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Gaza Must Be Deradicalized as well as Demilitarized

(The Hill) Gadi Ezra and Aviva Klompas - The "Day After" proposal recently offered by Israeli leaders recognized that the key to long-term stability lies not just with demilitarizing Gaza, but with deradicalizing it. The plan calls for changing the culture of hate in religious, educational, and welfare institutions. The deep-rooted hate and rampant incitement in Palestinian society must be addressed, from students' textbooks, which routinely call for the elimination of Jews, to streets and squares named after jihadists who had murdered innocent Israelis - an ethos that glorified violence against Israelis. The Palestinian leadership remains committed to terrorism, both in Gaza under Hamas and in Judea and Samaria under the Palestinian Authority, which still stands by its "pay to slay" policy of financially rewarding terrorists and their families. Israel must work with international partners to marginalize the forces that foster, fund, and incite hate. That means increasing oversight of how aid dollars are used. It means overhauling Palestinian education systems and curricula so that they do not dehumanize Jews or call for Israel's destruction. We cannot revert to a reality where Israel has security control, but Gaza is populated by an aggrieved civilian population that regards Israelis as subhuman. Instead, we must demilitarize and deradicalize. Gadi Ezra is a former director of Israel's National Public Diplomacy Unit. Aviva Klompas is a former director of speechwriting at the Israeli Mission to the UN.
2024-03-14 00:00:00
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