In response to Emeka Anyanwu’s column (“Treat the disease, not just symptoms,” Thursday), I’d like to represent my concern over the overwhelming sense of ignorance that Anyanwu raises throughout his article.

Anyanwu states that Israel “has shown a significant willingness” to allow the Palestinian people to have their own state. I would like to ask Anyanwu if he has the slightest idea about what he is talking about. According to the international law (The UN resolutions) Palestinians are to build their own state on 20 percent of the historic Palestine. As unfair as it sounds, Palestinians agreed to this inequitable offer and showed willingness to live in peace. However, the Israeli side and for 7 years of peace (1993-2000) returned less than 10 percent of Palestine and persists on denying Palestinians of their historical capital of Jerusalem. All Israeli peace offers were fake in content and they never met the basic requirements for a livable state. According to the best Israeli peace plan, Palestinians are to live in four cantons that are physically disconnected with no regard to “The right of return” of the Palestinian refugees. According to these generous Israeli peace offers, Palestinians cannot travel from one Palestinian city to another without waiting for hours on Israeli checkpoints.

Moreover, Anyanwu also fails to provide correct data about the Israeli withdrawal from occupied Arab land. He states that Israelis had “previously returned the Sinai and the Golan Heights to Egypt and Syria, respectively.” For your information Mr. Anyanwu, Israel still occupies all of the Golan Heights and refuses to return them to Syria even though there are numerous UN resolutions that demand the Israeli withdrawal. Also, Israel never returned the Sinai desert but actually lost it in the 1973 war that they waged against Egypt and Syria. Israel never gave up any occupied territory unless force was used. This is the problem with the consecutive Israeli governments who only understand the language of force in imposing their unfair solutions on their weaker neighbors.

Mr. Anyanwu, my advice to you is not to judge matters that you lack any understanding of. We both do not support violence in all of its shapes or forms. Occupation is the main cause of violence in the Middle East and that should end too if real peace is to prevail.

Mohammed Hleihel

Senior

Computer engineering