Israel suffers from PR problems.  When the bad PR started is anybody's guess.  Some people would argue Jews, the future inheritors of Israel, were getting a bad rap thousands of years ago.  They've been persecuted you know and that persecution continues to this day a pernicious string of maltreatment by others through no fault of their own.  Many people would argue Jewish bad press was at its worst in Europe circa 1930's and 1940's.  When 6 million Jewish lives were methodically and prematurely extinguished at the hands of the Nazi Party and anyone else who sympathized, the Chosen People mourned their loss. 

Recent bad Israeli public relations has flared over the handling of a Gaza Strip water blockade by Israeli troops.  Israel has been limiting provisions to the Gaza Strip for nearly three years.

Gaza is tiny in comparison to Israel.  It's a portion of "Palestine" separated from the West Bank by Israel.  Driven by concerns for security, Israel has an iron fist around what or who enter and leave Gaza.  Items such as concrete are not allowed to be imported into Gaza because Israeli officials fear Palestinians may build bunkers and shoot rockets at Israel.  The logic follows that if Palestinians have nowhere safe to hide from Israel's missile strike retaliations then Palestinians will be less likely to attack Israel with rockets.  Foreign diplomats have also not been allowed to visit  Gaza.

Some people argue the reason for not allowing foreign diplomatic visits is to prevent Palestine from getting any good publicity.  In this state of affairs, Israel's government is loosening the iron fist around Gaza and allowing more items into the "country."  The history of the "Israel- Palestine problem" can be viewed as a dialectic of security and terrorism.  Israelis feel unsafe.  Israel dictates what happens in Gaza. 

Arabs in Gaza are literally land locked down by Israel and their wall.



The Palestine situation in Israel is reminiscent of Native American reservations in the United States and there are many people who like to use these footnotes to justify similar, contemporary actions.  Is the harsh reality that this is how nations are built?  One big difference between Israel's PR today and the U.S.'s RP in the 1800's is video.  Video and tales of horror in Gaza have moved some people to want to support Palestinians in Gaza.  Enter Turkish sympathizers, rabble rousers by all appearances, yet civilian in appearance and not armed for modern warfare.  Aboard the ship Mavi Marmara, these individuals sailed to provide Palestinians with provisions.

As much as the pictures might tug at heart strings, and laser sightings can be scary, it is important to note the reception Israeli troops received when they landed on the deck of the Mavi Marmara.

Turkey's response to Israel's May 31st raid on its civilian ship is still unfolding.  Funerals held June 4th memorialized the first nine Turks killed  as a result of Israel's response to the Mavi Marmara.  June 18th, "Turkey's prime minister...shelved 16 bilateral agreements  with Israel." 

Public response to Israel's current bad PR runs rampant.  Hugh Pope wrote a nice article in which he claims Turkey's government is less motivated by Islam  and more motivated by the sight of Palestinians suffering.  Camie Davis and Dutch politician Geert Wilders espouse a belief that Jordan is Palestine and should therefore be named such so arguments about Palestine's future will cease and desist in Israel. 



Keeping the emotional level high, Indiana Republican Representative Mike Pence has labeled Turkey as "growing more antagonistic  to the state of Israel."  It seems the people aboard the Mavi Marmara were trying to help Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip.  Those same people clearly did not cooperate with Israeli troops when their ship was boarded.  Tempers flare.  Israeli government ministers are declaring enemies  in Turkey, which might be an improvement over declaring Turkey Israel's enemy.

Some Israelis contend few nations can understand what it is like to live there.  Israeli President Shimon Peres declares Israel has "been attacked seven times " in 62 years with the expressed intent of removing Israel from existence. 

In 1920, Britain began to support the creation of a Jewish homeland in Palestine with no boundaries.  As more and more Jews immigrated into the region, disagreements with Arabs arose. In 1946 the British partitioned Jews and Arabs East and West of the Jordan River in Palestine.  The map looked aesthetically pleasing, but there were still Arabs living on the land given to the Jews.

Neat lines were drawn on the map dividing the Arabs from the Jews in effect creating Israel and Jordan.  The Jews got a seaport and called it Israel.  The Palestinians got what was left on the other side of the Jordan River and it was called Transjordan.  Territory-size-wise, it looked like the Arabs got the better end of the deal because they got about twice as much as the Jews.



The Gaza Strip and West Bank were created by the UN in 1947  as Palestinian Arab homeland residing in Israeli neighborhoods. 



To call the Gaza Strip a country is really a misnomoer, but Israeli President Shimon Perez describes Gaza as having a ruler.  Considering the size of the Gaza Strip, it's difficult to call the place a country.  According to some accounts , Gaza is 25 miles long and between 4 and 7.5 miles wide.  It's a small country inside another country the size of New Jersey  (i.e. Israel.)  Gaza operates as much like a burrough of Israel as it does a country in its own right with observed interests of its own.

A lot of history took place in Palestine since 1947.  1948, Israel officially became a country.  Almost immediately Israel is engaged in war by Arab aggressors who want to remove Israel from existence.  Israel never looked more aesthetically pleasing then after the 6 Day War in 1967.

Israel finally stood up to Egypt and came away with the Sinai added to Jewish land.  It was really quite an impressive accomplishment.  However, to negotiate its continued existence Israel gave away what it had gained.  With several more minor changes, Israel arrived at peace  with Egypt, Syria and Jordan by 1994.  Now the Gaza Strip and West Bank are left for Israel to dictate their fate.  Today walls encircle Arabs in the lands of their birth, while Israelis continue to build Arab portions of the map.



Each side claims to be mistreated.  The Israeli Jews claim a right to the land dating back at least to 1,000 B.C.  And yet, at least ten other groups of people occupied the land known as Israel since that time.  Sometimes it seems that the harder Israel struggles for survival the harsher the response Israel receives.  Plus, there is always talk of ending existence when this area of the world is concerned.  The latest test of existence will be coming soon.  Iranians in support of the Palestinians in Gaza have declared they will send a ship through  Israel's blockade with provisions. 

Israel in turn said it would regard such an act as an act of war, so Iran is on hold with its humanitarian relief for Gaza.  However, some members of Iran's government still favor sailing a ship to Gaza in Iranian attire.  Amid this seemingly dire reality, Scott Peterson wrote Iran getting nuclear weapons might be a good thing.  He reveals the thought that if Iran had nuclear weapons war wouldn't be fun but rather suicide.  Iran with nuclear weapons pointed at Israel with nuclear weapons and a cold war part deux to keep them all in check.  Mutually assured destruction keeps the peace.



As crazy intelligent as his piece seems to be, how would this help Arabs in Gaza and the West Bank?  How does any of this effect Israel's claim to be a democracy?  And finally, will the world ever get over this particular tiny strip of land? 

All this and more in the future, because the world eagerly awaits drama emanating from this particular part of the Middle East.