Surrounded by enemies
I never understood the vast lengths that Israel has had to go to defend itself until I saw it firsthand.
Just like any Jew who went to religious school growing up, I’d learned bits and pieces about Israel’s fight for independence and the Yom Kippur War, and I followed the Second Intifada and the flotilla raid as they were happening. But the enormity of the situation and how it affects even everyday life never fully hit me until today.
I have no statistics to back this up, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Israel led the world in the usage of barbed wire, at least per capita. Yesterday, on our way from Ben-Gurion Airport to Tiberias, we passed a concrete building surrounded by barbed-wire fences and security cameras. I asked my friend next to me if she thought it was a prison. As the bus turned the corner and I was able to see the front of the facility, I realized it was an engineering building at Tel Aviv University.
Today, we traveled up north to the Golan Heights, and I had the opportunity to see the Syrian and Jordanian borders. They were also lined with barbed wire, but that didn’t strike me as odd. I’ve never been to the U.S.-Mexican border, but given the debates we’ve had as to whether we should build a wall there, I was unfazed by a fence that wasn’t more than a few meters high.
What really caught my attention, however, were the square stone blocks strategically placed all over the area so that tanks couldn’t traverse the land (modern tanks can easily climb over these stones, but older models can’t), as well as the numerous bunkers that we drove by. The fences that warn trespassers of potential landmines was also nerve-racking, although our tour guide told us that those mines were placed there pre-1967, when the Golan Heights was part of Syria. Can you imagine living in a place where you had to deal with landmine hazards on a daily basis?
Our tour guide also explained to us that in the event of a surprise attack, Israel’s army reserve unit can be mobilized in 12 hours. He said that one of the major reasons Israel refuses to return the Golan Heights to Syria – the reason why the two countries are still not at peace – is because Syria wants to border Israel at the Sea of Galilee. The Sea of Galilee provides about one-quarter of Israel’s water supply, and if the two countries shared that border and ever went to war again, Syria could easily poison or otherwise contaminate that water.
With the revolt in Egypt, we’re all wondering how that may change its relationship with Israel. Imagine the potential for disaster right now if Egypt bordered one of Israel’s major water supplies.
We explore an Israeli bunker in the Golan Heights, which borders Jordan and Syria.
01 Feb, 2011 >
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Israel's refusal to give back the Golan Heights to Syria is NOT the reason there is no peace. When Syria had the Golan, there was no peace. The Golan has nothing to do with the question of peace. The reasons for no peace have not changed. NO MOSLEM COUNTRY is willing to make peace with Israel because making peace would involve recognizing Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state. No Moslem country recognizes that right because the Koran and Muhammad say that Moslems must make war on the Jews, subjugate them and kill them.
CG - 27 May, 2011 - 00:29:34
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