Over 1,200 Palestinians were killed and much of Gaza was flattened before Israel and Hamas declared a fragile truce. What Israel has achieved by attacking Gaza? Does it expect to achieve peace with the attacks? Mark Sofer, Ambassador of Israel to India, answered such answers in a chat with IBNLive readers.
Neeti Tandon: India and Israel have built strong ties for military and anti-terror cooperation. What progress can we expect for strengthening this cooperation?
Mark Sofer: Military and anti-terror cooperation are issues which on principle we never discuss in the public domain. Israel is one of the only countries in the world which stands unambiguously behind India in its struggle to rid itself of terror emanating from outside its borders. Let us also remember that in the horrendous Mumbai atrocity only Indians and Israelis/Jews were specifically targeted.
Dr Debatosh Majumdar: I strongly support the action of Israel against terrorists.
Mark Sofer: Thank you for your support. This is a war against terror, but by no means a war against the Palestinian people with whom we ardently wish to live in peace and good neighbourliness.
Rahul: Israel declared a unilateral ceasefire two days before Barack Obama takes over as the US President. Is it just coincidence or is that the license for free killing was valid only till Bush's regime?
Mark Sofer: There is absolutely no connection between the crisis in Gaza and the United States. This crisis came about solely because the Hamas refused to prolong the truce and embarked on missile shooting at innocent Israelis. There was nothing left to be done in order to stop it.
Ahmed: How can you compare India to Israel? India has not occupied any land which has been ruled as illegal by the UN and it does not kill women and children in pre-emptive strikes.
Mark Sofer: There are identical characteristics between Hamas and Lashkar-e-Toiba in that both are extremist organizations, dedicated to terrorising innocent people in order to achieve fanatical aims. These organisations abuse Islam and its teachings, which in our mind is a religion of peace and harmony. I have no doubt that moderate Islamic thinking denounces extremism in every way.
Mohit: Do you think a two-state theory can solve this long-standing problem? It certainly can bring about some peace in the region?
Mark Sofer: There is no doubt that only a two-state solution can bring peace to West Asia. Israel and Palestine are two states living side-by-side in mutual respect and security is the only way to allow these two great people to put aside finally the years of conflict. This is more attainable than many think.
Amit Yadav: Do you think this attack on Hamas can act as a deterrent to those radicals who think that whoever does not follow their faith or their ideology does not have a right to live?
Mark Sofer: I do not know if there will be any effect of the crisis in Gaza on extremists elsewhere. Israel is not trying to eliminate the Hamas or any other extremist organization. Its sole aim is the complete an utter cessation of rocket firing into Israel and I am convinced that any other country would have acted likewise after, like Israel, they had tried every avenue other than the military option and had failed.
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Sreekanth: Hamas may have taken a beating, but has Israeli military action achieved its aim of stopping rocket fire?
Mark Sofer: There is never a complete military solution to any conflict. Yet sadly sometimes when there is no choice there has to be a military component.
I am truly hopeful that now we have achieved a ceasefire life for Gazans and Israelis can become normal. We will do all in our power to enhance the welfare of Palestinians and Israelis as long as we are ceased being targeted.
Srihari: According to my understanding, Hamas has backing of all Palestine people and Arab countries. How will you deal with them?
Mark Sofer: Thankfully, the Hamas has little backing among Muslims both in the Arab world and outside it. Our information is that the support for Hamas within the Palestinian society is dissipating rapidly.
They understand that it is the extremist and uncompromising approach of this terror organisation which has brought this crisis on them.
SP: How long any country can survive on the power of weapons, especially when the countries status is like person living between people who are different from their ethnicity? What Israel should ideally do is to undergo dialogue with its neighbours in a way it can generate respect.
Mark Sofer: I fully agree with you that the only solution is a serious dialogue between Israel and the pragmatic Arab world. Indeed this had been progressing rapidly and the contours for peace in West Asia are agreed upon by us both. However, if the terrorist organizations, whose sole aim is the eradication of the State of Israel and the cessation of any peace talks, are allowed to call the shots we are all doomed.
Vishal Pulikottil: M J Akbar, in a recent column, made an interesting point: ‘Blood never sleeps’, quoting the Muslim military icon Saladin. His point was that violence breeds violence.
The orphans that today's Israeli offensive create will be terrorists 20 years down the line. The Israeli offensive will solve the problem of Hamas rockets for now. How does Israel plan to deal with the onslaught of terror in the long term? Does it plan to wage a perpetual war?
Mark Sofer: I read the column by M J Akbar very closely. I have the greatest respect for him. I do believe that there is no possibility at all that the West Asia conflict will have a military solution. There can only be negotiated solution and even if it regretfully must have sometimes a military component this is only because Israel had been left with absolutely no choice.
Paritosh: Mr Ambassador, you have defended Gaza strikes on the ground that you want to make Israelis secure from Hamas rockets.
Do you think Israeli citizens will be more secure after the end of the war given the fact that Hamas have not been disarmed? Do you have any remorse for the indiscriminate killings of civilians including women and children in Gaza?
Mark Sofer: I do not know for sure whether Israeli citizens will be more secure today but it would be impossible for them to have been less secure than they were prior to today. In the last eight years almost half a million innocent men, women and children had been forced to live no more than 15 seconds from a bomb shelter.
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This is an untenable situation for any people and everything that had been tried by Israel and the International community failed. These are terrorists and for them terror is a way of life.
