# 77 – Sderot

May 20, 2007

While the rest of Israel gets on with it, bombs are almost literally falling on Sderot, a Negev town of about 25,000. in 1991, the scuds got the international headlines. In 2006, it was the bombing of northern Israel. (I am now being subjective).

But who in the World cares about Sderot?

Aviva leaves the radio on – I also leave it on, even when she’s out. Right now I can hear Sderot residents crying, desperate for a solution to a problem that has been pounding them for literally years..

A local billionaire strongly criticises the government. He is providing transport and shelter for already 4,000 residents – a fine cause of course, gaining much local popularity. (I am dangerously making a comparison with the Moslem fundamentalists who gain the hearts of the population by helping local communities rebuild after bombardment. Of course, in their cases, such as in southern Lebanon, the fact that they caused the bombing just doesn’t register. There’s an enemy over the border who’s the usual recipient of the blame).

The government says that such action, appearing to be so generous, only fans the flames of a feeling of success which the Hamas so desperately seeks. So they do criticise. They’re both right, of course.

BBC interviewed a Palestinian relief worker this morning. First the subject was the ongoing inter-faction violence – an average of 10 dead per day for the last week. Truces coming and going; the violence apparently unconnected to the politics. Then (I’m sorry) the hypocrite starts lambasting Israel as only knowing violence, with attacks now coming across the line. ‘We are a peace-loving people; we have always wanted to live in peace next to Israel’. I could not believe my ears. I had so many answers to scream at him, not the last being that the current Palestinian government still does not recognise Israel’s right to exist!

Of course, with the subject of the 6-Day War now hot (40 years’ anniversary approaching) many of these problems are being blamed on Israel. Forget the fact that ’67 was just another attempt by the neighbours to annihilate Israel; that what is now referred to as the ‘occupied territories’ were then occupied by Jordan and Egypt, that the PLO was set up fully 3 years before the ’67 War; and that when you start a war, you have to accept the consequences.

Many in Israel agree that the big mistake then was not to just give back the territories and warn that the same thing would happen again if war were recommenced. It should have been Israel’s unilateral decision, ignoring the Arabs’ refusal to accept defeat (at the Sudan Arab League conference at the time).

Let’s forget about all the other potential problems, including Iran, Hezbollah (and the possible collapse of Lebanon), Iraq, Syria, anti-Semitism, boycotts against Israel, the head office of just about every extreme Moslem organisation located in the UK, etc.

Will someone just suggest how Israel is supposed to react to the constant random bombing of Sderot. Gaza was evacuated. The Palestinians had a chance to prove that they deserve a country. Yes, Israel put it under constant pressure. But the international pressure was there. A few weeks of peace would have seen an immediate relaxation of the pressure; the opening of Gaza airport and port, access eased to the West Bank etc.

Imagine: Dover gets daily bombardment from the neighbour – or Cannes – or some nice small town in your country. So what would you do – what should we do?

Stephen