Jerusalem Bomb Blast kills 20

[jiml1126]

A suicide bomber killed 20 people and injured 136 others on a Jerusalem bus, rescue services and police said Tuesday night. Israeli officials said "many children" were aboard the bus. The Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility. Israel suspended talks on withdrawing from Palestinian cities in the wake of the bombing.


Updated on August 19

[herpa2003]

Those morons...Israel needs to respond somehow now. This may have killed the road map to peace.

[B757300]

Those morons...Israel needs to respond somehow now. This may have killed the road map to peace.

The "road map" never had a chance and this is one thing I do not agree with Bush on. Peace can only happen when both sides want it. The Palestinians don't want it and never will. All they want is to kill every Jew in the Middle East.

[duplix]

Maybe the jews could be given a new promised land in the states. That way, they wont anymore problems with palestines. What do you think, why not give Florida to them. (oh, sry, I guess its not your call, We Europeans give Florida to the jews - and we dont expect any opposition from locals)

Somewhat more serious now: the jews are in Palestine, they should not have been there, but they are, and are there to stay. Both palestines and Israel should try to make peace, because that is the only way to end the killing of both palistines and jews.

Problem is both sides have become religious fundamentalists. The jews (not all of them, but some hard core conservatives, unluckily in charge now) will only be satisfied if they restore the original territory of "Israel", hence they found "illegal" settlement in occupied territory. The palestinian case is somewhat more complicated (a lot of the resentment there has been triggered by Israel), but they have their share of fundamentalists. For them, destroying Israel has become almost a religion.

With these people, I dont see how peace will be possible. So the road map was doomed before it was written. But that does not mean we shouldnt try.

Tim

[Greg]

They can have California.

[mikecweb]

What do you think, why not give Florida to them. (oh, sry, I guess its not your call, We Europeans give Florida to the jews - and we dont expect any opposition from locals)

NO

[herpa2003]

Maybe the jews could be given a new promised land in the states. That way, they wont anymore problems with palestines. What do you think, why not give Florida to them. (oh, sry, I guess its not your call, We Europeans give Florida to the jews - and we dont expect any opposition from locals)

Sure, send them to the USA. I'm serious, we have more than enough room for them. Of course, they would probably all be unemployed, and the USA is not what they would call the holy land, but at least we wouldn't try to kill them.

Really, I think when Israel was created it should have been in Europe. Maybe half of Germany should have been given to the Jews.

[Myblock]

Really, I think when Israel was created it should have been in Europe. Maybe half of Germany should have been given to the Jews.

That actually makes alot of sense. Maybe not half of Germany but maybe like about the size of 20% of it. In all truth Israel shouldn't be where it is. Those asshole Brits in charge promised the Palestinians their own country if they helped in fighting against the Germans in the war, the Palestinians fulfilled their part of the bargain....then they lose their country?

[lesenterbang]

I'm surprised that a lot of people understand the root cause of the terrorism problem nowadays. Unfortunately not American politicians.

America is doing the right thing in fighting terrorism. But they must also stop supporting terrorists.

I love the USA. Lived there for 5 years in the mid 80s.

Can't imagine going back there in the current condition.

[iceman]

I have a question. When Syria massacred (at least) 20,000 Palestinians in Hama, where was the outrage then? Why isn't there any outrage over it now? As bad as the Israelis may treat the Palestinians, their Arab "bretheren" treat them far, far, far worse. Of course, you never hear about it.

Kinda makes me wonder what all the fuss is about and if it's really about the Palestinians getting a "raw deal" and not something else. If people were really concerned about the Palestinians, shouldn't they also be protesting their treatment by their fellow Arab "brothers"?

Also, notice that Palestinian Christians (and people tend to forget that not all Arabs are Muslim) don't have such a big problem with Israel or Jews in general? They get along pretty well. It's just these Islamic fundamentalists. I have a hard time believing it's really about land and not something else.

Some food for thought.

[jwenting]

I have a question. When Syria massacred (at least) 20,000 Palestinians in Hama, where was the outrage then? Why isn't there any outrage over it now? As bad as the Israelis may treat the Palestinians, their Arab "bretheren" treat them far, far, far worse. Of course, you never hear about it.

