The latest attacks on Israel are part of a decades-long plan to destroy the Jewish state and establish Islamist rule in its place. While the trigger and justification for violence against Israel changes with each conflict, the collective goal of transnational jihad remains the same. It is to wipe Israel off the map.
The most recent outbreak of violence was triggered by a long-running property dispute in East Jerusalem against the background of violent conflict between rival ethnic chauvinist groups of Palestinians and Israelis. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu roundly condemned Israeli Jews involved in the brutalisation of Arabs in recent weeks and called for an end to the violence.
Sheikh Jarrah is a predominantly Palestinian neighbourhood. Some Israelis have asserted legal ownership to properties in the area and sought court orders to evict tenants whose leases have expired, as well as some they say are squatters with no lease rights. Palestinian tenants are claiming they are the rightful owners of the land under a historical agreement with Jordan before Israel assumed control of the territory.
While the law might be on the Israeli settlers’ side, they have all but lost the public relations battle. The media is less interested in the opinion of Israeli courts than the plight of Palestinian evictees. It makes colourful copy and is easy to digest. The best option for settlers would be to accommodate the Palestinians, quell domestic unrest, and set their sights on Gaza.
Read the article by Jennifer Oriel in The Australian.