The Patriot Post® · Gaza Border Battle
The violence along Israel’s border with Gaza is the worst it has been in years, since Israel’s last major war with Hamas. Predictably, left-wing politicians and media outlets are blaming Israel and the United States.
For example, during an interview Monday, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders said this: "Those are terrible actions… Israel should be condemned. Israel has a right to security, but shooting unarmed protesters is not what it is about.“
Yesterday’s cover of the New York Daily News features a smiling Ivanka Trump unveiling the seal at the new U.S. embassy. The headline reads: "Daddy’s Little Ghoul.” The insinuation being that Ivanka is laughing at all the Palestinians being killed because “Daddy” moved the embassy.
This is how the open-borders Left thinks.
The European Left is adamant that anyone who wants to stop the free flow of millions of Muslim immigrants is equivalent to a Nazi and must be marginalized. If a caravan of migrants marches on our border, the American Left attacks anyone who wants to stop them as “racist” and “xenophobic.”
So it stands to reason that the same left-wing elites in Europe and America who champion open borders now condemn Israel for defending its border against Hamas and its supporters.
Things to Know
As the Gaza conflict intensifies and as the left-wing criticism of Israel grows, here are five things you need to know to combat the Left’s spin.
The mob gathering at the Israeli border has little to do with the opening of the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem. This is about the 70th anniversary of the creation of the modern state of Israel. Yesterday the Palestinians observed “Nakba Day.” It means “disaster” or “catastrophe.” That’s how the Palestinians view the creation of Israel — as a disaster or a catastrophe. Hamas militants have attacked the Israeli border now for five weeks straight. They rally the mob by telling them they are going to march into Israel, not to close the U.S. embassy but to reclaim “Palestine.”
Some people say, “I’m on Israel’s side, but the IDF is shooting children/unarmed civilians.” We hear this every time Israel defends itself. The reason children and civilians die is that Hamas uses them as human shields. Under international law, the use of human shields is a war crime. Hamas, not Israel, is responsible for any civilian deaths. By the way, what kind of parents bring their children to a riot, where there has been widespread violence for weeks? (See last item.)
Politicians and media outlets calling what is happening at the Gaza border “a protest” should be ashamed of themselves. Israel did not fire on “unarmed protestors.” These are violent riots. Hamas is using tens of thousands of people as a weapon. The idea that those who don’t have weapons are merely innocent, unarmed protestors is absurd. The mob is the weapon. Think about this: If six unarmed men break down your door and attempt to assault your family, do you have a right to self-defense? Of course you do. Those men, even unarmed, are a mortal danger to your family, just as thousands of violent Palestinians represent a threat to the Jewish families on the other side of the border.
The Israel Defense Forces, thank God, are determined to defend their border. But suppose the Israeli government caves to the pressure and uses less effective methods, resulting in 30,000 people successfully breaching the security fence. Has any EU bureaucrat or liberal reporter asked themselves, “What then?" Israeli communities are located just a short distance from the border. The same Hamas forces outside the security fence now have been digging terror tunnels under the Israeli border for years. What do we think they are going to do when they reach those Israeli communities? How many Jews would have to die before the media stops blaming Israel and condemns Hamas?
Every tactic used against Israel is eventually used against the West. Stabbing attacks, like we just saw in Paris, started in Israel. Using cars as weapons of mass destruction started in Israel. Europe and the United States must be prepared for this new tactic. We have our own border problems. We saw how a caravan of a few hundred migrants was deployed as a propaganda weapon. If our elites are unwilling to defend the borders of the United States, Europe and Israel, then Western civilization has already been conquered.
Some Fences Are Good
While Israel is condemned for defending its security fence and Donald Trump is denounced for wanting a border wall, it seems some liberals are finding fences can be good.
For example, when the Obamas left the White House, the first thing they did was build a big wall around their new home.
More recently, Somali residents in a Minneapolis housing complex have gotten sick and tired of the crime in their community, and they are demanding changes. Mayor Jacob Frey has a solution — $825,000 in new fencing, secured entry points and surveillance cameras around the complex.
Frey praised the Somali residents, saying, "These changes are happening because public housing residents spoke out and called for change. So they really deserve the credit in spearheading this initiative."
The irony here is incredible. The mayor sees himself a leader of the anti-Trump #Resistance and opposes Trump’s agenda at all costs. But when it comes to accommodating the Somali residents of his community, he’s all in on a big fence!
Christians in the Crosshairs
This past weekend brought another shocking reminder of the hatred that infects radical Islam and the religious persecution that Christian believers face around the world. Three churches were bombed in Indonesia Sunday. Seven people were killed and dozens were injured.
What makes these attacks unusual is that they were all carried out by members of the same family.
The father of the family drove a car bomb to a nearby Pentecostal church. The mother and two daughters, ages nine and 12, wore suicide belts as they walked into a Protestant church. And two sons, ages 16 and 18, attacked a local Catholic church.
There are many theological differences between Catholics, Protestants and Pentecostals. But to the jihadists they are all Christian infidels who must be killed.
The Islamic holy month of Ramadan begins this week. Sadly, recent history suggests that terrorism spikes during this time.
Prayers for Melania
The White House announced Monday that First Lady Melania Trump was undergoing treatment for a benign kidney condition. She will reportedly remain at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center for the rest of the week. Please join Carol and me in praying for a full recovery for the first lady.