Letters to the Editor: Israel, Palestine and Hamas — who should give up what to achieve peace?

To the editor: It’s hard not to feel the pain described in the op-ed article by Palestinian filmmaker Emad Burnat, but he doesn’t apportion blame even-handedly, as Dennis Ross does in his piece excoriating Hamas and taking Israeli leadership to task.

Burnat only pays lip service to the failures of the international community, especially “that of repressive Arab countries.” Contrast that to Ross, who writes that “Israel must be open to new approaches that signal recognition of Palestinian, and not just Israeli needs,” while Palestinians must also be willing to compromise.

Burnat does not condemn Hamas, which, “with Iranian support,” Ross writes, “is a threat to the future of Palestinians.” Hamas rejects anything that improves the lives of Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip, and it is known for endangering civilians.

Ross described at least three constructive actions, including the United Arab Emirates model, to prevent another deadly exchange of rockets and bombings and to pave the way for a long-term solution.

Victoria Shere, Marina del Rey

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To the editor: In Ross’ analysis of this seemingly intractable situation, it is Hamas that must change its behavior for there to be peace in Palestine. Israel, the other component of the problem, must be given incentives for it to stop its periodic assaults on the Palestinians.

The author forgets that the Palestinians have been under a harsh military occupation for decades with no signs that it will end soon.

Instead, it is Israel that must end its occupation of the Palestinians, lift the suffocating siege of Gaza, and restore the civil rights that Arabs are entitled to.

Under international law, occupied people are entitled to resist their occupation. As long as Israel manufactures pretext for it to punish the Palestinians, it should expect more resistance from the desperate people in Palestine.

Joseph Tillotson, Redondo Beach

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To the editor: Burnat claims, “We Palestinians are dead set on one thing alone: to live with dignity and freedom.”

That is a noble goal. However, he fails to mention that Hamas, which rules his “beloved” Gaza with an iron fist, is formally pledged to the elimination of the Jewish people from Israel.

Burnat’s problem is not with Israel or the United States, which supports the genuine democracy of Israel. It is with the extremists who are sworn to a policy guaranteed to make life hell on Earth for the people of Gaza.

Louis H. Nevell, Los Angeles