Israel Stumbles by Destroying Mosque
I open my morning newspaper -- make that my afternoon Internet -- and what do I find? Israel has demolished a mosque, the only mosque in Mafqarra Village. Oh, my friend, the Jew, do not do this thing, I cry. Then, I read on, learning the mosque was built without a permit. The Arabs were thumbing their noses at Israel, then, and the Israelis simply said, No, everyone has to have a permit, you included.
But, tearing the mosque altogether down somehow seems a little much. Did they give warning? Did they do everything they could to get the Arabs to get a permit? Could they have perhaps locked off access to the building, until a permit was applied for? Couldn't something been done less harsh than tearing the whole building down?
There are two reasons Israel should not have torn down the mosque. One, that is not the way to treat another people. Two, this isn't going to gain you favor in the eyes of the world. Destroying a mosque? No, that won't go over well.
Not that Israel was not within its rights. The Oslo Peace Accords do grant administrative control of Area C (the accords divided the West Bank into Areas A, B and C) to the Israelis.
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