Mark Vandermaas letter to Hamilton Spectator: ‘Genocidal anti-Semitism is the issue’

Posted on June 27, 2011 | Comments Off

On Day 5 (June 27/11) of my ‘Blue Beret’ vigil at the London (Ontario) mosque vs. its support for the Canadian Boat to Hamas, the Hamilton Spectator published a letter to the editor from me, giving it prominence at the top of the Letters page. They did not change a word. Unfortunately, the letter is not available on-line at TheSpec.com .

‘Genocidal anti-Semitism is the issue’

by Mark Vandermaas, June 27/11
Letter to the Editor of Hamilton Spectator, Ontario, Canada

Re: ‘An opportunity for lasting peace’ by George Sorger (June 22/11)

Beersheva kindergarten class after rocket attack from Gaza

As a former U.N. peacekeeper (Egypt, 1978) I would like to point out several key facts those who espouse the wishful suggestion that peace will come if Israel withdraws to pre-1967 borders prefer to ignore:

1. The state of Israel was attacked by multiple Arab armies the day after it announced its independence on May 14, 1948 following its U.N. sanctioned creation as part of a two-state solution. This was nearly 20 years BEFORE Arabs failed again to destroy her in 1967 when Israel seized the West Bank during combat. In 2005 Israel withdrew from the Gaza Strip and was rewarded by a hail of rockets directed at its civilians from Hamas which continue to this day.

2. The Hamas Charter was condemned by the U.N. Human Rights Council in 2006 for its rejection of peaceful solutions and its commitment to kill Jews and “obliterate” Israel. Here is just one quote – from Article 7: “The Day of Judgement will not come until Muslims will fight the Jews and kill them; until the Jews hide behind rocks and trees, which will cry: Oh Muslim! There is a Jew hiding behind me, come and kill him.”

History proves that ‘land’ is not the issue. Rabid, genocidal, anti-Semitism is the issue. If readers have any doubt of this I suggest they visit the site operated by Palestinian Media Watch (www.palwatch.org) and review the day-to-day glorification of violence against Jews and Israel – even in children’s programming. It is nothing short of nauseating.

Anti-Israel activists would do better to work on freeing Palestinians from their own Jew-hate than vilifying a liberal, democratic state that has never had a chance to live in peace.

Mark Vandermaas
London, ON

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Upon arriving home from my Day 5 protest I was pleased to find a message from a Hamilton Jewish leader who wanted to thank me for the letter.

REFERENCES

History of aggression by Arab neighbours after Israel’s U.N. creation

VoiceofCanada feature: Israel’s fight for survival: a short history

2006 U.N. Human Rights Council condemnation of Hamas Charter

United Nations Human Rights Council, July 06/06, A/HRC/S-1/NGO/4: Joint Statement on Hamas Charter [UN download PDF; VoC download PDF] (condemnation of Hamas Charter for calling for jihad against Jews and rejection of peaceful solutions)
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From Article 7: “The Day of Judgment will not come until Muslims will fight the Jews and kill them; until the Jews hide behind rocks and trees, which will cry: Oh Muslim! There is a Jew hiding behind me, come and kill him.”
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From Article 13: “There is no solution to the Palestinian question except by Jihad. All initiatives, proposals, and International Conferences are a waste of time and vain endeavours.”
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From Article 28 (quoting Muslim Brotherhood founder Hassan al-Banna): “Israel will exist and continue to exist until Islam will obliterate it, just as it obliterated others before it.”

Hamas targeting of Israeli civilians

VoiceofCanada, April 20/11: SPECIAL REPORT: Dramatic increase in Palestinian targeting of Israeli civilians prelude to unified Arab attack?
Washington Post, Richard Goldstone, April 01/11: Reconsidering the Goldstone Report on Israel and War Crimes (Justice Richard Goldstone retracts war crime allegations against Israel made in the 2009 report that bears his name, but maintains that “Hamas rockets were purposefully and indiscriminately aimed at civilian targets.”

Incitement of hate against Jews & Israel by Hamas & Palestinian Authority