Blog 3: Israel and Palestine talk about peace but leave Gaza out

Summary:
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, along with U.S. Secretary of State John F. Kerry, are currently carrying out peace negotiations with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. The two sides hope to work out peaceful relations between the groups, which have had political, ethnic, and religious conflicts for decades. The treaty would be only the beginning of what is hoped to be a future of resolving issues, including concerns like Palestine's borders and Israel's security. Kerry is optimistic that an agreement can be reached. The catch is this: the Palestinian Gaza strip, governed by the (in the opinion of the U.S. and Israel) terrorist group called Hamas, refuses to enter the negotiations and is thus "left off of the table." Instead, talks are focusing on the West Bank, where Israel and the U.S. believe they have a better chance with the more moderate leader Netanyahu. Obama believes that Gaza and the Hamas can be later integrated into the peace agreements as Palestinians in Gaza take action and demand new leadership so that they can receive the benefits of a peace treaty along with the West Bank. The Hamas feels differently, however; its leadership claims that without the Gaza Strip, negotiations are only destined for failure. Since the Gaza Strip is home to 40% of the population of the two Palestinian territories, it remains to be seen whether or not they are right.

Analysis:
Why are the Palestinians and Israelis at such odds? We know that religious, ethnic, and political divisions in the past help to explain this conflict, and tensions are continued today through terror, fighting, political factions, etc. My point is not to delve into the details of why Israeli and Palestinian conflicts are the way they are, but to show that religion and ethnicity are two key factors, among many others, in dividing people. All things being equal, you'd think that several million people living in the same area could learn to get along. But when you add in human nature and its compulsive need to find an "other" and thus define the "self" (i.e. reinforce identity), you get extreme group solidarity for those inside your group and hatred for those outside it. Religion and ethnicity are only two of many covers for this behavior; you can find anything and everything to divide yourself from others. To me, it sounds like we've largely forgotten Jesus' words, "Love your enemies" and "Love your neighbor as yourself."

Sources:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/gaza-left-out-of-mideast-peace-talks/2014/02/20/9764f454-9590-11e3-afce-3e7c922ef31e_story.html

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/israeli-palestinian-peace-talks-at-crunch-time-us-secretary-of-state-john-kerry-says/2014/01/02/11cc4b38-73cd-11e3-bc6b-712d770c3715_story.html