Jet and Arab make truthful and valuable comments on the Israel/Arab dispute.

The dispute is not about settlements, which comprise a miniscule part of Judea and Samaria (the so-calles West Bank). Had the local Arabs wanted to stop Jewish national development - pejoritively labelled settlement building - they would long ago have accepted various offers of statehood and enacted laws about who could build where.

The dispute is religious and there is no rational way to negotiate an ideological difference. The Jewish people from Europe and mohammedan realms rejoined those of their kin who had remained on their ancient lands for millenia. Repatriates are definately not colonisers. If there are colonisers, it is those Arabs who were labelled refugees after TWO(!!) years of residency in the British mandate of Palestine.

To underscore the religious aspect of the dispute, which polite, sophisticated, secular society laughs off, one only needs to recall that the future state of "Palestine", has been promised to be Jew free. Not very enlightened, secular or non-discriminatory like democracies should be.

If we can call Israel a "colonial enterprise" than same we should say about many another countries. For example, Morocco or Sri Lanka both have their own programs of colonization sparsely populated territories with populated by minorities.

In response to Arab:

'Israel accepted the "partition" in 1947/1948'

as a stepping stone to getting the rest of Palestine later.

'Israel never attacked or threatened to attack anyone(except for self defence)'

Wrong. Check out Norman G. Finkelstein's book "Image & Reality in the Israel-Palestine Conflict".

'Israel offered to give back land in exchange for ONE simple thing called PEACE, Israel offered to give Palestinians 94% of West Bank'

When?

'Gaza has been evacuated years ago'

Israel evacuated the settlements from Gaza, sealed Gaza off like a prison camp, and then expanded settlements in the West Bank.

'Israel froze all settlements(new & old)'

Israel continues to expand the settlements.

'Israel treats their people( Jews & Arabs) alike'

Wrong. Israel systematically discriminates against its non-Jewish citizens.

Prussia has been called "the heart of Germany". Prussia is now part of Russia. The Ivans simply annexed this part of Germany after WW 2 as a form of war reparation. They aslo annexed it in recognition that Prussia is geographically isolated from the rest of Germany by Poland, and that this fact has been one of the reasons for continuing conflict in Europe.

The Germans could behave like the Arabs and demand Prussia back. After all, the fact that Prussia is recognised as part of Germany by treaty goes back to the League of Nations. The Germans could hijack aeroplanes. Fly commercial airliners into buildings. Set off bombs. Shoot home made rockets into Russia. Kidnap Russian soldiers. Take Russian hostages.

But they don't.

The Germans are not like the Arabs. The Germans want peace while want the Arabs want war. The Arabs want war because they will never accept that a religion who's homeland they have conquered can return to its original religion. And they want war, because they want an enemy for their people to focus upon, instead of their people looking inward and wondering why Muslim societies everywhere are economic basket cases.

All of this babble about "discrimination" and "Palestinian rights" is just so much hot air. Nobody gives a ferk about "Prussian rights". The world simply accepts the status quo. Nothing short of a full scale war will return Prussia and the Prussians to the country who's territory Prussia really belongs to.

Nothing short of a full scale nuclear exchange is going to get the Jews out of Israel. But by that time, the whole of the Middle east would be a giant sheet of glass. If the Arabs were as smart as the Germans, they would accept that they will never annihilate Israel without the Israelis returning the complement.

The only difference between the Masada complex the Jewish zealots exhibited at Masada, when they all committed suicide rather than surrender to the surrounding Roman army, is that this time they will take their surrounding enemies with them.

"Double Standards"
I agree totally with LEGO but it is obvious that LEGO have a European background as he mentioned Prussia and the fact that it is a part of Russia. However, I would like, as an Arab, to add 2 things:

a) What do we (the Arabs) think of Kuwait (an Arabic/Muslim country) which was, geographically, a part/providence of Iraq ( an Arabic/Muslim country) but was annexed by the English in the 1940s (same decade of the establishment of the state of Israel)to be given to a tribe called "Sabah Salem El Sabah". When Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1991, not only UN nations but most of our Arabic/Muslim countries joined the coalition forces to "Liberate" Kuwait.

b) Bangladesh ( a Muslim country) was annexed to be established as an independent state in 1971 resulting in displacement of millions on both sides of the conflict. Arabic and Muslim countries accepted the situation.

So, why we complicate things when it comes to Israel? Is it our famous Arabic double-standards attitude or is it being adapted and conditioned (unconsciously) to being lead by our religious fanatics who serve only their own interests by declaring "vocal wars"......in vein?
Arab

Arab, the state of Israel was created via the ethnic cleansing of the Palestinians. The ethnic cleansing included massacres, rapes, forced expulsions, and the theft of the Palestinians property'. The Palestinians were left in refugee camps in poverty, or were internally displaced within Israel. None of the people responsible were ever brought to justice. In fact, a number of them become prominent Israeli politicians, including at least two Israeli Prime Ministers. It is one thing for a territory to secede and declare independence. It is another for ethnic cleansing to happen.

Also, Bangladesh got independence after the Pakistani government committed genocide against the Bengalis.