Over 63 years, Palestinians have not only had to resist Israel's occupation, but also the propaganda campaign that justifies acts of aggression as the "right of self-defence". Killing non-violent protesters, Palestinian or otherwise, is not self-defence.
That obvious truth is staring Israel in the face. New peaceful demonstrations inspired by the Arab spring, as well as the Palestinian Authority's bid for UN recognition as an independent state, have shown that Israel is far more comfortable dealing with Qassam rocket attacks than it is with intelligent, non-violent resistance.
On Tuesday, Israeli naval commandos seized control of a French ship attempting to break Israel's blockade of the Gaza Strip. The 10 activists on board offered no resistance and the ship, the Dignity Al Karama, was escorted to the southern Israeli port of Ashdod.
The four-year blockade of Gaza shows how vulnerable Israel is. Its paranoid - sometimes murderous - efforts to enforce that blockade have been public relations nightmares. The killing of nine activists last year aboard the MV Mavi Marmara, and to a lesser extent the recent flotilla that Greece blocked and the abortive "flytilla", have all demonstrated a deep-seated insecurity. That level of unease shows that even the most hardline Israeli must know that the blockade is immoral.
The recent flotilla and flytilla barely got off the ground. Paradoxically, they are still successes for the pro-Palestinian aid movement. In terms of international opinion, the negative publicity has been a major setback for Israel. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's denunciation of the flotillas as "denying Israel's right to exist" is transparent doublespeak.
This pattern of paranoia was reinforced last week, when the Knesset passed new legislation that bans even verbal approval of a boycott of Israel or its settlements in the West Bank.
"They are making it impossible to organise joint peaceful and non-violent resistance, whether in the form of boycotts or solidarity visits," wrote Jonathan Cook in these pages on Monday. He is right; it shows in fact an act of desperation.
For too long, Hamas and the Palestinian Authority fought the Israelis on the battlefield or in the US Congress - arenas where Israel held the upper hand. It is vital that the Palestinian movement recognise its strength in non-violent protest and the moral argument. Israel's self-defeating actions have shown that this is the best way forward.
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