Sosa
24th February 2011, 06:00
So I was having a back and forth through email with a "friend" (or rather an acquaintance who I met when I was foolishly going through conversion into Judaism) yesterday and he was writing about the Israel/Palestine conflict. I'm not that well read into the situation besides the most basic elementary facts. There was much I couldn't really argue with him against because I'm not familiar with what he was talking about. Does anyone have any tips or advice on arguing with these zionists?
This is what I sent him (it was a news article I had forwarded him):
After several months of attempted negotiations with Israel to try to push them to comply with international law and signed agreements, the U.S. government announced, Tuesday, that it is abandoning efforts to get the Israeli government to comply with the law prohibiting settlements.
According to a representative of the U.S. State Department, the U.S. will continue its negotiations, but will not press Israel to comply with international law banning the transfer of civilians to militarily-occupied land. All settlements are illegal under the Fourth Geneva Convention, to which Israel is a signatory, but the Israeli government has ignored this obligation, and has transferred over 500,000 Israeli civilians into settlements constructed on stolen Palestinian land since 1967.
Previously, the U.S. government had offered Israel 20 F-35 fighter jets, which are the newest model of U.S. made fighter jets, in exchange for a six-month settlement freeze. Israel rejected that offer, and demanded that they be allowed to continue their continual expansion of settlements on stolen Palestinian land, even while engaging in 'negotiations' with Palestinian leaders.
Palestinian negotiatiors have long criticized Israel's policy of continuing settlement expansion, with one Palestinian diplomat, Mohammed Shtayeh, telling reporters last week that Israel's decision to allow 600 new housing units in East Jerusalem on illegally confiscated Palestinian land was the "last nail in the coffin of the peace process."
Israeli negotiators have demanded that the Palestinian leadership agree to “recognize Israel as a Jewish state” as a precondition for peace talks – despite the fact that such a recognition would mean the denial of the internationally recognized right of return of Palestinian refugees. This is a concession that Palestinian leaders say they do not have the right to make.This was basically his argument he replied with:
1. "Israel has never transfered its citizens to the Judea and Samaria region, they are choosing to live there, Israel's army is the one to destroy their houses."
2. "The land wasn't stolen in 1967. The lands were occupied from Jordan in 1967, a country we're in peace now and never reclaimed the lands in the peace process with them, unless you suggest Jorden IS Palestine (what makes the creation of another Arab country in those lands really unreasonable), there is no such thing as "stolen Palestinians land from 1967"
3. Well, that just show that 20 fighter jets can't buy our pride, something I guess you are not familiar with.
4. East Jerusalem is part of Jerusalem, our internal and historical capital. It was our capital long before Washington was American. The Palestinians already have a capital- Ramallah.
5.look what we ask and what they ask- we ask only recognition (and it wasn't precondition for peace talks, it was part of the peace talks. The only ones who demanded things before we started to talk are the Palestinians), they ask from us to remove 500,000 people by force, and this is before signing the peace agreements. Sorry, but this is very unreasonable, idiotic and no other country would think of agreeing such thing. The rule is very simple- you want peace? you and I need to settle down about our demands. Israel has settled down enough by freezing for 10 months people's homes and going out from Gaza with no reclaiminations 6 years ago. Why didn't they start talking right away with us? why we needed to beg them to sit and talk for 9 months? I'll tell you why- they don't want to talk, 10 months are too long, so they waitted for 9 months claiming stupid excuses and after one month they had the excuse to bracke the talks off. Very simple. What promise us they won't do it again if we freeze the buildings for 6 months? Nothing, absolutely NOTHING.
Bottom line- I don't care about the Palestinians, and it seems they don't care about them either. It is their interest to have a country, not Israel's. THEY need to beg US to sit and talk with THEM, not vaice versa. I already have a country. How can I respond back to him point by point? and what's the best website to get information like this?
This is what I sent him (it was a news article I had forwarded him):
After several months of attempted negotiations with Israel to try to push them to comply with international law and signed agreements, the U.S. government announced, Tuesday, that it is abandoning efforts to get the Israeli government to comply with the law prohibiting settlements.
According to a representative of the U.S. State Department, the U.S. will continue its negotiations, but will not press Israel to comply with international law banning the transfer of civilians to militarily-occupied land. All settlements are illegal under the Fourth Geneva Convention, to which Israel is a signatory, but the Israeli government has ignored this obligation, and has transferred over 500,000 Israeli civilians into settlements constructed on stolen Palestinian land since 1967.
Previously, the U.S. government had offered Israel 20 F-35 fighter jets, which are the newest model of U.S. made fighter jets, in exchange for a six-month settlement freeze. Israel rejected that offer, and demanded that they be allowed to continue their continual expansion of settlements on stolen Palestinian land, even while engaging in 'negotiations' with Palestinian leaders.
Palestinian negotiatiors have long criticized Israel's policy of continuing settlement expansion, with one Palestinian diplomat, Mohammed Shtayeh, telling reporters last week that Israel's decision to allow 600 new housing units in East Jerusalem on illegally confiscated Palestinian land was the "last nail in the coffin of the peace process."
Israeli negotiators have demanded that the Palestinian leadership agree to “recognize Israel as a Jewish state” as a precondition for peace talks – despite the fact that such a recognition would mean the denial of the internationally recognized right of return of Palestinian refugees. This is a concession that Palestinian leaders say they do not have the right to make.This was basically his argument he replied with:
1. "Israel has never transfered its citizens to the Judea and Samaria region, they are choosing to live there, Israel's army is the one to destroy their houses."
2. "The land wasn't stolen in 1967. The lands were occupied from Jordan in 1967, a country we're in peace now and never reclaimed the lands in the peace process with them, unless you suggest Jorden IS Palestine (what makes the creation of another Arab country in those lands really unreasonable), there is no such thing as "stolen Palestinians land from 1967"
3. Well, that just show that 20 fighter jets can't buy our pride, something I guess you are not familiar with.
4. East Jerusalem is part of Jerusalem, our internal and historical capital. It was our capital long before Washington was American. The Palestinians already have a capital- Ramallah.
5.look what we ask and what they ask- we ask only recognition (and it wasn't precondition for peace talks, it was part of the peace talks. The only ones who demanded things before we started to talk are the Palestinians), they ask from us to remove 500,000 people by force, and this is before signing the peace agreements. Sorry, but this is very unreasonable, idiotic and no other country would think of agreeing such thing. The rule is very simple- you want peace? you and I need to settle down about our demands. Israel has settled down enough by freezing for 10 months people's homes and going out from Gaza with no reclaiminations 6 years ago. Why didn't they start talking right away with us? why we needed to beg them to sit and talk for 9 months? I'll tell you why- they don't want to talk, 10 months are too long, so they waitted for 9 months claiming stupid excuses and after one month they had the excuse to bracke the talks off. Very simple. What promise us they won't do it again if we freeze the buildings for 6 months? Nothing, absolutely NOTHING.
Bottom line- I don't care about the Palestinians, and it seems they don't care about them either. It is their interest to have a country, not Israel's. THEY need to beg US to sit and talk with THEM, not vaice versa. I already have a country. How can I respond back to him point by point? and what's the best website to get information like this?