By Moshe Feiglin
14 Adar I, 5771February 17, '11
Translated from Ma'ariv's NRG website
When the Hezbollah kidnapped and murdered IDF soldiers Goldwasser and Regev, may G-d avenge their blood, it used - among other weapons - mortars and machine guns made in Israel. No, these weapons were not stolen from the IDF. Israel had sold them to the Shah of Iran back in the 70s and they easily made their way from Iran to the Hezbollah.
What should concern us here is not this specific case. Let us assume that nobody could have anticipated the Islamic revolution in Iran. But we should be mightily concerned by the fact that nobody seems to have learned the lesson of that revolution. Those people who witnessed the rise of the Ayatollahs and nevertheless sent the IDF to train in Turkey are captive to pre-conceptions that do not allow them to learn the lesson of reality. They will step on the same landmines time and again, and will always be surprised.
Even when the peace accords were signed with Egypt, experts explained that in non-democratic countries, you do not sign an agreement with the country, but rather, with the regime. While a dictatorship lasts longer than a democratically elected government, when it is overthrown, there is no guarantee at all that the new regime will honor the agreements of its predecessor.
It is quite obvious that the days of Mubarak's regime are numbered. We can reasonably assume that the Islamic undercurrents in Egypt will surface now, as they are surfacing throughout the Moslem world. Those undercurrents will flood the islands of true liberty in Egypt that are vastly outnumbered by the Islamic Brotherhood and other religious factions. Ultimately, we will be facing an Iran-like Egypt.
In the intra-Arab battle in the Moslem world there is only one thing that unites the Shiites and the Sunnis and overcomes all the disputes between the factions; the desire to be rid of the Zionist thorn that is stuck in the heart of Dir-El-Islam. For the Moslem - any Moslem - the existence of a sovereign Jewish state on the Moslem expanse is strictly temporary.
On the basis of those desires, a "secular" Egyptian leader embarked on the Six Day War and attempted to become the official leader of the Arab Nation. Achmadinijad and Erdogan are motivated by those very same desires today. They both strive to unite the Moslem world under their hegemony. Israel-bashing is the ultimate tool for any aspiring Moslem leader. We can safely guess how the new Egyptian ruler - not secular, but religious - will act as the leader of the largest Arab state situated on our southern border, just a two hour drive from Tel Aviv.
In light of these developments, it is worthy to give some thought to the wisdom of our peace accords with Egypt. As part of those accords, Israel surrendered a huge strategic expanse in the Sinai Peninsula - an expanse that saved us in the surprise attack on Yom Kippur 1973.
It is easy to see what we lost in those accords. We lost parts of our Homeland, flourishing towns, abundant oil wells and a vastly important strategic expanse. We also showed our enemies that they can only gain by attacking us. Even if they lose the war, they will get all their land back by making "peace."
Since our peace deal with Egypt, Israel's international standing has steadily deteriorated. The US was presented with an additional ally in the Middle East. Sophisticated Western weaponry, including AIWAC planes, F-16s and Abrams tanks began flowing into Egypt. Since Israel's peace treaty with Egypt, policy makers in the US began to claim that Israel was a strategic burden - not a strategic asset as had been the case when we securely held the Sinai. And true to form, American aid to Israel steadily decreased since those accords and now amounts to less than half the amount that it was on the eve of the signing of the Camp David Accords.
And what did we gain? Some people will claim that we gained peace with Egypt. True, the brave among us can still go for a hike in the Sinai (not beyond). But if by 'peace' we mean quiet and security, then 'peace' with Egypt has not supplied the wares. Weapons and infiltrators enter Israel almost freely over the Egyptian border. Does anyone really think that the Hamas arsenal gets to Gaza without the silent agreement and initiative of the Egyptian government?
It looks like we are now going to eat the rotten fruit that the leaders of the past planted for us when they surrendered the Sinai to Egypt. Will we learn from this lesson and spare our children? Or will we also leave them a similar legacy in the form of a "peace" agreement - this time, not two hours away from Tel Aviv but two minutes from Kfar Saba and ten minutes from the Ben Gurion airport.
Another important point: Even if Syria and Egypt were the middle-eastern duplicates of Switzerland and Norway, I would also oppose giving one grain of our Holy Land to a foreign nation. But as you know, talk of holy land is only acceptable for Saadat, who told Begin, "I am willing to sacrifice one million soldiers and not to surrender one grain of sand of the holy Sinai." In the end, Saadat got all of Sinai, until the very last grain of sand, without sacrificing even one soldier. The pragmatic Begin got a piece of paper.
That's how it works in the Middle East. Holiness is part of the rules of the game. If you do not take it into account, you lose the most significant player on the chessboard - even before the game has begun.
And what did we gain? Some people will claim that we gained peace with Egypt. True, the brave among us can still go for a hike in the Sinai (not beyond). But if by 'peace' we mean quiet and security, then 'peace' with Egypt has not supplied the wares. Weapons and infiltrators enter Israel almost freely over the Egyptian border. Does anyone really think that the Hamas arsenal gets to Gaza without the silent agreement and initiative of the Egyptian government?
It looks like we are now going to eat the rotten fruit that the leaders of the past planted for us when they surrendered the Sinai to Egypt. Will we learn from this lesson and spare our children? Or will we also leave them a similar legacy in the form of a "peace" agreement - this time, not two hours away from Tel Aviv but two minutes from Kfar Saba and ten minutes from the Ben Gurion airport.
Another important point: Even if Syria and Egypt were the middle-eastern duplicates of Switzerland and Norway, I would also oppose giving one grain of our Holy Land to a foreign nation. But as you know, talk of holy land is only acceptable for Saadat, who told Begin, "I am willing to sacrifice one million soldiers and not to surrender one grain of sand of the holy Sinai." In the end, Saadat got all of Sinai, until the very last grain of sand, without sacrificing even one soldier. The pragmatic Begin got a piece of paper.
That's how it works in the Middle East. Holiness is part of the rules of the game. If you do not take it into account, you lose the most significant player on the chessboard - even before the game has begun.
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