Finding a Cure for Terrorism
Lessons on Terrorism From the 1974 Ma'alot Incident
The face of terrorism is ever-changing and increasingly uncontrollable. It can only be eliminated through addressing its root causes and tracing it back to the source.
There is no one-solution-fits-all for dealing with terrorism. In fact, it is precisely that method that has led to the proliferation of further terrorism. Just like different diseases require medications specific to that disease, terrorism is a disease in need of a cure. It is imperative that root causes are examined before reacting - in the same way that a doctor must know what caused a disease before writing a prescription.
An example of what happens when the root causes of terrorism and attention to detail is ignored is the Maalot incident of 1974 in Lebanon. According to the propaganda machines of the time, seemingly out of nowhere, Palestinians carried out a terrorist attack killing 20 members of an Israeli youth group.
Here is what the world did not hear: the “youth” were members of a n Israeli paramilitary organization (Gadna). More importantly, for weeks prior to that attack, the Israelis were bombing Palestinian refugee camps in Southern Lebanon with phosphorous and napalm bombs – leading to the death of over 300 civilians with an additional air strike just 2 days before the Ma’alot incident. Oddly enough, Israel’s explanation for the bombings was that it was in retaliation for the Gadna incident, which factually did not happen until after the Ma’a lot incident.
The spin across the globe on the Ma’alot incident served to further alienate Palestinians, who realized that the world was not interested in justice. It does not take a stretch of the mind to know where that lead. Desperate people take desperate measures... and thus the cycle continues. Such incidents are not specific to Palestinians only.
Not much has changed since then. Taking sides before all of the information is examined and impartially verified should preclude one from claiming to be a negotiator for peace. Such an action would be highly inflammatory and could lead the disenfranchised population to see terrorism as their only option. Yet, we have not learned.
One who is truly interested in routing out terrorism, should be equally interested in justice, objectivity and fairness. How impartial can a peace negotiator be when he wears the religious garb of one party at a religiously significant site at the exclusion of another in a disputed region as Pres. George W. Bush did just days ago in Jerusalem? (according to the Associated Press)
In this United States election year, terrorism is a hot-button issue. It is important to carefully choose a leader who has the intellect and integrity to give this matter the in-depth analysis it requires, free of the whisperings of special interest groups and lobbyists representing other countries who give their version of the facts as they want the world to see them.
It is time to stare this ugly disease called terrorism in the face and eliminate it by eradicating the conditions and injustices in which it thrives.
References:
Sharon’s war crimes in Lebanon: the Record, Jean Shaoul, 22 February 2002, http://www.wsws.org/articles/2002/feb2002/sab-f22.shtml
Facts and Fables by Clifford A. Wright (Hardcover - Aug 22, 1989
Relevant articles:
Rhetoric of the Zionist Occupation
The Truth about Suicide Bombing
