Thirty years after the signing of the Oslo Accords, perhaps nothing exemplifies the outcome of the agreements better than last week's explosives hurled by Palestinian terrorists in Nablus at Israeli forces securing the route for Jewish worshippers to Joseph's Tomb.
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The media barrage of fire and brimstone directed at those who dared to travel to the holy site was second only to the actual barrage directed at the soldiers. "Why did these lunatics travel there?" "This is not what the IDF was created for!" "Why take such a risk to pray at Joseph's Tomb?"
Perhaps the question should have been addressed to Yitzhak Rabin, the architect of the Oslo II Accord, under which the Palestinian Authority would assume responsibility for the site while guaranteeing free and safe passage for Jews.
Although there is no archaeological evidence to support this, the site is believed to be the burial place of the Biblical patriarch Joseph and as such, carries religious significance. And not only for Jews – for whom it's a symbol of their connection to the land – but Christians and Muslims as well.
The Palestinians understand this well, which is why mere months after the signing of the accords, they torched the tomb and have continued attacking – and killing – Israelis and soldiers visiting the site ever since.
Israel withdrew from Nablus and agreed to the establishment of a Palestinian Authority on the condition that it would guarantee free access to Joseph's Tomb, among other things.
Rabin was the one who signed the agreement, not any current lawmaker. The Palestinians never honored the deal, while the Jews – or should I use the hijacked term "settlers – are condemned for daring to attempt to continue to visit. It seems that in 2023, the only civil right respected by some in Israel is the right to protest.
Were any soldiers injured while protecting the lunatics who pray at the site? Let's not forget that just recently a municipal security guard was killed while protecting lunatics in Tel Aviv. Don't roll your eyes. The Palestinian enemy sees both as "settlers."
Only we think that there is a difference. We tell ourselves that if we just draw an imaginary line and never cross it, the Palestinians will be willing to give up their dream of a state "from the river to the sea" and stop slaughtering us.
Jewish desire to pray at the holy site is seen as madness, while Palestinian murder of Israelis – as fate.
Thirty years later we should we wise enough to understand that instead of asking why Jews continue to make the dangerous journey to Joseph's Tomb, we should really by asking why we would ever abandon it.
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