The Journal of the Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America April-June 2014 - (Page 13)

o PInIon /e dITorIal Inching Toward Peace Between Israel & Palestine by Bob Tiller T he conflict between Israel and Palestine is so longstanding and so frustrating that we could be tempted to just ignore it and move on to other peacemaking challenges where we might expect to see some movement and change. That would, in my view, be a mistake. Christian peacemakers can perform valuable work in the quest to resolve the complex Israel-Palestine issues. The conflict has many antecedents, notably the United nations' vote to establish the nation of israel in the area called Palestine in the aftermath of World War II. In 1948, a war was fought by those who supported the "partition," which the fledgling nation won, displacing thousands of Palestinians from their homes and farms. palestinian refugees and other arabs refused to recognize the state of Israel, vowing to make life difficult for the new nation. Israel has lived in tension with its neighbors and on high-alert security status ever since. In 1967, another war led to Israel's seizure of additional land, taken from neighboring countries: the west bank (the land west of the Jordan River and east of israel's earlier boundary), East Jerusalem, Gaza and other areas. israel later returned some of that territory, but retained control over the occupied west bank and east Jerusalem, primarily for building new towns and villages for its expanding population. numerous peace advocates have urged israel to give up the occupied territories and return to the boundaries that existed before the 1967 war, but israeli politicians have been deeply reluctant to consider that idea. The palestinians, meanwhile, never had an actual nation. Prior to the 1948 war, they were ruled by the ottoman empire, then by the british Mandate for Palestine. The needs and rights of palestinians were given short shrift when the United Nations established Israel. displaced by the various wars, hundreds of thousands of palestinian families have lived as refugees in other countries like Lebanon, Jordan and Syria. Hundreds of thousands more have remained within the original boundaries of Israel and the territory occupied in 1967. in the years since 1967, israel has placed many strict, even onerous, controls on the rights and activities of palestinians, both within israel itself and in the occupied territories. Among the most despised is an enormous security wall that runs for many miles through the occupied west bank, severely restricting the movements of palestinians attempting to get to work, visit family members, travel to doctors' offices or other normal activities. The ensuing decades have seen much conflict and tension, along with many attempts to solve the difficult issues and make peace. The Oslo agreement of 1993 gave hope for a while, but, in the long run, it fell apart. One positive outcome from oslo was that israel granted a degree of self-governance to the palestinians, ending a long period of direct control. See "Inching Toward Peace" on page 14. Right: Members of a mission group from a Virginia Baptist Church view a demolished Palestinian house in East Jerusalem-a relatively common sight in that part of the city. Photo by Ghassan J. Tarazi. APR-JUN 2014 Baptist Peacemaker 13

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Journal of the Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America April-June 2014

También de este Lado Hay Sueños: This Side Also Has Dreams
El Ranchito: Sharing the Great Outdoors
Good News About Hershey's
The Birth of the Baptist Peace Fellowship
Letter to the Editor
Austin Heights Baptist Church & the Tar Sands Blockade
Future Peace Camp Locations
Remembering Rachel Gill
Inching Toward Peace Between Israel & Palestine
The BPFNA Companioning Program
Reflections From a BPFNA Young Adult Gathering
Wal-Mart Joins Fair Food Program
Resources & Opportunities
2013 BPFNA Highlights
2013 Contributors
Shalom Prayer

The Journal of the Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America April-June 2014