Nothing really novel or new in the Israeli attitude. It goes way back. Over three thousand years ago, the returning scouts whom Moses had dispatched to report on the inhabitants of the Promised Land debriefed as follows: “We were like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and so were were in theirs.” It began with that self image as puny, cowering within, and even today, its no surprise that enemies will act aggressively towards them. Conversely, when they have self-respect, focus on priorities and give precedence to their own security, other nations will regard them differently.
—Moses and the Messengers from Canaan (painting by Giovanni Lanfranco)—WIKI
After the Six-Day War there was a real fear of Israel and her army within the Arab world. Today, that is no longer true due to concessions, an inability to stand up and claim what is rightfully theirs leads to a perception of weakness. And a weak enemy invites aggressiveness. If Israle will not stand up for her priorities, how can one expect America to fight for them? If Israel will not protest the constant Arab violation of agreements, why should America be concerned with them?
Why do other nations condemn Israel so frequently? Because Israel is so concerned with what they say, because the conception of israel in the world outside and not the country’s own priorities determines Israeli policy. And so when you can meddle, thinks the world at large, why not meddle?
—Rahab and the Emissaries of Joshua (17th century painting)—WIKI
At times the situation borders on the ridiculous. The classic case is when in the midst of the Lebanon War, Lebanese Christians murdered hundreds of Palestinians at the refugee camps of Sabra and Shatilla. No Israelis were actually involved in the killings. Instead, this was a case of one Arab taking revenge against another, a time honored tradition in those parts. To prevent these killings from taking place, Israeli soldiers would have had to risk their own lives.
How did Israel react to the killings? She volunteered to take the blame. “Since the Israeli soldiers did not stop the Christians, they are responsible for their deaths,” so certain quarters of leftist Israeli society argued. How was this heard throughout the world? Now it is true that innocent people did not have to die. But in the world’s eyes, the people who actually caused the murder were not condemned whereas the Israeli were.
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Menachem Begin and Ariel Sharon visit the site of the infamous Beaufort battles. During the tour Begin asked a young soldier: “Did they have machine guns?” To which the embarrassed soldier answered positively while Sharon did his best not to laugh.
This incident is notable for highlighting the growing rift between the government and the army as well as showing Begin’s lack of understanding of modern warfare.
click image for source…
There are many nations- including most of the Arab countries so vehement in their criticism of Israel- which flagrantly violate human rights and yet are rarely, if ever, called to account for this by t
orld community. The reason: These countries simply will not listen.
ADDENDUM:
(see link at end)…The twelve men left on their mission to spy out the land of Canaan. They crossed the entire southern part of the country till they reached Hebron, the dwelling place of giants. While in Hebron, Caleb went to the Cave of Machpelah to pray to G-d.
The scouts had become so impressed and overawed by the size and strength of the inhabitants of the land, that they decided the land was unconquerable. Only Caleb and Joshua did not lose their faith in G-d, and knew that He would keep His promise. The spies took back with them some of the choicest fruits of the country, such as figs, pomegranates, and grapes which were so heavy that eight men had to carry one cluster of grapes on two poles.
Return the Spies
After an absence of forty days, the twelve scouts returned to the camp at Kodesh with magnificent specimens of Canaan’s produce. But the account they gave was not altogether cheering. A beautiful country, truly, said the spies, and a land that flowed with milk and honey, but a country with strong cities inhabited by formidable men, among whom was the fierce race of giants, the terrible sons of Anak. Not a province but what was occupied by warlike tribes, the Amalekites in the South, the Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites in the mountain passes, and the Canaanites in the plains and on the banks of the Jordan.
The people’s hearts sank within them; they felt unable to encounter such powerful foes; but Caleb, wishing to inspire them with hope and fortitude, exclaimed: “We can surely go up and take possession of it, for we can indeed overcome it.” Alas! His cowardly companions would not hear of encouragement; they began to exaggerate the danger (Numbers 13:32-33): “The land we passed through to explore is a land that consumes its inhabitants, and all the people we saw in it are men of stature. 33. There we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, descended from the giants. In our eyes, we seemed like grasshoppers, and so we were in their eyes.” They upbraided Moses and Aaron and proposed in their blind folly to choose a captain who might lead them back to Egypt. At night (it was the night of Tisha B’Av) the people wept in their tents, voicing their bitter complaint against Moses and Aaron for leading them into such a predicament. Now they were stuck in the desert, a prey to thirst, hunger, and wild animals. They would do better to return to the slavery of Egypt than die here.
In vain did Joshua and Caleb try to allay the excitement and despondency of the people. They pointed to the excellence of the land, and to G-d’s promise, which was a better guarantee than all military power and strategy. But the people were in a mood of defiance and revolt. They would have stoned Joshua and Caleb, had G-d not saved them from their hands, by causing His cloud of glory to appear over the Sanctuary….
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