Lately, the Syrian government press has been publishing articles praising armed resistance as the only way to restore the Arabs' rights and territories. [1] One prominent example was an article by the chairman of Syria's parliamentary foreign affairs committee, Suleiman Haddad, who wrote in the daily Al-Thawra that peace would be achieved only through resistance, and called to fight for a Palestinian state encompassing all the territory of present-day Israel. Another was an article by Al-Thawra's editor, As'ad 'Aboud, who said that a confrontation with Israel was inevitable.
Following are excerpts from these articles:
Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman: "Peace Will Only Be Achieved through the Muzzle of the Gun"
Suleiman Haddad wrote that peace is almost impossible, and urged the U.S. and the international community to pressure Israel to implement the U.N. resolutions. Otherwise, he said, "the region will face difficult choices, and resistance will be the only [possible] option for the Arab and Palestinian people..."
Haddad went on to distinguish several groups within the Arab world: "Some," he wrote, "have accepted a mistaken and unacceptable formula of peace with Israel for no reward, while others are still hesitating between moving ahead and withdrawing [from previous agreements]. [These people] need to take a decision, [and] we call upon them, in the name of justice, history, and the millions of shahids who have fallen since 1948, not to sacrifice the [Arab] cause.
"There is yet another group who is now standing up and calling out loud not to relinquish a single [Arab] right or a single grain of soil. This group knows that the Arabs have given more than is possible, and that their consent to [a Palestinian state] within the 1967 borders is a concession that we never imagined we would give. [But even] this concession has been rejected by the enemy that has come from the ends of the world to occupy our land, kill our people, and defile our holy places while uttering lofty [slogans] about [its] rights. This enemy believes that peace will only be achieved through the muzzle of the gun, [and] we are informing it today that we too have become convinced that peace will only be achieved through the muzzle of the gun..."
"We Must Incorporate into the School Curriculum the Culture of Resistance and the Rationale for It"
"Today, resistance is the only option. This choice has been imposed upon us... [and] we must prepare our children and our people for it. We must incorporate into the school curriculum the culture of resistance and the rationale for it. We must unite and call on all the free people in the world to support our right... We must embark upon the road that will lead to peace and fight for the sake of peace.
"This is [the task] that our forefathers have entrusted to us, and if we fail we shall bequeath it to our children... We will equip them with every tool [necessary] to ensure the continued [struggle] until victory [is achieved]. We will teach them what are the true boundaries of Palestine. They are not the 1967 borders that the Arabs have agreed to accept... The Palestine we demand extends from Ras Naqura [on Israel's northern border] to Rafah [in the south], and from Sahl Al-Khiyam [in South Lebanon] to the Gulf of 'Aqaba [i.e., encompasses all of present-day Israel]. Israel is a phony entity that has stolen our lands, driven away our people and killed millions of them..." [2]
Al-Thawra Editor: "A Confrontation Is Inevitable"
"Al-Thawra editor As'ad 'Aboud called on the Arab countries not to be fooled by the Western attempts to portray Iran as the Arabs' enemy, and to realize that the real enemy is Israel. He wrote: "A confrontation [with Israel] is inevitable, because they leave us no choice. Every day they continue the settlement, the Judaizing [of Jerusalem], and the crimes against Al-Aqsa. There are always more shahids, more prisoners, more arrests, and more crimes. Who stands against all these, and how?
"In light of the glad tidings of [intra-]Palestinian reconciliation that Khaled Mash'al has brought us, a third Palestinian intifada may be possible. Considering the failure of all the Arab efforts towards peace, perhaps we must make the [Palestinian] cause once again an Arab and Muslim cause.
"In light of our legitimate desire to preserve our rights, our culture, our Palestine and our Al-Aqsa, [we must understand that] Iran is a real power that does not hide its solidarity with those who acknowledge our rights, and does not hide [the fact] that it has no intention to attack, in any way, the countries of the region or any one of these countries.
"I am sure that all the countries in the region, and all the Arab and Muslim countries, understand the danger, and realize that the source of danger is not Iran's missiles or nuclear facilities, but rather Israel..." [3]
Endnotes:
[1] See The MEMRI Blog, "Syrian Press: Israel Understands Only Force," October 6, 2009, http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/20658.htm.
[2] Al-Thawra (Syria), October 7, 2009.
[3] Al-Thawra (Syria), September 30, 2009.
