Results In on Sharon Experiment

Ariel Sharon
JERUSALEM, Israel -- The legacy of Ariel Sharon may well be the vindication of Israel in the eyes of the world, and the alienation of Palestinians and Islamic jihadis by all but the most radical of Muslims. Sharon, age 78, has been in a coma since January 4th following a massive stroke. His condition dramatically deteriorated this week and he was put on kidney dialysis. Rumors are circulating that doctors are suggesting he should be allowed to die, and saying that such a practice is ethical.

Ariel Sharon was elected Prime Minister in a special election held on February 6, 2001. Then...

After several years of bloodshed, terror, and stalled peace talks with the Palestinians, Sharon devised a bold plan that would ensure a higher degree of security for Israelis, and improve the lives of Palestinians. While Palestinian terrorism against Israelis was at its peak, and going virtually unchecked by Arafat and other Palestinian leaders, Sharon decided that Israel should act unilaterally to improve its security situation and reduce bloodshed. This plan, known as the Disengagement Plan, called for the complete withdrawal of Israeli troops and settlers in the Gaza Strip, as well as the dismantlement of all settlements in the area, including four settlements in northen Samaria. Between August 16 and August 30, 2005, Israel safely evacuated more than 8,500 Israeli settlers and, on September 11, 2005, Israeli soldiers left Gaza, ending Israel's 38-year presence in the area. --Ariel Sharon Biography, Jewish Virtual Library

Israel Evacuates Gaza
Sharon was a career soldier, having served in the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) for 25 years, and retiring with the rank of Major-General. He served in many conflicts including the Israeli War of Independence in 1948, the Sinai campaign in 1956, the Six-Day War in 1967, and the Yom Kippur War in 1973. In 1981 he was appointed Defense Minister and oversaw the destruction of PLO infrastructure during the Lebanon War.

So, it is clear that this was not a man who was quick to favor diplomacy over military action. Yet, in his last days, Sharon single-handedly attempted to impose a peaceful resolution on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. As already noted, he withdrew all Israeli presence from the Gaza strip and turned it over to the jurisdiction of the Palestinians. His objective was as controversial as it was strategic. If the Palestinians truly want a homeland, he reasoned, then why not give it to them... and then we will see what they do with it. Would they be happy and grateful? Only time would tell. Unfortunately, time was not on Sharon's side, and he was never able to see the results of his labor.


Israel Security Barrier
Sharon also began the construction of a security barrier between Israel and the West Bank, which created a physical separation between Jews and the Palestinian terrorists who were committing suicide- (homicide-) bombings on an almost daily basis in Jerusalem. The Israeli West Bank Barrier is "a physical barrier being constructed by Israel consisting of a network of fences with vehicle-barrier trenches (95%) and concrete walls (5%)". The effectiveness of this barrier has already been statistically confirmed...

Although viewed as isolationist, Ariel Sharon's "Disengagement Plan" was a strategic move to put the entire burden of peace on the Palestinians. With Israel withdrawing completely from Gaza, the cries of the Palestinians for an unoccupied homeland were essentially realized. With the creation of a barrier between Israel and the West Bank, Sharon was effectively preparing to give away the West Bank to the Palestinians.

So what have the Palestinians done with their new-found freedom? What have the Palestinians done with a Gaza free of Israeli influence? First, they have struggled to replicate Jewish farming techniques, without success. Second, they have broken into two factions (Fatah versus Hamas) and begun squabbling amongst themselves for power. Third, they have begun firing dozens of Qassam rockets from Gaza into Israel. And fourth, they have dug tunnels from Gaza into Israel so that they could conduct cross-border raids and kidnap Israeli soldiers.

It is obvious that the Palestinians know nothing of 'construction'... they know only 'destruction'. They know nothing about building a country... they know only about building bombs. They don't want a Palestinian homeland... they only want a base of operations from which to attack Israel.

It is the same with Hezbollah, the Shiite Islamic jihadists based in Lebanon, Syria and Iran. At the first sign of trouble between Israel and the Palestinians in Gaza, Hezbollah joined the attack on Israel by conducting their own cross-border raids and abducting Israeli soldiers. Then they began firing hundreds of Katyusha rockets into Israeli towns and villages.

Katyusha Rocket

This outrage has not gone unnoticed, even in the Arab world. Oddly enough...

The surreal politics of this war finds Saudi Arabia attributing “full responsibility” to Hezbollah and calling on the terrorists to “alone shoulder the crisis they have created;” it finds Kuwaiti journalists lauding the “operations of Israel in Gaza and Lebanon [that] are in the interest of people of Arab countries and the international community”... --Jacob Laksin, "Petition for Genocide", FrontPageMagazine.com, July 28, 2006

It should be obvious to anyone who is reasonbly objective, that Israel has more than gone the extra mile to accomodate the Palestinians, in no small part due to Ariel Sharon. In turn, the Israelis have been rewarded with violence. And the Israelis have had enough. Even the Saudis and Kuwaitis have had enough. The olive branch which Ariel Sharon extended to the Palestinians has been withdrawn. The experiment is over... and rightly so. The Islamo-fascists want nothing less than the total destruction of Israel, and now the whole world knows it.