Thin line makes vast difference to life in israel

[Phx_Dem]

I am standing on a street called Ha'anafa on the southern edge of this ancient city. Behind me, a five-storey apartment building made of the mandated limestone that gives this land such a pleasing patina. Below, olive groves on a steep terraced valley. It is a lovely view spoiled by a rather ugly security fence about 700 to 800 metres away.

The fence includes 20-metre high concrete planks for a short distance, but most of the fence is electrified chain link with barbed wire at the top.

But to the residents of this West Bank neighbourhood called Gilo, that fence is not an eyesore. Indeed, for all Jerusalem residents, including Arab Israelis, the fence is life. At the height of the intifada in 2002, and before the security wall was erected, more than 130 Israelis were murdered in March alone by Palestinian suicide bombers who only had to walk from their neighbourhood across the road to detonate themselves amid their Jewish neighbours. The death toll for the year was 452, with thousands injured.

For this Canadian--so accustomed to the several kilometres I travel just to pick up a loaf of bread, seeing the proximity between the security fence and the homes it's designed to protect is astonishing. It is in some spots narrower than the space many Canadians think is reasonable to have as a highway meridian. When we hear of stories about skirmishes between Palestinians and Jews within Jerusalem, it's impossible to understand just how small the distances are unless you see for yourself. Even for an unfit person, this distance would be considered a short run, barely enough to work up a sweat.

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/columnists/story.html?id=386535e7-46da-411d-937e-61fb9a736aa3&p=1

[amdezurik]

1. just gotta ask...

the Israelies death toll was 130, who were the other 322? Are only the deaths of jews important?

[Phx_Dem]

2. 130 dead Israelis in March of that year

322 total dead Israelis in 2002.


FYI--an Israeli can be a Jew, Christian, Muslim, Druze etc.

[amdezurik]

3. ah so only "israelies" died that year

good to know...

[henank]

4. Your are misreading on purpose.

What an incomprehensible reply. The article is about the wall that saves Israeli lives. In explaining the situation, the article mentiones how many Israelis were killed before the wall went up.

Where do you get the idea that the writer only considers Israeli lives important? They are the only ones mentioned because it is their lives which are being protected by the wall - which is the subject of the article. And yes, to Israelis, Israeli lives are the ones that matter. Conversely, I'm sure the Palestinians care not one whit about Israeli lives.

[cali]

5. oh for pity's sake. try, just try to get those little brain cells firing

no one said that only Israelis died that year. And what's with the bad spelling and the lame use of quotation marks around the worm Israelies (sic)?

[oberliner]

6. The worm Israelis?

What the heck??

[cali]

7. a typo

I'm a fast and not terribly accurate typist.

[oberliner]

8. I thought I missed something

Since you were correcting the other poster's spelling, I thought you were being ironic or something with that misprint of your own.

[azurnoir]

9. What an evocative article

Ms Corbella makes such an eloquent case for making the lives of Palestinians who live too close to Israel miserable for protection against events of seven years ago, perhaps it would be best if the stubborn Palestinian owner of the olive grove mentioned just gave up and found another line of work? She even interviews the favorite Arab reporter from JPost abu Toma was it? To back up her story with his own, albeit seeing as how he once worked for the PA or PLO as a reporter and then went to work for one of most right wing newspapers in Israel one must wonder what he really fears.
I had to wonder if the spaces are as small as Ms Corbella describes just how a mere wall can provide so much protection is there something she's not mentioning? She asserts if we could all just see it we would believe that it is worth it yet provdes little visual to go on.
Although my favorite part of the article was the last line

"Licia {Corbella} is on a tour of israel hosted by the Canada-Israel committee"

Nothing like a freebie vacation to a warm climate in the winter to garner support.

[Shaktimaan]

10. ???

Ms Corbella makes such an eloquent case for making the lives of Palestinians who live too close to Israel miserable for protection

right. protection from death. inconvenience < death.

against events of seven years ago

what's your point? that because the wall is effective the threat no longer exists? are you actually suggesting that the wall is no longer necessary to prevent suicide bombings... based on the fact that no suicide bombings have occurred since the wall was erected?

[azurnoir]

11. As I pointed out

if the spaces in the area are so small a fact of which I have no doubt then how can a mere wal prevent anything? The fact is the wall did not prevent 2 attacks this past spring did it?

[Phx_Dem]

12. Because the terrorists involved in those two attacks

live in East Jerusalem.

The security barrier's effectiveness has been demonstrated time and again.