For the longest time, it seemed the moral high ground in the blood-soaked, Israeli-Palestinian conflict had degenerated into an amoral crater large enough to accommodate both sides.
Where there are Hamas and Islamic Jihad; there were Irgun and the Stern Gang. Where there is an Intifada, there is an arrogant, provocative settlement policy.
But amid all the tit-for-tat violence and carnage, this much must be acknowledged.
Regardless of history, politics or injustices, nobody but nobody targets the innocent the way Islamic militants do. In Israel. In America. In India. In The Philippines. In lieu of civilized standards.
And having done so, proceeds to celebrate the heinous acts. Moreover, nobody recruits suicide bombers — with perverse promises of Paradise and posthumous family payoffs — the way Islamic militants do. And having done so, proceeds to venerate murdering “martyrs.”
Nobody considers discos, pizzerias and city buses legitimate grievance targets the way Islamic militants do. And nobody looks at “infidels,” however defined and rationalized, as fair game the way Islamic militants do.
And to think, this isn’t even “about Islam.”