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S W I N G T H E H E A R T ’ S D O O R W I D E L Y O P E N • B i d H i m e n t e r w h i l e y o u m a yPalestinians brought in from Lebanon! I wasstunned at such a scene. I thought to myself, whythe heck are the Israelis helping the Muslims andthe Palestinians? I am a Christian, I am their friend,but why are they helping the Palestinians and theMuslims? Little did I know about the principles andvalues of the Israeli people.The doctors treated everyone according totheir injury. The doctor treated my mother beforehe treated the Israeli soldier lying next to herbecause her injury was more severe. They did notsee religion. They did not see political affiliation.They did not see nationality. They saw people inneed and they helped.They took my mother to the 4th floor of thehospital and put her in a room with two otherLebanese ladies one Muslim and one Druze. Wewere in the room for five minutes and we heardthis loud commotion outside our balcony. Peoplewere walking through our room to go out and look.I went out to see what was going on. Two Israelihelicopters had just landed to deliver woundedIsraeli soldiers. I stood at that balcony feelingsick to my stomach. I felt ashamed, humiliated,embarrassed and broken hearted. After all, thesepeople are wounded because of the war with mycountry. I didn’t even look at any one around me Ikept my eyes down. I was surrounded by mothers,fathers, sisters, brothers and children of woundedsoldiers. I felt out of place; I felt uncertain; I didn’twant to make eye contact with anyone because Ididn’t know how they would react to me.While I was standing there, I felt someonetapping on my shoulder. I looked up to see a nursestanding next to me. She asked me: “You are newhere aren’t you?” I said, “Yes they just brought mymother to this room.” She put her arm around meand looked into my face and said, “Don’t worrywe’ll take good care of her, everything will be fine.”I broke out crying. I never felt such compassionand love. For the first time in my life I experienceda human quality that I know my culture would nothave shown to their enemy.I experienced the values of the Israelis whowere able to love their enemy in their most tryingmoments. That nurse didn’t even know if I was aChristian, a Muslim or a Palestinian.I spent 22 days at that hospital. Those dayschanged my life and the way I believe information,the way I listen to the radio or to television. I realizedI was sold a fabricated lie by my government aboutthe Jews and Israel that was so far from reality.I knew for a fact that if I was a Jew standingin an Arab hospital I would be lynched and thrownonto the ground as shouts of joy of “Allahu Akbar,”“God is great!” 2 would echo through the hospitaland the surrounding streets.When Israelis heard there were Lebanesewounded in the hospitals they came bringingpresents. They brought chocolates; they askedpeople what they wanted and what they needed.They said, “Our home is your home if you needanything let us know.” They came extending apeaceful hand.I became friends with Israeli mothers staying2 Allahu Akbar is not the ‘majority’ rendering of the Arabicbut is the most authentic.16at the hospital with their wounded sons. One inparticular Rina, her only child was wounded in hiseyes. One day I was visiting with her and the Israeliarmy band came to play national songs to lift thespirits of the wounded soldiers. As they surroundedhis bed playing a song about Jerusalem, Rina and Istarted crying. I felt out of place and started walkingout of the room, and this mother held my hand andpulled me back in without even looking at me. Sheheld me crying and saying: “It is not your fault”. Wejust stood there crying holding each other’s hands.I thought: “What a contrast between her, a motherlooking at her deformed 19 year old only child, andstill able to love me the Arab; and a Muslim motherI experienced thevalues of the Israeliswho were able tolove their enemy intheir mosttrying moments.who sends her son to blow himself to smithereensjust to kill a few Jews or Christians.”The Muslim woman who was in the room withmy mother stayed in the hospital for about 12 days.And even after 10 days the doctors would comeand change her bandages and check on her in theirmorning tour, as they would be leaving the roomshe would have the evil look on her face and say: “Ihate you all. I wish you were all dead.” For the firsttime in my life I saw evil. I realized that this Muslimcouldn’t love the Jews even after they saved herlife. And when you are unable to be grateful to thepeople that saved your life there is no hope.I had to go back to Lebanon because I had totake care of my parents but I vowed that one dayI would return to Israel. That one day I would liveamong those people. These are the types of peopleI want to be like. These are the types of values Iwant to adopt. I knew they had something even Idid not. They were able to love the Palestiniansand forgive them much more than I was able to,and I was a Christian who was supposed to lovelike Jesus taught.FP: What hope is there? I doubt that if thePalestinians get their own state that they willsuddenly love the Jews and that the wholeIslamic-Arab world will put anti-Semitism onthe backburner. What do you think?Gabriel: Israel is stepping out in “good faith”again to do whatever it takes to achieve peace withits neighbours. As if Hamas is going to appreciatethe goodness of the Jews and re-write its charteraccepting Israel as neighbour and a friend! Hamashas only one goal and that is to eradicate Israel onepiece at a time until it becomes vulnerable to Arabmilitary aggression and conquest.As one who knows what’s in the hearts andminds of Arabs, let me repeat what seems to be thehardest thing for world opinion to accept: The Arabshave no intention of having peace with the Jews—period, exclamation mark, end of discussion!No Jews can exist free and unencumbered in theMiddle East. “What an outrage. Jews are dhimmis!How dare they come back and live in our midst,make the desert blossom and create a country moreadvanced than any other in the Middle East. Andthey don’t have any oil?”So far all territory concessions made by Israelhave been an illusion of land for peace. In Egypt,who was given the Sinai Peninsula back in 1979,and Jordan, who signed a peace treaty with Israel,the phone books go from Ireland to Italy as if Israelnever existed. What type of peace is this withoutfull acknowledgement of statehood? What typeof peace is it when Egyptian government-run andcontrolled television airs the “Protocols of theElders of Zion?”Intelligence sources say there are plans tocreate a terrorist state in Gaza where world terroristoperations will be planned and carried out. This isequivalent to Somalia and Afghanistan terroristcontrolled societies, but within striking distance ofIsrael proper. The mini Hamas Terror State wouldhave an airport and port facilities from which toexport terror to the rest of the world.US security officials have received multipleconfirmations of a meeting in March [2003] betweenAl-Qaeda, Hamas, and Hezbollah figures. Mostalarming is Hamas’ move towards embracing globaljihad as evidenced by its publishing the messagesof Osama bin Laden’s mentor Abdullah Azzam— Palestinian, originally from Jenin.Hamas openly publicises its support andalliance with Al-Qaeda organisations jihad actionin Chechnya, Kashmir, the Balkans and Afghanistan.As Al-Qaeda associate Jordanian terrorist al-Zarqawi firmed up his relationship with bin Laden inIraq, it is only a matter of time for Hamas to followsuit under the sovereignty of an independent miniterrorstate free from the demands of the weakenedPalestinian Authority leadership under MahmoudAbbas in Ramallah.They will form an instant terror base from whichto attack every corner of Israel bent on jihad andrevenge for al Nakbah—the catastrophe of theirdefeat in the 1948 War of Independence. Israel isengaged in an existential crisis of Armageddon-likeproportions. Another piece for a peace? You haveto be kidding, right?FP: It is interesting that most people thinkof Hamas as an Israeli problem. Which it is ofcourse, but it is also an American problem.And it will become a great American problem.Can you comment on this?Gabriel: Many terrorist organisations havealready set up shop here in America. The three mostthreatening ones are Hamas, Al-Qaeda and IslamicJihad. Some of their operatives and supporters haveentered the country illegally using visa fraud.Of all the Islamic militant groups in the US,Hamas has developed the most sophisticatedAmerican infrastructure. Under our liberal unrestrictiveenvironment of the United States thesepeople are operating and were able to set up awhole array of cells that spread across the US