Could that be?
No way. Terrorists don’t just better their way, unless they are forced. I did not see any enforcement. Therefore, they changed their tactics but not their goals. Any other theory is as implausible as reports that the moon would now have decided to only shine by day.
Been There
Either, the PA has now joined Hamas’ ideal of destruction of Israel, or Hamas has now joined the PA’s pretense of peaceful cooperation with Israel in order to destroy it. Two bunches of murderers don’t voluntarily decide to work together to advance life and democracy from now on.
Israelis have been there and done that already, have hoped against our better judgment, berating ourselves that we should not be so fatalistic from the past and have an open heart for the future. We gave away half the country and counted thousands of dead and wounded as a result.
We have a cold peace with Arab Palestinians, Jordan and Egypt, where popular hatred for Jews goes on unabated. Their leaders and populations are not ready for peace, no matter what they pretend to believe. We were fooled manifold; we won’t be tricked again. Ever.
In light of the above, let’s have a brief look at the “leaked” agreement”.
Agreement
In the name of God the Merciful, – How different from “We, the People”!
Among its goals are listed:
to establish a sovereign Palestinian state on all the Palestinian territories occupied in 1967 and to maintain a single democratic and pluralistic political system, with a peaceful transfer of power through elections.
The parties who signed this agreement are violating this every day for as long as they have control. So who cares that they say they ever will change this? Let them do so now!
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi’s hopes “to achieve an independent Palestinian state on the borders of June 4, 1967, with East Jerusalem as its capital and a return for Palestinian refugees.”
El-Sissi is a good guy, but present Arab Palestinian leaders wanting “the same” must mean by “on the borders of June 4, 1967”: West of them.
The borders of June 4, 1967 include the Sinai peninsula, but somehow I think that el-Sissi is not ready to have that be the Arab Palestinian State.
Action?
Deeds speak louder than words. Let’s see Arab Palestinian leaders:
1. Release the two Israeli civilians who are in Hamas captivity — Avera Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed — as well as return the remains of fallen IDF soldiers Oron Shaul and Hadar Goldin.
2. Establish a single democratic and pluralistic political system, with a peaceful transfer of power through elections. Disarm militias, stop persecuting homosexual men and feminists, have freedom of the press, hold free elections (terrorists and hate mongers cannot be elected).
3. Educate against hatred for Jews.
4. Teach the sanctity of human life.
5. Propagate and help guarantee a safe and secure independent multicultural Israel as home state for the Jews.
6. Admit having been on the wrong side of history (like Germany) and declare to never be there again (like Germany).
Abbas demands that Hamas disarm itself and dismantle its armed brigades. Yet senior Hamas member Mousa Abu Marzook states that dismantling the terror group’s military was not up for negotiation. Egypt will host another Hamas-Fatah meeting a month from now.
For now, don’t hold your breath. Blue — ain’t looking that good on you.
MM is a prolific and creative writer and thinker, previously a daily blog contributor to the TOI. He often makes his readers laugh, mad, or assume he's nuts—close to perfect blogging. He's proud that his analytical short comments are removed both from left-wing and right-wing news sites. None of his content is generated by the new bore on the block, AI. *
As a frontier thinker, he sees things many don't yet. He's half a prophet. Half. Let's not exaggerate. Or not at all because he doesn't claim G^d talks to him. He gives him good ideas—that's all. MM doesn't believe that people observe and think in a vacuum. He, therefore, wanted a broad bio that readers interested can track a bit what (lack of) backgrounds, experiences, and educations contribute to his visions. *
This year, he will prioritize getting his unpublished books published rather than just blog posts. Next year, he hopes to focus on activism against human extinction. To find less-recent posts on a subject XXX among his over 2000 archived ones, go to the right-top corner of a Times of Israel page, click on the search icon and search "zuiden, XXX". One can find a second, wilder blog, to which one may subscribe too, here: https://mmvanzuiden.wordpress.com/ or by clicking on the globe icon next to his picture on top. *
Like most of his readers, he believes in being friendly, respectful, and loyal. However, if you think those are his absolute top priorities, you might end up disappointed. His first loyalty is to the truth. He will try to stay within the limits of democratic and Jewish law, but he won't lie to support opinions or people when don't deserve that. (Yet, we all make honest mistakes, which is just fine and does not justify losing support.) He admits that he sometimes exaggerates to make a point, which could have him come across as nasty, while in actuality, he's quite a lovely person to interact with. He holds - how Dutch - that a strong opinion doesn't imply intolerance of other views. *
