THE beauty of life lies in its complexity and the plurality of voices that shape our discourse.
THE beauty of life lies in its complexity and the plurality of voices that shape our discourse.
It is admirable to be resolute and to stand your ground when fighting for a principle but when looking at the Middle East conflict this virtue is a vice.
It is precisely because both sides are following their convictions that the gulf between them is widening.
Attitudes have hardened and at this point there seems to be no way out of this bottomless pit.
What I do find equally fascinating and chilling about this conflict that has pitted Palestinians against Israelis is that the same discredited methods of blockades, violence and inflamed rhetoric that has been used for decades continue even though they have not produced any constructive results.
The bloodshed has only engendered more bloodshed and suffering.
Surely if there was a point to all the fighting and killing, the crisis would have been solved.
It is astonishing how adults who have the destiny of their people in their hands have continued to implement the same disastrous solutions with the same devastating result.
After so many years of human rights abuses, atrocities and disengagement, they are no closer to finding a solution, yet they continue to employ the same tactics and hope for a different outcome.
It is absurd really because no one side has totally vanquished the other yet the human loss has been astronomical and sustained. When is it all going to end?
The world's response to this deadly war has oscillated between involvement and indifference.
I cannot blame those who have eventually tired and adopted an indifferent approach to this.
How long can the entire world be paralysed over this one issue?
Of course it is complicated, but when both sides have such disparate positions and show unwillingness to compromise, what is the rest of the world supposed to do?
Also, involvement has sometimes been part of the problem where nations like the US show a bias to one side and thus do not enjoy the trust of all stakeholders.
Indifference has also been a better option to aiding and abetting one state by supplying it with arms. There is just no way that the US can be a fair mediator if it continues its arms trade with Israel.
Equally, states that are contributing to any Palestinian side's military capacity cannot be impartial and honest brokers in this conflict. It is akin to saying: "You folks must stop killing each other but I will supply you with weapons to kill."
Even the debate about nuclear weapons is so polluted. The world is supposed to believe that Iran or any other nation's nuclear programme is a threat to world security yet Israel's nuclear weapons are alleged to be an outgrowth of its sense of being besieged.
We must condemn both, equally and consistently.
The politics of hatred and separation prove without a shadow of a doubt that mankind's capacity to destroy knows no bounds.
If we all set our minds to it, we can destroy each other and raise generations of bloodthirsty children whose actions will beget more savagery and brutality.
I wonder, though, if we should accept that some wars are just not meant to end. When it comes to the Middle East, it seems to me that both sides have reached a point where living without this pain and suffering is in itself unbearable. The hostility and wretchedness of it all have become such a part of their DNA that a different life of peace and stability is unfathomable, even unwelcomed.
Many attempts have been made to broker a two-state solution, which would entail the creation of an independent Palestinian state alongside an independent Jewish state.
But over the years, both sides seem intent on both obliterating each other and claiming victimhood.
A hallmark of the conflict has been the level of violence witnessed for virtually its entire duration. Fighting has been conducted by regular armies, paramilitary groups, terror cells and individuals.
Casualties have not been restricted to the military, with a large number of fatalities in civilian populations.
Perhaps the world should accept that the barriers built between the two groups may never come down.
MIDEAST WAR IS POINTLESS
THE beauty of life lies in its complexity and the plurality of voices that shape our discourse.
THE beauty of life lies in its complexity and the plurality of voices that shape our discourse.
It is admirable to be resolute and to stand your ground when fighting for a principle but when looking at the Middle East conflict this virtue is a vice.
It is precisely because both sides are following their convictions that the gulf between them is widening.
Attitudes have hardened and at this point there seems to be no way out of this bottomless pit.
What I do find equally fascinating and chilling about this conflict that has pitted Palestinians against Israelis is that the same discredited methods of blockades, violence and inflamed rhetoric that has been used for decades continue even though they have not produced any constructive results.
The bloodshed has only engendered more bloodshed and suffering.
Surely if there was a point to all the fighting and killing, the crisis would have been solved.
It is astonishing how adults who have the destiny of their people in their hands have continued to implement the same disastrous solutions with the same devastating result.
After so many years of human rights abuses, atrocities and disengagement, they are no closer to finding a solution, yet they continue to employ the same tactics and hope for a different outcome.
It is absurd really because no one side has totally vanquished the other yet the human loss has been astronomical and sustained. When is it all going to end?
The world's response to this deadly war has oscillated between involvement and indifference.
I cannot blame those who have eventually tired and adopted an indifferent approach to this.
How long can the entire world be paralysed over this one issue?
Of course it is complicated, but when both sides have such disparate positions and show unwillingness to compromise, what is the rest of the world supposed to do?
Also, involvement has sometimes been part of the problem where nations like the US show a bias to one side and thus do not enjoy the trust of all stakeholders.
Indifference has also been a better option to aiding and abetting one state by supplying it with arms. There is just no way that the US can be a fair mediator if it continues its arms trade with Israel.
Equally, states that are contributing to any Palestinian side's military capacity cannot be impartial and honest brokers in this conflict. It is akin to saying: "You folks must stop killing each other but I will supply you with weapons to kill."
Even the debate about nuclear weapons is so polluted. The world is supposed to believe that Iran or any other nation's nuclear programme is a threat to world security yet Israel's nuclear weapons are alleged to be an outgrowth of its sense of being besieged.
We must condemn both, equally and consistently.
The politics of hatred and separation prove without a shadow of a doubt that mankind's capacity to destroy knows no bounds.
If we all set our minds to it, we can destroy each other and raise generations of bloodthirsty children whose actions will beget more savagery and brutality.
I wonder, though, if we should accept that some wars are just not meant to end. When it comes to the Middle East, it seems to me that both sides have reached a point where living without this pain and suffering is in itself unbearable. The hostility and wretchedness of it all have become such a part of their DNA that a different life of peace and stability is unfathomable, even unwelcomed.
Many attempts have been made to broker a two-state solution, which would entail the creation of an independent Palestinian state alongside an independent Jewish state.
But over the years, both sides seem intent on both obliterating each other and claiming victimhood.
A hallmark of the conflict has been the level of violence witnessed for virtually its entire duration. Fighting has been conducted by regular armies, paramilitary groups, terror cells and individuals.
Casualties have not been restricted to the military, with a large number of fatalities in civilian populations.
Perhaps the world should accept that the barriers built between the two groups may never come down.