Human Rights

Lebanon, Syria and Iran continue to either fund organizations connected to terrorist activity or are willingly allowing them to work within their territory. This working reality is an impediment to the situation in the Occupied Palestinian territories. This activity along Israel's borders merely strengthens the position of security hawks in the Israeli administration to the detriment of the peace process.

This activity in no way works towards a rational end to the conflict. Added to this is the detention of human rights activists and public intellectuals such as Iran's Ramin Jahanbegloo.

Their claims regarding human rights fall on deaf ears due to their own domestic inability to maintain order and establish a more liberalized view of human rights that meets international standards. This criticism does not in any way absolve Israel's record in the Occupied Palestinian Territories or of the Palestinian leadership's acceptance of Qassam rocket fire or use of suicide bombs. While the Israeli occupation remains one of the root causes of the disagreement, the establishment of human rights in the whole region is the legitimate route to peace.

Middle Eastern countries are correct in being skeptical of Western interests in the region given their historical role in colonial rule. The US intervention in Iraq has only raised the temperature without dealing with longstanding issues.

Attempting to deal with these issues to bring about long term stability is the work of many political factions and international bodies. A permanent peace in the region may never be possible but a relative calm that aids a human rights agenda is the most viable and durable route towards that end.