Sometimes he's misunderstood because his wide and diverse field of vision seldomly fits any specialist's box. But that's exactly what some love about him. He has written a lot about Psychology (including Sexuality and Abuse), Medicine (including physical immortality), Science (including basic statistics), Politics (Israel, the US, and the Netherlands, Activism - more than leftwing or rightwing, he hopes to highlight reality), Oppression and Liberation (intersectionally, for young people, the elderly, non-Whites, women, workers, Jews, LGBTQIA+, foreigners and anyone else who's dehumanized or exploited), Integrity, Philosophy, Jews (Judaism, Zionism, Holocaust and Jewish Liberation), the Climate Crisis, Ecology and Veganism, Affairs from the news, or the Torah Portion of the Week, or new insights that suddenly befell him. *
Chronologically, his most influential teachers are his parents, Nico (natan) van Zuiden and Betty (beisye) Nieweg, Wim Kan, Mozart, Harvey Jackins, Marshal Rosenberg, Reb Shlomo Carlebach, and, lehavdil bein chayim lechayim, Rabbi Dr. Natan Lopes Cardozo, Rav Zev Leff, and Rav Meir Lubin. This short list doesn't mean to disrespect others who taught him a lot or a little. One of his rabbis calls him Mr. Innovation [Ish haChidushim]. Yet, his originalities seem to root deeply in traditional Judaism, though they may grow in unexpected directions. In fact, he claims he's modernizing nothing. Rather, mainly basing himself on the basic Hebrew Torah text, he tries to rediscover classical Jewish thought almost lost in thousands of years of stifling Gentile domination and Jewish assimilation. (He pleads for a close reading of the Torah instead of going by rough assumptions of what it would probably mean and before fleeing to Commentaries.) This, in all aspects of life, but prominently in the areas of Free Will, Activism, Homosexuality for men, and Redemption. *
He hopes that his words will inspire and inform, and disturb the comfortable and comfort the disturbed. He aims to bring a fresh perspective rather than harp on the obvious and familiar. When he can, he loves to write encyclopedic overviews. He doesn't expect his readers to agree. Rather, original minds should be disputed. In short, his main political positions are among others: anti-Trumpism, for Zionism, Intersectionality, non-violence, anti those who abuse democratic liberties, anti the fake ME peace process, for original-Orthodoxy, pro-Science, pro-Free Will, anti-blaming-the-victim, and for down-to-earth, classical optimism, and happiness. Read his blog on how he attempts to bridge any tensions between those ideas or fields. *
He is a fetal survivor of the pharmaceutical industry (https://diethylstilbestrol.co.uk/studies/des-and-psychological-health/), born in 1953 to his parents who were Dutch-Jewish Holocaust survivors who met in the largest concentration camp in the Netherlands, Westerbork. He grew up a humble listener. It took him decades to become a speaker too, and decades more to admit to being a genius. But his humility was his to keep. And so was his honesty. Bullies and con artists almost instantaneously envy and hate him. He hopes to bring new things and not just preach to the choir. *
He holds a BA in medicine (University of Amsterdam) – is half a doctor. He practices Re-evaluation Co-counseling since 1977, is not an official teacher anymore, and became a friendly, powerful therapist. He became a social activist, became religious, made Aliyah, and raised three wonderful kids. Previously, for decades, he was known to the Jerusalem Post readers as a frequent letter writer. For a couple of years, he was active in hasbara to the Dutch-speaking public. He wrote an unpublished tome about Jewish Free Will. He's a strict vegan since 2008. He's an Orthodox Jew but not a rabbi. *
His writing has been made possible by an allowance for second-generation Holocaust survivors from the Netherlands. It has been his dream since he was 38 to try to make a difference by teaching through writing. He had three times 9-out-of-10 for Dutch at his high school finals but is spending his days communicating in English and Hebrew - how ironic. G-d must have a fine sense of humor. In case you wonder - yes, he is a bit dyslectic. If you're a native English speaker and wonder why you should read from people whose English is only their second language, consider the advantage of having an original peek outside of your cultural bubble. *
To send any personal reaction to him, scroll to the top of the blog post and click Contact Me. *
His newest books you may find here: https://www.amazon.com/s?i=stripbooks&rh=p_27%3AMoshe-Mordechai%2FMaurits+van+Zuiden&s=relevancerank&text=Moshe-Mordechai%2FMaurits+van+Zuiden&ref=dp_byline_sr_book_1