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Guest Column: Israel should follow international law

By Forrest Dougan
Oct. 3, 2008

You don't need to go far into a political discussion to hear the ending argument: who is right, Israel or her enemies? The fight for and against Israel is, perhaps, one of the most controversial topics in everyday collegiate-politico-rambling. Maybe this is because the situation is so accessible, has no obvious solutions and is so relatable. To top that, I might assert it is more of a moral engagement than a political one.

I often hear those who are pro-Israel say they must fight fire with fire. They are not fighting an enemy who plays by the rules. Here's a valid response: fire on an apartment building in Gaza, killed 17 members of one family and wounded 60 other civilians and children not even a year old. The Washington Post reported all this on Nov. 9, 2006 in the midst of Israel's response to Hamas' rocket attacks. Israel's defense for these attacks was, "...the responsibility of any civilian casualties lies with the terrorist organizations."

Over the past week I have heard or participated in at least 10 discussions of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. When shown situations like the aforementioned, defenders of Israel assert their "right to exist" and that right not being recognized by any Arab country. The proponents then follow with some vague discussion of the necessity of defending one's country and family.

We can all agree on one fact: Israel exists. That is, Israel is a country and owns territory to the east of the Mediterranean Sea. Israel is a member of the United Nations and has entered into treaties with other sovereign countries. The discussion of the sovereign nation's legitimacy is over. The people are living there as citizens with a history, getting rid of 12 million Israelis would be as impossible as, well, getting rid of 12 million Mexicans. The argument they should not be there is moot, these Israelis are there and this fact will not change.

This is now a Johnny-started-it fight. Neither side is acting responsibly, as both sides have done thousands of wrongs over centuries that are now supposedly being repaired with violence. We know Israel is a country. I have an issue with the justification and logic of what Israel calls defense, with the execution of this 'defense' against unarmed civilian apartments. We must, supporters or not, charge Israel with the requirements of statehood and international law. They cannot respond to the attacks of terrorists with terror, and then blame their enemy for their actions. The laws of war are in place so countries follow them, and so we can define which fighting factions are countries.

The logic that Israel and her supporters use to justify these responses is dangerous.  You can validate many, many horrible things with a logic that dictates that the rules are off once one side breaks them. This is the same logic our government uses to bend laws for water boarding and other borderline offenses, how torture is implemented and how genocide is justified.

The Israelis' argument is only valid inside the bounds of international law when they can fight within the rules of engagement. Only when the civilian life of the enemy is held as valuable as their own can Israel claim to be a country and not a terrorist state. Then Israel can come to the table with a valid point and a clean conscience, we have acted as the state we claim to be and they have not. Only when Israel can make a statement like this can the world step to their side without hesitation. If Israel wants our support, they need to step up and earn it. After all, they know what it takes. We've written it down for them. Israel is only right when she fights according to what she has signed to be right.

Campus Lodge

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