Day: November 3, 2024

THE UNRESOVABLE CONFLICT BETWEEN PALESTINE AND ISRAEL

WDM EDITORIAL

For many years, we have been listening to Middle East experts, political pundits, and state actors on how to settle the perennial violence and existential political crisis there. There are two potential solutions these experts put forward:

1. Two-state solution in Palestine with Arabs/Palestinians and Jews living side by side in peace. That wouldn’t sit well with the Jewish Zionists.

2. One-state solution for both the Jews and Palestinians. That is an unacceptable option again for the Jewish population, demanding an exclusive Jewish state. They are fearful of being outnumbered by the Palestinian Arabs.

This analysis and proposals, however, ignore the core of the problem, which is the Arabs and Jews aren’t ready to accept  each other – each one wants to get rid of the other, let alone living together or living side by side. The Arabs believe Israel was planted there by Western nations for their own strategic interests to suppress the supposedly unpredictable and unreliable Arab Muslims in the region, and to use Israel to prevent Iranian, Russian, and Chinese influences in the Middle East. The Jews, especially Zionists, claim Bible rights not only to exist in historical Palestine but beyond its borders. However, they know that can’t be achieved without a fight through a lot of destruction of both Arab and Jewish lives and properties. They had to arm themselves to the teeth and build a mighty army, using Western funds, modern arms, and technology, mainly from the United States, but also from Britain. Germany, and even from Japan, to become the only nuclear power in the Middle East.

Another core issue of the situation is that unless the human rights of both Jews and Palestinians are recognised and respected as equal beings, there is little worth talking about any other solution. So, instead of promoting the establishment of two-state or one-state solutions, the rights of people to life with dignity must come first. Unless the Palestinians and Jews understand this fundamental right, there is nothing else that can be done to address the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. A Jewish state will not survive forever with force and violence. It isn’t too late now to choose peace with the Arabs and vice versa. Arabs too must understand that Israel is here to stay.

SOMALIA: IS IT BACK TO SQUARE ONE?

WDM EDITORIAL

There was a time in the height of Somalia’s Civil War after the collapse of Somalia’s government when Mogadishu and Hargheisa had ganged up against the existence of Darood clan in this country. But now, in a strange twist of fate, one of the victims of the war, Digil & Mirifle in the name of Somali Speaker of the House of Parliament, Sheikh Adan Madoobe, enlisted himself among the perpetrators. Sheikh Adan Madoobe has no moral compass, no adherence to Islamic principles of justice, and no respect for legislative norms. He is so corrupt that he would sell his soul and country to his yesterday’s abusers, the USC/SNA Wing, who had led mayhem of robbery, mass killing and starvation in Baydhaba, Southwest Somalia, in General Aydiid’s hot pursuit of General Mohamed Siyaad Barre. In his corrupt practices in the rubber-stamped Federal Parliament, he has no guardrails to carry out Hassan Sheikh Mohamud“s bidding to grossly violate the Provisional Constitution repeatedly – he doesn’t have any sense of parliamentarian debate and respect for protocols. He doesn’t bother bringing agenda to fellow MPs – forget about debate on issues in parliament. He has no idea about the requirement of quorum in the House. He proclaims resolutions amidst fist-fighting between PMs in the house session. He is a character who has never appeared before in Somali political history. In comparison, even Sharif Hassan (Sharif Sakiin) becomes a decent figure badly missed, having seen the “sell out” nature of Sheikh Adan Madoobe.

Sheikh Adan Madoobe must be stopped and impeached before he and HSM together return Somalia back to square one in renewed civil strives and violence.