looks like victory to me

Today's lead editorial in the Washington Post, in classic circular fashion, lays equal blame for the "cycle of violence", attributes 2,000 Palestinian Arab deaths to Israeli violence, and then ignores the basic fact that Israel's countermeasures are actually effective. In this instance, the editorial writer did not use "cycle of violence" to connote the rough moral equality of the two sides. Rather, the banal title, "A Brutal Routine".

The essence of this complaint by the Post is the alleged brutality of Israeli troops and police in suppressing those poor, innocent Palestinian "children". Yes, there is brutality, and no moral person condones it. But the fatalities of Palestinian children are usually the result of the cowardly Arabs placing their gun positions behind civilians, and in the midst of children. Some "children" are arms-bearing terrorists, whether they carry AK-47s, bricks, knives, or explosives. As to the total number of fatalities, the 2,000 Palestinian Arabs includes at least 200 homicide bombers, and the large majority of the remainder were armed fighters. In stark contrast, using data current as of September 29, 2002, about 70 percent of Israeli deaths have been civilians, with another (approximately) 10 percent uniformed noncombatants (source: International Policy Institute for Counter-Terrorism, link here). It is also interesting, and revealing, that appproximately 95 percent of Palestinians who died were male, and of those, the majority were full combatants. Palestinian terrorists routinely target any and all civilians, with the resulting disproportionate deaths of young girls and boys, old men and women, and other unarmed, defenseless civilians -- because that is who these cowards attack.

Israel is not perfect; there have doubtless been individual acts of brutality. These should be punished in accordance with Israeli law. But the very existence of the Israeli human rights group b'tselem, not to mention sanctions under law against brutality, are sufficient unto the day to demonstrate the moral superiority of Israel to its Arab enemy. Stated another way: When was the last time you recall reading about a Palestinian human rights group that protested the murders of Palestinian "collaborators"? Where are the protests agains homicide bombings? Nope. Palestinians are too busy celebrating murder and mayhem against civilized people, whether it is the 9/11 attacks, or abundant praise for Saddam Hussein.

As for whether Israeli tactics work, the evidence is that they do. The editorial itself states: Homicide bombings are less frequent, and beleaguered Palestinian militants are discussing the possibility of declaring an end to attacks inside Israel. But then it goes on to deny the logical conclusion that the only thing that Arabs respect is force, and the only thing that prevents more terror is destruction of the infrastructure in Gaza and the West Bank, and killing known terrorists before they can act.

In the final analysis, of course, this is not truly "victory", unless and until all Palestinians who would war on civilization are converted to the idea that cooperation and peaceful coexistence with Israel are their best path to the future. Alternately, if they are not so moved, then they should have but three choices:

1. separation; i.e. a physical barrier to keep them out of Israel except under tightly controlled conditions; and/or
2. "transferred", i.e. deported out of Greater Israel; and/or
3. if they will not lay down their arms and homicidal racial hatred of the Jews, captured (and then 1. or 2.), or, if necessary for self defense, killed.