Now Is Not the Time
I never thought I’d be writing this. With great respect, I very sadly read the article “Israeli-Palestinian Peacemaker Duo Share Hope for a Better Future” (July 19). Now especially is not the time for discussions about peace and “justice and equality.” Now is the time to return the hostages, destroy Hamas and then, and only then, find the, so far, nonexistent Palestinian leader with the guts to publicly recognize Israel’s right to exist with secure borders. Only then can any discussion of peace be possible. Israel has strived for peace for decades, giving back land repeatedly only to have it turned into missile-firing zones; offering to hand back 97% of the West Bank only to have it turned down; and at the Gaza border, sincere peace-loving Israelis treating their Palestinian neighbors as family only to be slaughtered by them.
There have been hundreds of these “public relations” talks between peace-loving Israelis and Palestinians across many states in the U.S. over the past 50-plus years. Surely, if these talks are reasons for any hope outside of public relations, why did the Oct. 7 massacre occur?
No, now is not the time for talks on “justice and equality,” but it is high time to strongly educate why one is, first and foremost, a Jew.
Harry Kozlovsky
Efrat, Israel
“nonexistent Palestinian leader with the guts to publicly recognize Israel’s right to exist with secure borders”
cuts both ways that :
– Danny Danon “Oy vey! Is it such a criminal offense to oppose a two-state solution?”
– Naftali Bennett “There will be no Palestinian state”
– Ayelet Shaked “We were not elected to keep chairs warm, but rather to implement clear policy, ensure that no Palestinian state is established”
– Benjamin Netanyahu “Whether or not it’s defined as a state when we have the military control is another matter,”