“The definition of insanity,” Albert Einstein allegedly said, “is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”
uncertain
Einstein → say → results
If so, a recent proposal by a sitting member of Congress to release a convicted terrorist is insane for more reasons than one.
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proposal → sit → one
“Today I’m calling for the release of Marwan Barghouti from Israeli prison,” Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) announced on Sept. 25.
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Khanna → call → Sept.
“Palestinians must choose their own leaders,” the California Democrat asserted.
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Democrat → choose → leaders
Barghouti is seen as “non-corrupt, a strong leader, and secular” and he “could deliver a Palestinian state living in peace with Israel,” Khanna said in a videotaped statement that his office shared widely on social media.
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office → see → media
Barghouti’s release is needed to “move peace forward,” he added.
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he → need → peace
“We must begin to give Palestinians a voice in their sovereignty and the peace process.”
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We → begin → sovereignty
The congressman omitted a key fact about his prospective Palestinian peace partner: he’s a convicted murderer.
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he → omit → partner
Barghouti was convicted in June 2004 for five counts of murder and membership in a terrorist organization.
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Barghouti → convict → organization
Barghouti became infamous during the second intifada, in which Palestinian terrorists launched dozens of attacks and murdered and injured more than 1,000 Israelis from 2000 until 2005.
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terrorists → become → 2005
In the more than two decades since his conviction, Barghouti has frequently been mentioned as a possible contender to succeed Mahmoud Abbas, the 90-year-old head of the Fatah movement who serves as president of the Palestinian Authority, which rules over much of the West Bank.
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which → mention → Bank
Abbas is in the 21st year of what was supposed to be a four-year term, and he is deeply unpopular.
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he → suppose → year
By contrast, polls from the Palestinian Survey and Research Center, among others, consistently show Barghouti to be popular with Palestinians in both Gaza and the West Bank.
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Barghouti → show → Gaza
The terrorist chieftain ordered an attack that murdered a Greek Orthodox monk in 2001, an Israeli in 2002, and another assault in 2002 at the Seafood Market Restaurant in Tel Aviv, where another three Israelis were murdered and more than a dozen were injured.
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dozen → order → Aviv
The Tanzim faction of Fatah, which Barghouti led, was responsible for dozens of other attacks.
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Barghouti → lead → attacks
Khanna isn’t alone in calling for Barghouti’s release.
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Khanna → call → release
A number of celebrities and NGOs have likewise suggested that the imprisoned murderer could somehow become a Nelson Mandela-like figure.
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murderer → suggest → celebrities
But history suggests otherwise.
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history → suggest → ?
In the 1920s, the British backed Amin al Husseini to be the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, the preeminent religious and political figure in British-ruled Mandate Palestine.
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British → back → Palestine
They pardoned Husseini for his role in orchestrating a pogrom in 1920 that left five Jews dead and scores more injured.
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scores → pardon → Jews
Husseini was then elevated over other, more moderate, candidates for the religious office.
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Husseini → elevate → office
Some thought Husseini might prove to be more conciliatory once he was empowered.
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he → think → ?
The opposite proved to be true: Husseini launched a wave of terrorism in the 1930s, murdering Jews, British officials, and his Arab rivals.
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Husseini → prove → Jews
Husseini later allied with the Nazis during World War II and was a wanted war criminal nicknamed “Hitler’s Mufti” by the conflict’s end.
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Husseini → ally → end
In the 1990s, the United States repeated the British Empire’s mistake.
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States → repeat → mistake
Husseini’s distant cousin, Yasser Arafat, had waged a ceaseless terrorism war on the Jewish state for decades.
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cousin → wag → decades
But some U.S. and Israeli officials convinced themselves that he, too, could suddenly become a “moderate.”
Arafat and his Palestine Liberation Organization, bereft of funds after the collapse of their Soviet patron, were more than happy to feign moderation in exchange for Western aid.
Arafat pledged to renounce terrorism, and in exchange, the PLO was given limited self-rule in Gaza and the West Bank.
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PLO → convince → Gaza
But Arafat lied.
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Arafat → lie → ?
The PLO head and now president of the newly created Palestinian Authority launched wave after wave of murderous terrorist attacks in the 1990s, alternatively working with and against his chief rival for power, Hamas.
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head → create → power
The second intifada soon followed.
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intifada → follow → ?
Arafat and his successor Abbas rejected several Israeli peace offers in exchange for statehood.
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Arafat → reject → statehood
And in 2006, a year after Israel withdrew from Gaza, Hamas won the Palestinian elections and vanquished Abbas’s Fatah movement from Gaza.
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Hamas → withdraw → Gaza
Hamas won for two reasons.
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Hamas → win → reasons
First, it was viewed as less corrupt than Fatah and its aging cadre.
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it → view → Fatah
Second, its more militant call for the destruction of Israel resonated with Gazans.
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call → resonate → Gazans
More than half a dozen wars with Israel have followed.
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wars → follow → Israel
In short: Khanna’s suggestion of empowering a “hardline” terrorist to achieve peace has been tried more than once.
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suggestion → empower → peace
And it has always resulted in more bloodshed, not less.
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it → result → bloodshed
The Aporia
