I see the tunnels in Gaza as an expression of a people that are striving to survive. Israel often makes the claim that the main purpose of the tunnels is to smuggle weapons into Gaza or to kidnap Israeli soldiers. While the tunnels have been used from each of these purposes, the primary purpose for [...]
Israel Proper means the same thing as Green Line Israel. It is the land that Israel controlled after the 1948 war. People use the term Israel Proper to differentiate between Israel and the occupied territories (West Bank, Sinai, Gaza Strip, and the Golan Heights).
The term “Green Line Israel” refers to the territory that was considered Israel after the 1948 War of Independence. You might hear the term “Israel Proper” which means exactly the same thing. The Green Line is sometimes referred to as the “Armistice Line” of the 1948 war. These terms are usually used when referring to [...]
The land that Israel controlled after their War of Independence of 1948 is referred to as “Green Line Israel” or “Israel Proper”. As you can see from the following map, Green Line Israel is all of what we consider Israel today minus the West Bank, Golan Heights, and Gaza.
A map of “Green Line Israel” or [...]
This map shows what is referred to as the West Bank. The term literally means “the land that is on the West Bank of the Jordan River”. In 1948, there was a war between the Jews and the Palestinians in Palestine. The Jews won this war and refer to it as their War of Independence. [...]
Any type of understanding of the current conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians needs to start with an understanding of what Zionism is.
Throughout history, Jews in Europe have been persecuted. They have lived in countries that are not their own and have often been the scapegoats when things were going badly politically. In the [...]
“The values of democracy, brotherhood and freedom that constitute the building blocks of American society are also shared by Israeli society, together with the faith in man’s power and ability to change and influence his surroundings.”
Ehud Olmert
(On the occasion of the U.S. Presidential Inauguration)
In light of the events of the last week, Ehud Olmert’s statement [...]
In their article entitled, “Israel’s Defensive Mission”, Rachel Goldstein and Daniel Newmann make a compelling case for the justice of Israel’s continued military action in Gaza. Unfortunately, their arguments are based on worn out claims that lack factual backing.
Goldstein and Newmann make the claim that Hamas “continually disregarded” the six month ceasefire between Hamas and [...]