Article: Wanted! For Mission Impossible

Whenever Israel defends herself there are the outcries of "disproportionate" and "this won't help the peace process". Everyone apparently knows better – so why isn’t anyone offering to do a better job? As the saying goes, ‘If you want a job done well, do it yourself’.

So who will volunteer for this "Mission Impossible," and show Israel how to fight Islamic terrorists without killing too many terrorists, or adding civilian casualties to the death toll? (Of course, the volunteer will have to take into account that the civilian casualties are inevitable given the nature of Islamic terrorists to hide among civilians in order to increase victims.)

Perhaps the UN could do a better job. There again, would a bureaucracy that hasn't even managed to define terrorism be able to fight it better than Israel, which probably has the most experience of any country in fighting Islamic terrorism?I seriously wonder what all those who are sure they know better than Israel think that Israel should do in response to Islamic terror. Clearly doing nothing is not an option - for years Israel has suffered rocket attacks and done very little in response, and all that has done is increase the number of rocket launches and embolden the terrorists to upgrade their weaponry. And that old favorite cliche "end the occupation" is obviously a no-brainer since ending the occupation in Gaza has only increased Palestinian violence, and there is no indication from the Palestinians themselves that the end of occupation would mean the end of conflict or the end of terror.So, perhaps Israel should try a more proportionate response. I can only imagine the global congratulatory cries of "what a proportionate response" when Israel launches a suicide bomber into a Palestinian cafe in response to a similar attack from the Palestinians. Or there is another alternative. Israel could build a physical barrier to stop Palestinian terrorists reaching Israeli civilian populations. What a brilliant idea - no-one dies from a mere wall and terror is reduced or even stopped. The world would be chomping at the bit to embrace a non-violent effective measure in preference to death and destruction. Nope. The world rushed to condemn the anti-terrorist barrier, ignoring the statistics proving it to be effective in eliminating terror. (Yes, it was inconvenient to Palestinian farmers etc. but just imagine the inconvenience of being blown up while riding on a bus.)Clearly the international community must have a better solution to the problem - presumably the infamous Road Map. The "only" problem with this is that one of the first things it requires is for the Palestinians to fight terrorism. However, the Palestinians elected Hamas – who are more interested in conducting terror that fighting it. After all the years the international community dedicated to trying to get them a state the Palestinians thanked the world by (democratically!) voting for an Islamic terrorist group which outrightly rejects a peaceful solution in its covenant.

So what would I suggest the world should do? Well, as a mere "Joe the Plumber" of the Israeli-Arab conflict, I suggest recalling that there is a global war on terror, and that Israel is on the front lines of this battle, fighting alone. Zero tolerance for terrorism against Israel would be a good start. If the Palestinians have enough money to buy rockets they have enough money to buy their own food - they don't need your money too.

As for promoting the two state solution – wait until the Palestinians demonstrate that they are worthy of their own state and the responsibilities that entails. Groveling to them with a carrot and a stick has failed miserably, only cementing the concept that they will receive a state despite continuing terrorism. The international community has given the Palestinians no motive to fight terrorism - indicating that they can have their cake and eat it too, and then visit the dessert tray. The time has surely come for the onus to be put on the Palestinians.

Lastly, how about supporting Israel in its efforts to fight Islamic terror? Solving the problem of Palestinian terror is key to solving the global problem of Islamic terror. Any suggestion for improving Israel's methods is welcome, but for those who have no constructive criticism, but merely criticism, you are more than welcome to come and do the job yourself.