Israel's relations with its neighbours (Part 2)

 Israel's relations with its neighbours

(Part 2)

Friends, in India we often talk about the rising and spreading of Radical Islam with a sense of deep concern and fear.

Any news of a bomb blast or a terror attack anywhere in the country sets a cat free amongst the pigeons.

People express shock and anger over such brutal attacks and we roundly condemn Pakistan for exporting terror to India.

Imagine what would happen if such things become a recurring act - at anytime, anyday?

Imagine, what it would mean to live in a country that is pitchforked in between 10 Moslem countries - all baying for your blood - wanting to wipe your existence from the face of the earth.

It is a testimony of the bravery and gallantry of the Jewish people that they have survived in such difficult conditions for the past 70 years and built such a beautiful country Israel, out of nothing.

The Arab world had attacked Israel the day it was formed in 1948 and wanted to finish it off.

Israel didn't chicken out like India did and nor run to the United Nations to help resolve the issue (unlike India in 1948 over the Kashmir issue).

Israel hit back and defeated the Arabs and drove out the Palestinian Arabs from their country and since then, Israel is addressing all peace talks from a position of strength.

Israel defeated Egypt, Jordan, Syria in the 6 day war in 1967 and seized land from each of these countries and again in the Yom Kippur war in 1973.

Sinai Desert from Egypt, West Bank from Jordan, Golan Heights from Syria and 20% land near the border from Lebanon.

All this later helped its foreign policy which was shaped as bartering land for peace.

Strong on patriotism

The Jewish people have a strong sense of patriotism and love for their country.

Their motto has been to punish everyone who have tried to harm their nation and people.

They tracked down Adolf Eichmann to Argentina, brought him back and punished him for his role in the Holocaust.

When Idi Amin hijacked their plane to Entebbe, they made a daredevil rescue attempt to Uganda and freed their people.

Israel nailed every terrorist who had played part in the massacre of their athletes in the Munich Olympics.

They bombed the Nuclear reactor of Iraq which could have posed a threat to their security.

Also, it has been Israeli policy to create buffer zones in lands seized by them from other countries and safe guard its citizens.

So let us have a look at how are Israel's relations with the rest of its neighbors (Egypt, we have covered extensively seperately).

● Jordan: 

Israel's eastern neighbour has a peace treaty with Israel and yet houses the biggest concentration of Palestinian refugees. Jordan gets most of it's water sources from Israel, and Israel allows Jordanian planes to fly over its territory. Jordan is also the one of Israel's neighbors where Palestinians have full citizenship rights . Despite this, many refugees are shoved into crowded camps and are often poorly treated, which is why Palestinians are skeptical of Jordan's claim to support the Palestinian cause.

Jordan has developed a positive trade relationship with Israel and the United States while at the same time working with its Arab neighbors to access oil and to maintain a civil state of affairs.

● Syria: 

The Syrian government is still quite hostile to Israel. Syria is aligned with Iran, Israel's greatest adversary in the region today. Syria also wants back the Golan Heights, militarily useful land Israel seized and annexed during their 1967 war. Israel quietly supports Assad, and treats (medically) a few hundred injured Syrians every year, in Israel.

Syria holds great political significance; its strategic location between Iraq and Israel makes it is a vital player in any solution for lasting peace in the Middle East.

● Lebanon: 

Lebanon is home to Hezbollah , an anti Israel Shia islamist group funded by Iran. So the relations between Israel and Lebanon are clear here. Most Israelis have pity on Lebanon because of the complete take over of the country by Hezbollah militants.

Lebanon is a diverse country with a large number of religious groups that dominate the cultural and political scene. The physical geography includes the Lebanon Mountains, the Bekaa Valley, and the Mediterranean coast.

Lebanon holds a unique location and position in the Middle East that will remain a focus of interest to the rest of the world.

● Iraq:

Iraq does not recognize Israel and consequently the two countries do not have any formal diplomatic relations. Iraq declared war on the newly established Jewish state in 1948 and since then the two countries have technically been in a state of war. 

● Iran: 

The Iranian government believes Israel is fundamentally illegitimate and supports the most hard-line anti-Israeli Arab factions. Israel sees Iran as a direct and existential threat, as it has provided significant military and ●financial backing to Hezbollah, Hamas, and Syria — the so-called threats to Israeli and Western interests in the Middle East.

● Turkey: 

Turkey has been on good terms with Israel, but of late it has become increasingly pro-Palestinian in recent years. Its Islamist Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has positioned himself as a champion for Palestinian cause for ideological, domestic, and geopolitical reasons. Israeli-Turkish conflict over Gaza severed diplomatic relations between the two countries for years. They renormalized in 2016, but the relations are still fragile.

● Saudi Arabia: 

The kingdom donates millions of dollars to the Palestinian Authority and is the driving force behind an Arab League floated as an alternative to traditional Israeli-Palestinian negotiations. Though Saudi Arabia has yet to recognize Israel, the two nations' mutual hostility toward Iran has led to an unprecedented working relationship between the Saudi Arabia and Israeli governments.

● Cyprus: 

Cyprus still suffers from the illegal invasion of Turkey in 1974. Most of Cyprus is still invaded by the Turkish army yet Cyprus maintains a close relationship with Israel. The military exports of Israel goes to Arab and African countries via Cyprus.

(End of Part 2)

@ Dayanand Nene

(With Media inputs)