Soccer Dad

Cairo nostalgia

David Ignatius wrote two weeks ago that the message of President Obama's Cairo speech is as important as ever. Specifically:

But in truth, the strategy that Obama proposed in Cairo is more important now than ever. Critics speak as if peacemaking and battling Muslim extremism should be seen as an either/or proposition. What Obama understood a year ago is that the two are linked. The best way to undercut extremists in Iran or al-Qaeda is to make progress on issues that matter to the Muslim world. Guns alone won't do it; if it were otherwise, the Israelis would have battled their way to peace long ago.

Except consider Israel's experience. Israeli withdrew from six Palestinian cities in late 1995 and two months later was hit with series of suicide attacks. Israel withdrew from Lebanon in 2000 only to face a Hezbollah buildup and war in 2006. And Israel's withdrawal from Gaza in 2005 led to sustained rocket attacks on southern Israel and eventually a war with Hamas a year ago.

On the other hand, since Operation Defensive Shield and the building of the anti-terror wall, attacks from Judea and Samaria against Israel have decreased sharply.

In other words, recent history shows that fighting back, does help reduce terror. Peace making doesn't have such a good record.

At the time of the Cairo speech Barry Rubin wrote:

While Obama might have said it in a different way, his words echo those of the last five American presidents. In the way he argues, however, Obama reveals his weakness in dealing with these issues. First he says--and this sounds wonderful to Western ears:

"Palestinians must abandon violence. Resistance through violence and killing is wrong and it does not succeed," citing the American civil rights' movement as example. This sounds noble but it is silly because it ignores the social and ideological context.

Fatah believes it got control of the West Bank and leadership of the Palestinian people through violence and killing. Hamas in Gaza; Hizballah and Syria in Lebanon; and Iran's Islamist regime as well as the Muslim Brotherhoods believe that "resistance" works.

From the standpoint of Palestinian leaders, violence and killing are not failures. Moreover, violence and killing are commensurate with the goal of the overwhelming majority of the Palestinian leadership, which is total victory. Their main alternative "peaceful" strategy is the demand--shared by Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas--that pretty much all Palestinians who wish to do so must be allowed to live in Israel. A formula for more violence and killing.

For David Ignatius, addressing the grievances of the Muslim world is a prerequisite for peace. Experience has shown otherwise - prioritizing those grievances hardens the positions of the West's Islamic enemies.

Crossposted on Yourish.