A person can get tired of approaching everything from purely academic and scholarly perspectives. So much so that the current developments in the Middle East has invoked a personal response. The events in question are the progressively worsening relations between Israel and Iran, and the global tensions which this contributes to. However, such challenges, as is the case with many global issues, focuses more on the nation state as a sentient form rather than those who reside within. I am not concerned with Iranian opinion as I neither consider myself possessing an awareness sufficient to comment, nor do I know of anyone within the Iranian community from whom I have any first hand accounts. Therefore, as someone who associates himself with the Jewish people both within the UK, as well as a greater global community, I feel I have some understanding of feelings and emotions with regards to the potential crisis.
I believe that it can be said, with relative confidence, that Iran is not going to attack Israel, either using conventional or nuclear armaments. When a nation such as the Islamic Republic of Iran is as isolated within the Global Community as it finds itself, it would be foolish to engage in any military action. This is made even more politically suicidal when the focus of its enmity, Israel, is considered. With its place as the prodigal child of many of the Western countries, Israel holds a special place within world politics. Any assault would result in near total condemnation, or worse, direct military intervention.
So what do the people of Israel have to worry about? Honestly, very little when it comes to Iran. The worst that Iran DOES is sponsor and support anti-Israel groups such as Hezbollah; but direct action is not something that Iran would be partial to. The concern of countries such as the U.K. and the U.S.A. only goes to encourage hysteria within Israel, and offers Iran a platform to stick its finger up at the world. This latest scenario also detracts away from the required drive to resolve the creation of a Palestinian state which would in turn ease much of the tension in the region. The people of Israel must rally around this endeavour and ignore the Ayatollah's petulant child.
However, everyone talks as if the Iranians and Israelis are next door neighbours, yet there are two countries trapped in between. The nations of Iraq (another American project) and Saudi Arabia (Arab best friend to much of the West) sit in a rather precarious position. If Iran was to launch its latest medium range missiles towards Israel, it would be taking the risk that it could fail to make its target. In the event that it was a nuclear warhead, then such a technical failure could lead to the devastation of Riyadh, Baghdad, or any major populated area within the two nations. Worse still the projectiles could hit anywhere in the Western Middle East. Though the prospect of an Islamic state causing such catastrophic damage to a fellow Muslim country may seem ludicrous to some, this may be interpreted by Iran as a secondary success. This is simply, to avoid a discussion for another time, that Iran's Shia majority may relish the destruction of its Sunni neighbours. Such a controversial suggestion is not one to be so readily passed over. The crux of the immediate matter here is that Jewry should not forget its neighbours, no matter how contentious it may be at times.
One final country who has played a supporting role, quite literally, is the Russian Federation. Dmitry Medvedev and Vladamir Putin supported the supply of materials which have enabled Iran to construct uranium enrichment facilities and the capacity to build nuclear reactions, or weapons. This in itself may be enough to hold Russia accountable for some of the possible damage in an armed engagement between Israel and Iran. Despite this, the Russian Jew, whether they live in the Russian Federation or have resettled in Israel, may feel caught between their past and their future. To be killed by weapons which in part were possible thanks to their former home nation must be a terrifying thought. Yet this may make them the most ardent voices speaking out against Iran, as they would be seen as the puppets of a nation which had, in its past, launched numerous pogroms against the Jewish communities.
As the sun sets on another day and the Sabbath returns, one can only speculate what emotions and fears are being expressed in Israeli Synagogues. As the daily cycle of prayers engulfs the attention of Iranian Muslims, perhaps their inner concerns are directed at the threat of war. Both peoples share a common love, their G_d who they trust to protect and sustain them. This love should be directed to maintain the uneasy peace which exists between Iran and Israel. As someone of Jewish heritage, I do not feel animosity towards Iran or the Iranian people. I share the chills which fill the dreams of the residents of Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and Haifa. However it is not the possible destruction of much of the global Jewish population, it is that such an action would represent the third application of a nuclear weapon, when both previous uses were in 1945. Hatred and anger is a waste of energy, while reconciliation would seem to consume too much time for anyone to bother with.
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