"From the river to the sea" has become a popular chant signaling support for Palestinian civilians trapped in the war between Hamas and Israel. The phrase was taken from the Hamas constitution, and many consider it a call for an ethnic cleansing: getting rid of the Jews who live between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean.
That's what the phrase means to me, but it means other things to some people.
I suspect that many Americans who chant "from the river to the sea" do not intend to call for another Holocaust and the erasure of Israel. They believe they are supporting justice for Palestinians. But as Hafez al-Assad, former dictator of Syria once said, "We shall only accept war and the restoration of the usurped land . . . to oust you, aggressors, and throw you into the sea for good."
A slogan that some consider a call for the extinction of Israel blocks a path to peace. But leaders on both sides do not seek peace. They seek power.
And "from the river to the sea" works, in different ways, to empower both Hamas and Netanyahu.
No comments:
Post a Comment