Arab and Israel Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Arab and Israel - Essay Example They way Israel reacts to these challenges will affect how western world perceives it and may determine whether peace in the Middle East will ever be a reachable goal. Tensions in the region have been high for decades but the Arab uprisings in the spring of 2011 have given cause for heightened concerns for Israel. Many countries in the Middle East such Tunisia, Libya and Egypt have dethroned their leaders and replaced them by democratic process. Syria has been in turmoil for over a year with no end to the bloody conflict expected soon. Egypt was an American ally and has honored its 1979 peace treaty with Israel but what the election of Mohamed Morsi, a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, will mean to peace is uncertain. Some fear the uprisings may encourage groups such as Hezbollah to the north, Fatah on the west and Hamas to the south to rise up against what they identify as their oppressor, Israel. The combination of recent and distant history may be putting the Israeli government on edge, so much so it’s possible they are overreacting to the latest events in Gaza. Arabs will tell you Israel has been in the habit of overreacting for a long time and present grim evidence in the form of body counts. It has been said that a two-state (Palestinian/Israeli) solution could have produced an enduring peace but no more. Israel has played the bully on the block for too long and no solution will likely ever be viable. A generation of Arabs, along with Persians in Iran and Muslims of all ethnic backgrounds, has witnessed Israel’s encroachment on lands and suppression of Arabs. They have grown up hating Zionists, not necessarily Jews in Israel. Zionist means to support the Jewish state of Israel. The actions and vitriolic words of the war-hawkish Netanyahu have only furthered the Arab mistrust of Israel. He is opposed to a Palestinian state, continues to expand Israeli borders by authorizing the building of