy that a new port terminal at Haifa is open for operation. Problem is, China’s state-owned Shanghai International Port Group won the bid to operate the facility for the next quarter-century. The Times of Israel reports that neither the cabinet nor the National Security Council had any input in the decision, which seems incredible!

Among other things, Israel’s submarines operate in the area. By now we know that China’s evil regime constantly and aggressively probes foreign adversaries’ weak spots.

Large ships can off-load containers at the Haifa port, and is expected to be a catalyst for Israel’s economic growth. Still, the China connection is extremely curious.

Evidently, many smaller vessels have created traffic jams at the port, making distribution slower and increasing costs of various products for consumers. These slowdowns were costing Israel $218 million per month. According to the Times:

“The opening of the private terminal will drive competition among Israel’s three international seaports — Haifa, Ashdod, and Eilat — which will vie to ‘improve and streamline the level of port service in Israel, help to meet the economy’s needs, ensure Israel’s readiness to cater to large ships, and allow Israel to prepare for the shifts that are taking place in the maritime trade industry.’

“Chinese companies are handling major infrastructure and transportation projects in Israel, including winning the tenders to build and operate a private terminal in Ashdod, along with operating the one launched Wednesday in Haifa. Chinese firms are also building a key section of the Tel Aviv light rail system, and bidding to build additional lines.”

The article is striking for a number of reasons, not the least of which is the almost cavalier attitude the Israelis quoted have about the threats from China. We also aren’t told why the cabinet and security community had no say. That doesn’t make sense and in fact, we aren’t told who did make the final decision.

Three years ago, Mike Pompeo had this to say about Israel and China’s cozying relationship:

“’We don’t want the Chinese Communist Party to have access to Israeli infrastructure, Israeli communication networks,’ he said, ‘the kind of things that endanger the Israeli people and the ability of the U.S. to cooperate with Israel.’”

Israel of course listens to the US on such matters; two weeks after Pompeo’s remarks, Israel passed on a Hong Kong-based company’s bid to build a desalination plant.

But isn’t it interesting that now Joe Biden has been installed in the Oval Office, Israel seems bolder in negotiating business deals with the Chinese? We know of the Biden crime family’s ties to Beijing. Again, what on earth is Israel doing allowing the CCP so close to security facilities? The light rail being built near Tel Aviv comes within a few hundred yards of Israel’s military headquarters.

Well, whatever is going on, it seems this latest geopolitical development is pushing events closer to an ending not even Hollywood could have written.

But Isaiah, Zechariah & Friends did write such a script!

Jim1fletcher@yahoo.com