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The issue I have with the Palestinian struggle is that its leaders have behaved as if this asymmetry didn't exist, and from a strategic standpoint, this approach hasn't served them well. That's the main difference between this issue and the liberation movements it's often compared to.
The reality of territorial disputes is that what's morally right may and sometimes do take a backseat to military power/alliances. This should have been baked in the long term approach (for example, by not endangering your neighbors' foreign policy for your own benefit), especially since you need power to enforce international law, the US foreign policy apparatus is 100% behind Israel, and nobody can check the US militarily. In contrast, the Apartheid SA government was under international sanctions, and the risk of black nationalist movements was a credible threat to the US government
For Palestine, trying to regain lost territory or force Israel to the negotiation table through violence doesn't look like a winning solution, especially since the Palestinian cause no longer seems to be part of other Arab nation's international calculations.
That is from your standpoint looking at it from a black and white point of view because Palestinians know of the assymetry. They have tried all types of resistance, including non-resistance and peace talks, but also that includes violent resistance.
For a people who are against a behemoth and power that is backed the world's superpowers, Palestinians consider their resistance to be a big win because no one was able to get rid of them. Basically, Palestinians said that eventually they will be like the natives in North America and elsewhere if they do not keep up their fight. So to them, it is a win they haven't ended up that way yet.
I doubt this is true...
And:
Protesters call for removal of president Mahmoud Abbas after Palestinian Authority’s lacklustre response to Israel conflict
www.theguardian.com
At a pro-Palestine rally today in London, a "Gays for Palestine" group was prevented from participating in the march by pro-palestinian supporters. As an atheist, are you not worried about your ability to live in a Hamas-ruled Palestine?
I meant that Hamas does not rule the West Bank, as it is the PA. Hamas operate from many different regions around the Middle East. Also, I cannot take anything the IDF says at face value, because of all the lies and their propaganda.
The same rhetoric that is said about Hamas now and the whole "BUt HaMAs!" arguments, used to be said about the PLO. No matter if secular or religious resistance, the West and Israel just want themselves to be the violent aggressors and occupiers with quiet submission and the acceptable resistance is no Palestinian resistance.
That's not cool about the pro-Palestinian protest if that is true. The Palestinian cause is also tied as a cause to fight oppression that ties to all over social justice and oppressed people, including LGBTQ+.
I cannot decide what the Palestinians want to rule over them, and that will be their choice, and let them figure it out. Usually, even if the government is secular, some will culturally still practice religiously. Again, not all Muslims are monolith. Like take away religion from it, and some atheist/secular Arabs still take on that very tribal/patriarchal thinking.
Also, at some point before the late 80s, I would say most the of the Middle East culture was more kind of "modern/secular" and the whole religious orthodox way seen as 'weird', but of course, culturally, it was still very patriarchal. So what if it shifts back to that? I think foreign interference is what helped foster the more orthodox religious fundamentalism as the anti-thesis to fight the West.
www.timesofisrael.com
