The United States of America is one of the greatest countries in the world at providing aid to people and places that need it. We’ve pledged $1.15 billion to Haiti for earthquake relief.† After the tsunami in Indonesia, almost every major company in the United States (from Disney to Starbucks) donated a substantial amount of money. Many activists are keeping the genocide in Darfur in our collective consciousness. Our determination to provide for human rights and the preservation of human life has been astounding, to say the least.
However, there’s still one area of the world where the United States has been unwilling to help, despite many violations of international law and a lifestyle that’s below United Nation-deemed standards of living.† President Obama, while mentioning it during his campaign, was called a terrorist (a charge that I am proud to say that Sen. McCain refuted). That nation is Palestine.
Without delving too much into the history of the area, we can state that Israel is in control of much of the land, and Palestine has been separated into two sections: the West Bank (run by the Palestinian National Authority, the more diplomatic party aimed towards a solution) and the Gaza Strip (run by Hamas, a group of political extremists). The stories you hear in the news about terrorism are from the Gaza Strip. Yes, they are terrorists, and their actions are not condoned by anyone who’s looking for a solution.
There are stories in the news that you don’t hear, though. A United Nations’ sponsored fact-finding report “found that Israel had committed serious violations of international human rights and humanitarian law, some of them amounting to war crimes and possibly crimes against humanity” (The Goldstone Report). In response to mortars being fired into Israel from Gaza, Israel has repeatedly attacked hospitals and social workers. A recent fleet of ships carrying medicine and supplies was boarded by Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), who killed several people in order to “defend” the state of Israel.
The Palestinian people, for years, have been living in conditions that have been deemed below human standards. In the West Bank, it is almost impossible for Palestinians to travel to hospitals, because theirs aren’t up to standards. In many areas, there is no electricity, and there is certainly no opportunity for cell phones.† Buildings in the West Bank are frequently destroyed, and Bedouin communities are pulverized.
In Gaza, the only two banks are Israeli run, and they closed down, effectively stopping money flow into the Gaza Strip. The World Food Programme determined that 80 percent of Gazans need food aid, and that 80 percent of Gazans live below the poverty line.† In November, 13 people died because Gazan hospitals couldn’t perform surgery due to Israel banning anesthetics. People see their friends and family dying slowly, and they blame the Israeli government and their policies in an extreme manner. Many people in Gaza harbor anti-Israeli sentiments, and those are wrong, but these are the conditions under which terrorists can recruit.
We must find a solution that satisfies both sides, but that has become problematic. Next week I’ll propose my solution.