Because that is actively suppressed. Makes the Arabs look bad which they don't like and might make them cause another oil crisis.
Same reason why the French cut off supplies to Israel shortly before the Arabs attacked them in the 1970s, why the UN has forgotten that they apointed the West Bank to Israel in 1947 (only to have it invaded and captured without UN response in 194.
Anti-semitism/anti-Israelism is a nice way to show the Arabs you like them, which is good for your oil supply.

Personally I fully agree with the Syrian action. It eridicated the PLO in Syria as a terrorist group. They had been doing in Syria what they are doing now in Israel, in an attempt to topple the Syrian government and take over.
After that they went to Jordan where they tried the same until the Jordanian army kicked them over the border.
Then they tried it in the Lebanon and almost succeeded until Syria and Israel together nearly wiped them out (all the while fighting each other as well).
In Kuwait the Palestinians actively sided with Iraq in an attempt to get Saddam to give them the country as their own to rule.

Whereever Palestinians have settled they've only attacked and abused their hosts in an attempt to destroy that host and take his place...

Kinda makes me wonder what all the fuss is about and if it's really about the Palestinians getting a "raw deal" and not something else. If people were really concerned about the Palestinians, shouldn't they also be protesting their treatment by their fellow Arab "brothers"?

Also, notice that Palestinian Christians (and people tend to forget that not all Arabs are Muslim) don't have such a big problem with Israel or Jews in general? They get along pretty well. It's just these Islamic fundamentalists. I have a hard time believing it's really about land and not something else.

You make one mistake here, and that's in confusing Palestinians with Arabs. They're not, they're actually a mix of Arabs and ethnic Jews.
There are indeed Christian Arabs, who usually live quietly inside their communities side by side with Jews.
Most Muslims will tollerate them (though often not like them).
In Syria they're called Druzes, and live mostly on and near the Golan.

In fact, most Arabs these days have no problems with Israel (or if they do, it's not against Jews but against the holy sites of Jeruzalem not being under Muslim control).
The Q'uran lists the Jews together with Christians as inviolate, people not to be harmed just as a Muslim should not harm another Muslim.
When Mohammed had to flee persecution he was sheltered by Jews and Christians, which is why he forbade bringing harm to them.

Any Muslim killing a Christian or Jew except in direct self-defense is a heretic according to his own religion (though many don't know, as their priests (loosely using the name, they're political masters first) make good use of their illiteracy and never tell them that).

[Airigami]

Excellent analysis, jwenting.

[iceman]

Jeoren: I agree with most of your analysis, especially how you characterize the Palestinians. They’re not a separate group of Arabs as most people and the media will lead you to believe. Of course, not everyone agrees with that, but I have really yet to read anything definitive to prove that they are or have been a separate group of people. I would hate to see the reaction if I had put quotation marks around the word “Palestinian”.

Your characterization of the Druze is off, however. Druze is actually a completely separate religion, which has its base in Ismailism, which originated in Egypt. Over the years, they adopted customs from Islam and Hinduism and even Christianity and Judaism. But they are not Christians. Out of the three main religions in that region, Druze is indeed the youngest.

Actually, most Druze settled in Lebanon, where they make up about 5% of the population. There are some in Syria, but only because they were relocated there when the region was controlled by the Ottomans.

Generally, the Druze are more closed to others than Muslims, Christians and Jews and they form a very tight little community that few outsiders know much about.

With the Christian Arabs, it really varies. Most in Egypt are Coptic (which is an offshoot of Greek Orthodox); most in Lebanon are actually Catholic; and there are some Episcopalians spread throughout the Middle East. I believe most Palestinian Christians are Greek Orthodox.

[iceman]

I should also add that France tried to set up a Druze state after the fall of the Ottomans, but they failed. Who knows what that region would be like today had they succeeded.

[Leftseat86]

I should also add that France tried to set up a Druze state after the fall of the Ottomans, but they failed.

Will we ever succeed at anything???

-Clovis