Sudeep Das: I would say that any kind of conflict is bad and ultimately it's the common man who pays with his life. And has Israel tried to resolve the cause of the attacks? Had Israel not prevented the economic aid from reaching the Gaza strip, its actions would be justified. Don't you think the Palestinian children have the same rights as the Israeli?
Mark Sofer: I am convinced that Palestinian children have the same rights as Israeli children. A human being is a human being wherever he or she may reside. However, tragically the Palestinians in Gaza have once again become the victims of their own leadership. Israel at no stage prior to the missile firing prevented any aid from reaching Gaza.
The minute that the missile firing at innocent Israelis stops full and incessant aid will flow unabated into Gaza. What possible motive could Israel have to cause unnecessary hardship for innocent people? We have both found ourselves the victims of fanatical killers.
Deepak: Military action is very justified against Hamas. But will Israel recognise Hamas as a political outfit, because whether Israel likes it or not they do have a popular base?
Mark Sofer: The international community, not Israel, has requested that Hamas stops terrorist activity, recognizes Israel and recognises agreements between Israel and the Palestinians. In such a case Israel too would have no problem dealing with the Hamas. Yet they have not budged one inch in their refusal to accept any of the above conditions. Until they do whether or not they have a popular base makes them beyond the possibility of recognition.
Deepak: Don't you believe that Israel and Palestine conflict lingers on because both are heavily influenced by other nations. That others are playing their politics there?
Mark Sofer: Certainly pragmatic Palestinian leadership, Israel and the pragmatic international community are united in efforts to solve the conflict. Regretfully, the fanatical organizations such as Hamas and Islamic Jihad, are heavily influenced by Iran which openly calls for the extinction of Israel and supports all these terrorist organizations in their struggle to wipe out the Jewish state. Until this influence is marginalized, I fear it will be more difficult to bring about peace.
Roy: I believe Israel has achieved a temporary solution at the cost of hundreds of innocent civilians. Don’t you think Hamas shall rearm in due course of time and start launching rockets at the Israelis again?
Mark Sofer: Terrorist organizations such as Hamas and Lashkar-e-Toiba never let go of their fanatical ideas. Yet if they can be weakened then surely this would strengthen the hand of the pragmatists. The best way to reduce their influence is through diplomacy and political pressure yet sometimes there is simply no other option.
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Chaganti Srinivas: How long the attacks will go on? Innocent families and children are dying day by day because of war on Hamas militants.
Mark Sofer: I could not agree with you more. Nothing is more heart rending than innocent people being caught up in a war started by those who rule them. Israel had tried everything possible to avoid military conflagration yet it failed because the terrorists refused to relent in their attacks against innocent Israelis.
We have and will always continue to make every effort not to harm innocent people unconnected to the Hamas and may I assure you that every innocent Palestinian casualty hurts me as much as every Israeli casualty. As opposed to Hamas, we have never and will never target civilians and we will do our utmost to help them rebuild their lives.
Neeti Tandon: What would advice you give to India regarding its anti-terror policy?
Mark Sofer: Israel would not dream of advising India as to how to tackle terrorism against innocent Indians. Mumbai was a defiling of India and an indication as to how the horror of fanaticism is running amok. Israel too has been suffering from terror yet the situations in West Asia and South Asia are certainly different.
Sivabalan: Israel now occupies more area than the 1947 Palestine mandate. Is this justified? Do you still think that restoring the mandate will solve the crisis, given that Israelis agreed for the mandate and Palestine refused this at the beginning?
Mark Sofer: Ever since its establishment Israel has not known one day of peace despite the fact that it accepted the two-state solution as early as 1948.
It seems that today we, Israel and the pragmatic Arab world, are closer to understanding and bringing peace than ever before. However, we must all work avidly to prevent the terror organisations supported to the hilt by Iran from derailing the process.
Deep: What is the current stalemate in political terms? Is it between Hamas and Israel or Hamas and Palestine Authority?
Mark Sofer: I understand there is no love lost between Hamas and PA and certainly not between Israel and Hamas, which has declared itself our enemy and opened war with us. Israel will continue to negotiate in good faith with the PA (Palestinian Authority) and it is my fervent hope that peace will come about in the very near future.
Nisar Shaikh: What this conflict is going on for
Mark Sofer: The saddest aspect of this crisis is that it was avoidable. Had Hamas stopped firing rockets at innocent Israelis and prolonged the truce as we had entreated them there would have been no crisis. What is important is that we now reapply ourselves to peace making. The Hamas has placed itself outside of the negotiation process because of its aim to eliminate the State of Israel and kill Jews wherever they are.
Thiagan: Do you know that that one book by Leon Uris, The Exodus that changed the mindset of the Hindu majority in favour of Israel in the first instance?
Mark Sofer: There is a close understanding between Israel and many Hindus as indeed there is between Israel and many Muslims. This is not a question of religion but rather a question of moderation against extremism. I am of the firm belief that the vast majority of Hindus, Muslims, Jews and Christians are strongly against the fanatic beliefs espoused by Hamas, Islamic Jihad and their Iranian mentors.
(Mark Sofer is the Ambassador of Israel to India & Non-Resident Ambassador to Sri Lanka since October 2007. Prior to this from 2003 - 2007 he was the Deputy Director General, Head of Central Europe and Eurasia Division at the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He was the Ambassador of Israel in Dublin (Ireland) till 2002 and Policy Advisor to Foreign Minister, Mr. Shimon Peres from 1994-1996. )
(Note: The views expressed in this chat are personal and don’t reflect the editorial stand of IBNLive. )
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