Voices
There can be no debating that Israel is the Jews’ homeland
Regarding your coverage last week of the debate involving Benjamin Pogrund, Na’eem Jeenah and Alon Liel, the three seem to have expended much of their intellectual energy on debating a solution to the Israel-Palestine situation.
Nathan Cheiman, Johannesburg
None of these academics gave consideration to the history of the Jewish people, nor did they have regard for the story of Abraham, specifically when G-d told him to leave his homeland, promising Abraham and his descendants a new home in the land of Canaan (Genesis 12).
This land is often referred to as the Promised Land.
The two Jewish debaters, Pogrund and Liel, overlooked the fact that in 135 CE, the Jews were exiled from the land of Israel by the Romans. And in 167 BCE, when Judea fell under the Seleucid Empire, Jewish sacrifice was forbidden.
Persecution of the Jews continued in the Middle Ages and was rife in Europe. In 1870, Jews were required to live in ghettos in the Papal States.
Following the 1929 Palestine riots, in which the Jewish community in Hebron was virtually annihilated, Hitler arrived on the scene and the Holocaust followed.
I am astonished that the two Jews involved in the discussion were prepared to even debate the “harsh realities of the Israel-Palestine situation”, knowing that Hashem promised Jews the Land of Israel, and furthermore, that the Jewish nation has been exceedingly persecuted throughout history.
Today, there are an estimated 20 million Jews worldwide.
Europe was a Christian continent, but liberals have now sought to dilute its Christian nature with Islam. But that is their problem.
Israel is a land for Jews, and no discussion can ensue regarding a two-state solution, nor can Israel be democratic for an assortment of religions. It is a democracy for, and among, Jews.
There is no debate.