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Barry Shaw made Aliyah from England in the 1970s, is manager of Netanya Real Estate, and founder of the Netanya Terror Victims Fund. He is the author of "The View from Here" series of commentaries from Israel.
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By Barry Shaw
February 16, 2005
Am I the only person in this world who noticed it?
We have had years of Palestinian lies turned into facts and excuses by a naive and willing Western media.
For years the media bought the lie that Arafat was unable to deploy security forces in Palestinian-held territories because of Israeli occupation, because of Israeli checkposts, because he didn't have the manpower, because he didn't have the weaponry, etc. etc. etc.
Arafat was the powerful charismatic figure that held the Palestinian movement together for decades. Yet the world portrayed him as being impotent to act due to Israeli oppression.
Well, Israel didn't do a thing. Yet, within three hours of being elected, Abu Mazen deployed 30,000 armed men to restore calm. And suddenly, low and behold, silence! (At least for one day.)
Hello out there! Perhaps you can now apologize for decades of falsely demonizing and accusing Israel of wrongdoing ?
And how about the lies you spread about Israel creating the poverty of the Palestinians? Just today I read that the IMF reckon that Arafat and the other corrupt leaders of the poor Palestinians siphoned off $900,000,000 from the Palestinian budget -- and that was only between 1995 and 2000. What about the billions in aid that vanished since then?
The financial magicians that performed this disappearing trick were not Israelis.
They were the Palestinian leaders, many of whom are sitting in Abu Mazen's current cabinet.
With facts like this people like Tim Sebastian, of BBC 'Hardtalk' fame, sound grossly one-sided when
they do not challenge Palestinian leaders on this point, but merrily accuse Israel of causing poverty and starvation by uprooting a few olive trees.
Give me a break!
Diplomats like Chris Patten would eagerly investigate Israel for any wrongdoing, but when asked to investigate his EU Commissions lousy accountability of European tax payers money to a corrupt and wealthy Palestinian regime he said, and I quote "I need an investigation like I need a hole
in the head!"
And you wonder why the Palestinians are poor? They have been granted more funding, more aid, than most of Africa.
Now we come to the biggest lie of all. The 'cycle of violence'. Sorry folks, but this cycle just developed a puncture! Am I the only person in the world that noticed that when the Palestinian terror groups decided to stop blowing up Israelis the Middle East went quiet and peaceful?
Of course, we all know this won't last. The itchy Palestinian trigger finger couldn't long resist
lobbing mortars and rockets into Israel.
The Western media didn't think to mention this. After all fifty lethal rockets fired into Israeli towns
doesn't make news.
Only if the IDF pursues the maniacs that deal in death will you hear protests in your media.
Last but not least:
At a time when steps are being taken to close down Hamas fund raisingactivities in Britain and America, Abbas has chosen to release funds to this terrorist organisation.
Huge sums of money have been frozen in Palestinian banks at the behest of the US Administration. Now Abu Mazen has chosen to release this money to Hamas, even as the US says that it will vastly expanding funding to the PA.
Hamas has been responsible for gruesome terror attacks against innocent Israelis. Among them were the Passover Massacre at Netanya's Park Hotel, the homicide bombing at Netanya's Sharon Shopping Mall, the homicide bombing at Netanya's local market, the shooting of Shabbat worshippers at Netanya's Jeremy Hotel. That's just one city, my city.
When Hamas claim that they perform humnaitarian activities in the territories what they mean is that they give money, not only to the terrorist operators and for the explosives, but that they also give money to the families of the homicide bombers or terrorists captured or killed during their brutal acts against innocent civilians.
Hamas has been officially declared as a terrorist organisation. As long as it is armed, as long
as Hamas vows to destroy Israel, as long as Hamas is still receiving weapons through Egyptian tunnels, as long as Hamas is recruiting and training future terrorists, as long as Hamas remains a terrorist organisation, no funds should be given to them.
The declared aim of Abu Mazen to allow this terrorist organisation to continue is the stupid act of someone appeasing a terror gang. It is we, the Israelis, who will pay the price. One more that will cost more Israeli lives.
So, don't give me any more of your lies. We've had enough. We know the truth, and the price is too high.
Views expressed by the author do not
necessarily reflect those of israelinsider.
 
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