Tel Aviv, like Jerusalem before it, is seeing some Israeli-on-Israeli tensions. Interestingly, it resembles a re-telling of the Palestinian experience.
Haredim, who practice a conservative form of Orthodox Judaism, are seeking to spread their ways in new areas around Tel Aviv, in predominately secular neighborhoods. And this is causing problems. The secular Jews resist the in-gathering of Haredim seeking to make their spiritual desert bloom. Tel Aviv for them is a city with no faithful for the faithful with no city (you get where I am going).
The LA Times reports:
some residents say the arrival of the Haredim isn’t about expanding populations in search of affordable housing, but is rooted in a political and religious agenda not unlike that of Jewish settlers moving to the West Bank.
The ‘liberal’ Tel Aviv-types apparently think now they are facing settlers, making them the Palestinians of Israel(!).
One secular resident complaining about the Haredim’s missionary ways sounded like a Palestinian in 1948. “They’re not coming here just to live,” said David Shulman, who is helping to lead a neighborhood group in Ramat Aviv opposed to the Haredi expansion. “They are here to take over the neighborhood.”
Yeah Shulman, we Palestinians can relate to that. Your grandparents did it to us!
Just as Zionists settled Palestine strategically, seeking hilltops for the military advantage, Ramat Aviv was targeted because it is known as a bastion of secularism. “If they can conquer Ramat Aviv, it would be like a jewel in the crown,” Shulman said. Sounds like it’s Jerusalem in 1967 to me.
Shulman sees the Haredim as a threat to their brand of Zionist realization: “We have been the majority here for 45 years,” he said. “I’m sorry, but we’re not going to allow this to continue.” The Palestinians were a majority for much longer that before Israel came along.
The analogy can only go so far, of course. If the Haredim had been militarizing with the help of the British (or now America) mandatory authorities, and then used force to displace the ‘natives’ of Ramat Aviv, then we’d have a better comparison.
This conflict all takes place within the context of the Zionist project, we cannot forget. As Shulman protests about their proselytizing, “Imagine if Muslims camped outside a school here and tried to talk to students. They’d be arrested in a minute.”
An interesting element is that the secular Israelis in this tale are the ideological descendants of the Zionists who founded Israel, whereas the Haredim have had a complex relationship with Zionism. Different strains have rejected it, or only been ambiguously supportive.
Although the Haredim will not displace the natives by force, as the Zionists did to the Palestinians, the feeling that these secular Jews are getting, of being besieged by foreign elements seeking control of their neighborhood, is delicious irony (albeit not fully satisfying since it is far from justice).
The after-thought is: what would these groups do to each other if there were no Palestinians to fear/hate?
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I think if the Palestinians were out of the picture, if they all of a sudden said: "We're not going to fight anymore," that Israeli society would teear itself apart with infighting and possible civil war. I mean, to see the Secular Jews, the Radical Armed Settlers and the Haredim just go at it would be "delicious irony" as you said.
Unfortunetaly, the Israelis NEED the Palestinians so as to create a united front against a common enemy. In other words, they need the Arabs to prevent such a possibility from becoming reality.
Posted by Los | August 6, 2009, 2:53 pm"what would these groups do to each other if there were no Palestinians to fear/hate?"
Don't be such a tease!!
Posted by Chauncey | August 6, 2009, 5:17 pmWhat a moment of blissful schadenfreude. Just like you've pointed out, the analogy between Zionists and Haredim only goes so far, particularly because the secular Israelis subsidize Haredi schools, social services, and housing with their tax money, while the Haredi "study the Torah" all day. I think a better analogy would be the takeover or the rising popularity of more conservative factions, for demographic or political reasons, in Gaza, south Lebanon, Iran, etc. They all share some of the same elements of conservative, messianic, anti-pluralist and anti-democratic world view and should all be restrained using lawful measures. And yes, being surrounded by Palestinians and other not-so-friendly Arab countries is definitely galvanizing Israelis, just like having Israel in the 'hood distracts Arab countries from their own internal problems.
Also, regarding the "militarizing with the help of the British (or now America) mandatory authorities" bit, didn't Palestinians also militarize with the help of British (some resigning from British service to lead 40,000 soldiers to seize the West Bank in 1948)? Palestinians during the days of the mandate weren't all peaceful farmers; some were very ferocious fighters, especially during the Arab revolts.
