It’s Not All Bad
Overall, the narrative of the Jewish experience in Israel, in modern times, is largely bad when considering interaction with Palestinians.
Too many times, Arabs have participated in violent attacks on Jews.
In the last century, thousands have been murdered and maimed by people with a blind, spiritual hatred. The attacks on Jews in Palestine in 1929 and 1936 were so ferocious, they haven’t been forgotten.
And the ghastly “Oslo Accords” ensured that Yasser Arafat’s Murder, Inc. (the PLO) could continue killing Israelis unchecked. American diplomats helped that along, by the way.
But all this doesn’t mean there is no good in the Palestinian population. In fact, there’s quite a lot of it. Living under a totalitarian regime could never be easy. Routinely, citizens of the PA are detained for questioning. Some are killed for selling land to Israelis. Journalists are imprisoned and harassed.
And more than once, Palestinians have shown a completely different side to their Jewish cousins. Such an example came this week.
“’I was driving, and suddenly I found myself in the opposite lane with strong pains and blood flowing from my head,’ she told Ynet. ‘I went back into my lane, and It’s a miracle there wasn’t another car.
“’When I stopped the car, and I was dripping blood, I tried to see what happened. And that’s when I saw a huge rock that hit my foot… I started to cry and scream, those were difficult moments. I tried to call the police and ambulance, but there wasn’t any reception,’ she said.
“’Suddenly three Palestinians arrived and tried to help. One of them told me he was a doctor and stopped the bleeding in my head, while another tried to call the rescue forces because he had a Palestinian network that had reception in the area. It went on like this for ten minutes with me just sitting there and them waiting with me.’”
The incident happened near Hebron. The mother of six was obviously in a vulnerable situation, in a dangerous area. After the Israelis turned Hebron over to the PA in the 1990s, the security situation deteriorated.
I well remember visiting Bethlehem for the first time not long after that. My friends and I visited a tourist shop and when we came out, we were walking down the street, heading back to our van. The others went ahead when I stopped to look at a poster of Arafat in the middle of the street. I took out my camera and raised it to take a photo (which I did).
I heard what sounded like grunts from the sidewalk and I glanced over to see PA police sitting at an outdoor table. They didn’t like me taking a photo! By the time I dived into the van and the door slid shut, they were chasing me.
And this was the “police.” I cannot imagine what life is like for average Palestinians. Like the KGB, PA thugs spy on citizens and report activity. If anyone discovers who it was that helped this woman near Hebron, there will be repercussions.
In 2016, a rabbi was murdered, again near Hebron. His wife and two children were seriously injured. A Palestinian couple that lived nearby emerged and helped the family out of their vehicle and administered aid until help arrived.
Afterward, Israeli gave the man a visa to work, since he had been threatened by other Palestinians for his help to the Israeli family. When the visa lapsed, he actually became homeless and could not work. In 2019, he was granted residency, along with his wife and son, in Israel.
Such incidents underscore the truth that Palestinians are capable of great compassion and even put their lives on the line to save Jews. No one knows the percentage of Palestinians that hate Israelis, although polls usually put the figures pretty high.
I criticize the Palestinians often, and I think for good reason. But when the other side of the coin displays itself, I am happy to spotlight it.
May the Lord protect those Palestinians that risk themselves to aid Israelis.