For The Sake of Its Own Virtue, Palestinian Resistance Must Spare CiviliansBy Ramzy BaroudPalestinian resistance factions must desist from targeting Israeli civilians, with or without an officially bargained ceasefire and regardless of the course of action chosen by Israel and its reckless government in response. This decision is imperative if the Palestinian struggle is to safeguard its historic values and uphold its moral pre-eminence.
"It is amiss, for the occupied to utilize the unmerited ways of the occupier"
For some, such reasoning may come into view as morally inconsistent, one-sided even; after all, the Israeli army continues to target civilians unhindered, so why deny Palestinians the right to retaliate?
Palestinians possess the legitimate right of self-defense, and the unequivocal right of ridding themselves of a lengthy and vile occupation. These rights are recurrently highlighted in international law and require little debate or intellectual tussling. But it is amiss, for the occupied - who surely possess the moral edge - to utilize the unmerited ways of the occupier. International law makes a clear distinction, as should Palestinian resistance, between occupying military forces and civilians. If Palestinians waver from this crucial line of reasoning, their historically virtuous struggle risks being diluted with moral corruption.
The Palestinian revolution, with its formerly unrefined armed resistance, sprung from the orchards of Jenin as early as the 1920’s. It was, and remains a freedom vow, a cry for justice that has forcefully echoed in universally accepted and time-honored rights and principles. It was certainly not the unscrupulous ways of colonialists or the occupiers that guided that march for freedom.
Typically, the overall methods used by the ongoing Uprising in the Occupied Territory stand at odds with the ghastly practices of the Israeli government and army. In fact, since their early days of embattling occupation forces, Palestinians aspired to be inclusive, as they longed for equality and insisted on the universal applicability of human rights.
These values must remain intact.
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Nevertheless, even with this troubling state of affairs in mind, injustice must not be an invitation to respond with an equivalence of morally degrading acts as those advocated by the Israeli government of Ariel Sharon and its apologists elsewhere. Sharon and his henchmen, of all people, should not, in any way, determine the nature and magnitude of Palestinian resistance.
To maintain its moral edge, the Palestinian revolution should not evade from its all-encompassing, tolerant and inclusive path, it should not be tainted by the fallacies of the occupier, it should not fall into the trap of fury, racial and religious exclusivity and revengeful acts against civilians.
True, the U.S. media will hardly acknowledge such a realization. But should we remain confined by media partiality and too concerned over the validating words of some government spokesman? Were these the values that inspired and sparked the current Uprising and the uprisings of the past? Certainly not.
Countering Israeli crimes against Palestinian civilians by lashing out at Israeli civilians, no matter how outwardly satisfying revenge might seem, should be estranged from the everlasting principles of the Palestinian struggle for freedom. These values must remain untainted, wholesome even, so that the will of the people might some day prevail over tyranny and oppression. And it will.
http://www.ramallahonline.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1739&mode=&order=0&thold=0
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