I know your post was supposed to be tongue in cheek and not really religious about the details, but it seems to me that some of the facts are being reshaped in order to fit in the framework: "Israelis/Zionist – bad, Arabs/Muslims – not that great, but definitely not as evil as them Zionists."
Read more in the following books:
Karsh, Efraim (2002). The Arab-Israeli Conflict. The Palestine War 1948. Osprey Publishing.
Karsh, Inari & Karsh, Efraim (1999). Empires of the Sand: The Struggle for Mastery in the Middle East, 1789–1923. Harvard University Press.
Posted by Salty Mac | August 7, 2009, 4:02 amStruggles between ultra-religious people, with political and religious agendas, and secular people… this may resemble something from the Palestinian experience, but I think it begs a different comparion: a population facing religious extremism (which seems to have won out with the Palestinians since the defeat in 1967).
While it may be true that Palestinians began turning to religious extremism out of desperation after the humiliating defeat in 1967, so they were more willing converts so to speak, it is definitely comparable even if the populations reacted differently.
The ‘liberal’ Tel Aviv-types apparently think now they are facing settlers, making them the Palestinians of Israel
Except they don't respond with riots and finally wars, which they lose. But they have decided to resist. It's too bad that the Palestinians weren't able to resist the extremism which permeated their culture and led them to turn their children into shaheeds.
In the last two years, however, tensions have heightened as Haredi organizations expanded their public presence and their leaders began pushing for stricter religious observations on the Sabbath.
They should practice their religion however they want, but the problems begin when they start trying to force their way on other people. Remind you of someone else?
The after-thought is: what would these groups do to each other if there were no Palestinians to fear/hate?
I'm quite sure they wouldn't resort to suicide bombs.
Posted by eagle007blogger | August 7, 2009, 6:47 amPalestinians turned to religious extremism? That's funny coming from a guy that thinks God made America great and gave the Jews Israel and believes in a man that thinks God 'told' him to invade Iraq.
When looking for religious nut-jobs, look closer to home
Posted by Shafiq | August 7, 2009, 5:06 pmThat's funny coming from a guy that thinks God made America great and gave the Jews Israel and believes in a man that thinks God 'told' him to invade Iraq.
I have never said anything even remotely like that. What are you talking about?
And the fact remains, after the 1967 War there was an increase in Islamic extremism among the Palestinians.
Posted by eagle007blogger | August 8, 2009, 6:01 amI think that you should read history again and again….
In the post 1967 events all the Palestinian factions were secular, starting with Fatah ( a heterogeneous coalition of leftists, nationalists, profiteers, pan Arabists, and ex-Muslim brothers), the second and third Factions the PFLP and the DFLP were marxists (in case you don't know that's secular as well, not to mention that their leaders came from christian Palestinian and Jordanian families).
As for Hamas and the Islamic jihad they only came to existence at the end of the eighties (with some implicit Israeli encouragement à la USA encouragement and financing for the then "freedom fighters" now "most despicable terrorists" "moujahidin" in Afghanistan).
This increase was a direct result of Israeli policies to strike all the secular Palestinian movements. Which is and always was an Israeli interest, to re-model the middle east in tiny small confessional entities in its own image, that's one of the main reasons Israel allied with the fascist Phalanges of Lebanon, and why it is in a not yet official non holy alliance with Saudi Arabia and its Wahabbism (which along with Israel, is the US oldest ally in the ME).
A country that claims it's very own right to exist from a disavowed fairy tale book dismissed as bogus by every credible researcher is by no means in a position to lecture people about religeous freedom, tolerance and especially secularism.
" Except they don't respond with riots and finally wars, which they lose. But they have decided to resist. It's too bad that the Palestinians weren't able to resist the extremism which permeated their culture and led them to turn their children into shaheeds."
Again you should read history books….
What do you think Palestinians were doing for the last hundred years?
Resisting (both in violent and non violent ways) against the Turks, the Brits, the Zionists, and of course some of the reactionary pro-Western Arab regimes. Unless you have another definition for resistance, that you didn't mention here, the only thing to tell you is read your history books again…
P.S. You should have a deep look to the pre 1948 Haganah, Itsel and Lehi terrorism, and to the post 1948 Israel terrorist army attacks, before jumping into conclusions.
Posted by Hanthalah | August 13, 2009, 4:50 pm