At Birmingham Israel Bonds event, Kenneth Stein explains background to Gaza conflict
Kenneth Stein speaks at the Pine Tree.
As Israel’s war against Hamas continues, Israel Bonds is continuing to address needs in Israel resulting from the war.
On June 18, the Southeast regional office held an event at the Pine Tree Country Club in Birmingham, where Kenneth Stein, president of the Center for Israel Education, gave an update about the current situation in Israel. A former long-time professor at Emory University, Stein has authored six books.
Stein reminded the crowd that the West believes any conflict can be solved through give and take, but this is a conflict of ideologies that are mutually exclusive. He said Sen. Chuck Schumer’s recent comments about solving the conflict were naïve, as the two sides “don’t recognize each other and don’t recognize the other’s legitimacy.”
Also Read: Israel receives major wartime boost from huge increase in Israel Bonds sales
While there has been a big debate over whether the chant “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” at anti-Israel rallies is advocating for the elimination of Israel, Stein said that the chant, when done in Arabic, is “from the river to the sea, it will be Arab.”
“What you want as a solution to this conflict may just not be possible,” he said, as Palestinians still want to get rid of Israel, but Israel has no other place to go. “Dreaming of a conclusion that is equitable is highly unlikely.”
Israelis “have a commitment to this place and they are not going away,” he said, but Palestinians believe “if you make life difficult enough for them, if you hurt them, they will ultimately go back to where they came from.”
The Palestinian narrative “essentially says Israel is fake, Israel is artificial and the only reason it exists is it got help from outside.”
Hamas and Hezbollah, of course, get help from the outside, as clients of Iran. Stein said that Israel is about “liberty, freedom, democracy, the right of the individual,” while in Iran, “ideology is much more important than the rights of individuals… Israel is a bulwark against those ideologies that seek to undermine freedom and liberty.”
He added, “does Mr. Schumer really believe this ideology will go away just because Hamas is no longer in charge of Gaza?”
Iran received $36 billion in oil money last year, and much of it is used for toxic purposes, he noted.
With the constant anti-Israel drumbeat in the press and by anti-Israel groups, Stein reminded that “Israel is much more than the constant criticism.”
He said “criticism of Israel is important, but don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater.
“What would it mean if the Jewish state did not exist. It is a major part of our identity, whether we like it or not, and we should learn more about that place,” and his center has a wealth of online educational materials.
Jews should know our past and present to “assure your future.”
He said that as of July 31, this would become Israel’s longest war. Noting the overwhelming support for Oct. 7 among Gazans and Palestinians in Judea and Samaria, he said “you can remove Hamas, but can you remove the ideology?”
He said this is the fifth round of fighting between Israel and Hamas since Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005, and Israel has decided to try and ensure there will not need to be a sixth round.
Buying bonds
In a typical year, Israel Bonds sells about $1 billion. But since Oct. 7 “we have sold over $3.5 billion,” said Brad Young, regional director of Israel Bonds in Atlanta. That includes $8 million in Alabama after Oct. 7, when numerous states made purchases in a show of solidarity, and an additional $6 million since then.
The greatest needs include relocation of those who lived on the front lines, and rebuilding the communities that have been affected by rocket attacks.
Anti-Israel groups have been pushing back against governmental bodies and institutions purchasing Israel Bonds, through campaigns such as Break the Bonds, where “they have intimidated elected officials over the issue.” Young said the best thing to do is rally as a united community and let elected officials know that they have the community’s support.
And of course, continue to purchase Israel Bonds for IRAs, foundations, trusts and regular investments. “Our rates remain strong, most of our bonds currently pay over 5 percent,” he said.
The event also kicked off the Birmingham Jewish Foundation’s annual Israel Bonds drive, which brought in gifts enabling the Foundation to purchase an $85,000 bond.
