by Justine Hemmestad, with help from Major Itamar Ben David
Most Israelis don’t understand what Uti possidetis juris entails, says Major Itamar Ben David, nor does the world at large for that matter. Basically, Ben David continues, “Gaza and the West Bank belong to Israel according to international law.” This is so because “Israel was the only political entity that declared independence in 1948, a few hours before the British mandate ended.” Stated plainly, “It means that Israel inherits the borders of the British mandate.” Delving deeper into this paradigm, I wonder why international law concerning the British mandate was not carried out at the time. Do things according to law, and the outcome is supposed to be according to that law. Why is this important and how does it affect Israel and its closest ally, America? President Truman was the first world leader to officially recognize the state of Israel on May 14, 1948, only 11 minutes after its creation. Today, however, it seems to Major Ben David that the current American administration only sees Israel according to the 1993 Oslo Accords, which he, and the majority of Israel, knows is a dead end. In a discussion about Washington’s stubbornness regarding the conditions of the Oslo Accords, JNS Senior Contributing Editor Caroline Glick, and Law Professor and Director of the Center for the Middle East and International Law at the Antonin Scalia Law School of George Mason University, Eugene Kontorovich, the current U.S. Administration’s abuse of power against the Jewish state comes to light. Compounded by the international efforts of the United Nations, International Criminal Court, and International Court of Justice to delegitimize Israel - after Israel was attacked by terrorism - doesn’t make sense. Instead of recognizing Israel’s right to exist as in 1948, America has placed sanctions on Israelis. Sanctions are usually re- served for terror states, or the worst of the worst. Rather, sanctions are currently used against Israel, an ally, in the midst of Israel’s fight for survival. Sanctions, Glick ex- plains, are extreme measures that result in all banking being frozen. 13 Israelis have been sanctioned since August. She notes that this is more than Iran, and Washington isn’t even enforcing anti-Iranian sanctions. Even Israelis who were engaged in speech pro- test were sanctioned, and even American citizens who were protesting against delivery of aid to Hamas are being sanctioned. All aid delivered in the region ends up monopolized by Hamas, empowering them to keep the Israeli hostages and continue fighting. Even the head of an Israeli security team was sanctioned. An Israeli who defends his family from stone-throwing has to weigh whether he should protect his family versus the weight of US sanctions is his protection is taken out of context on camera. This sanctioning of Israelis puts Israel into a different category than any other western democracy, Glick and Kontorovich point out. “In Israel every- one is related by one degree, which is grounds for sanctioning by proxy.” In spite of this or because of it, they say, “this administration has de- moted Israel as a result of de- fending itself from Hamas.” Major Ben David further says, “You can’t expect Israel to get the hostages while this administration constantly shows hostility to Israel’s national security interests. Our enemies see that and lick their fingers.” The true reason for the sanctions may reside in what the media, who controls public perception, disseminates. In reality, acts of violence against Palestinians are only a shadow of the actual Palestinian violence. Rather, “They’re calling our self-defence genocide.” Vlogger Tamar Meisels gets specific when she reveals of Israel’s northern threat, “Hezbolla wants to make the entire Middle East a Muslim Shiite place; they’re trying to use psychological war, trying to create terror.” Putting this into an American context which may make the assertion clearer, 20 year old Mohamed Shahzeb Kahn’s intention to carry out a mass shooting in Brooklyn was uncovered on September 7. Khan planned his target date as the anniversary of October 7. Kahn was noted as saying, “New York is perfect to choose because it has the largest Jewish population in America. If we succeeded with our plan, this should be the largest attack on US soil since 9/11.” The Chabad Lubavitch World Headquarters on Eastern Parkway was his alleged target. Rabbi Potasnik said of the plot, “I can’t understand, after the horror of October 7, how we can go through this.” This foiled attempt on a New York Jewish community brings the sanctioning of the U.S. government on Israelis into focus. What would have happened if police hadn’t caught the NY terrorist plot, but instead it was up to the NY Jewish community to stop him. And if they had stopped it, and were on camera stopping it, they may be accused of exactly what Israelis who are protecting their families are accused of. Though security will doubt- less be heightened in NY, Rabbi Potasnik added, “Jewish New Yorkers will continue to do what we always do.” Major Ben David similarly cites Jewish and Israeli resilience. One of his friends is five months pregnant for the first time, in her mid30s, highly educated, and has served in the past as a combat soldier in a rescue unit of the home front command, though she’s now serving in an office job more suitable to her situation, thanks to Major Ben David. She’ll serve until she’s close to giving birth, just as she’s determined to do. With his friend’s resolve in mind, Ben David explains why, “Israelis are so upset with our incompetent leadership. The Millennials and Gen Z of Israel are made of reinforced steel,” he says. “The future leaders of Israel…will probably set an example for many other countries.” Israelis will display, “strong Jewish identity, knowledge, and respect to Jewish history and tradition.” Ben David also plainly states the challenge facing his nation when he says, “The next elections in Israel are two years away. At the moment, it doesn’t seem like this government is going anywhere.” But he leads with questions: “Can Israel survive this slow bleeding that our enemies are imposing on us? Can we survive a hostage deal that will stop the war with Hamas in its place? Can Israelis mature and abandon values that are considered part of our DNA in order to win the war against Jihad? Can the next generation of leadership organize fast enough in order to set a new social contract between the government and the citizens?” I think of Major Ben David when Meisels also says of Israelis, “One of the things that really helps Israelis to deal with it is through humor.” She says how many jokes there are about Hezbolla’s threats. But she says, “Just knowing that we’re all in this together…humor is one of the most therapeutic things. Laughing about it really helps.”
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