Why is Israel always fighting with its neighbors?

Back in 1948, the Arabs demanded that the United Nations assert the right of the Palestinians to return to their homes, and were unwilling to accept anything less until after their defeat had become obvious. The Arabs then reinterpreted Resolution 194 as granting the refugees the absolute right of repatriation and have demanded that Israel accept this interpretation ever since.

One reason for maintaining this position was the conviction that the refugees could ultimately bring about Israel's destruction, a sentiment expressed by Egyptian Foreign Minister Muhammad Salah al-Din:
It is well-known and understood that the Arabs, in demanding the return of the refugees to Palestine, mean their return as masters of the Homeland and not as slaves. With a greater clarity, they mean the liquidation of the State of Israel (Al-Misri, October 11, 1949).

After the 1948 war, Egypt controlled the Gaza Strip and its more than 200,000 inhabitants (now many times that number), but refused to allow the Palestinians into Egypt or permit them to move elsewhere.

They don't like them all that much today either, but they have let 700,000 Gazans into Sinai, with not much hope of their returning to Gaza.

So the peace process can take place between the Hamas and Egypt, and then Hamas can set up a Palestinian state in Sinai.

This can be a very successful solution.



.

because the US will not let them nuke all of their neighbors

My understanding is that it stems back to thousands of years ago when Israel was established. The surrounding Arab countries believe the land was stolen from them, and they have been trying to take it back ever since. It is essentially a religious fight.

Because its neighbors won't leave be in peace. Not standing by and be bullied, they fight back, and unlike the bullies, Israel do not target innocent civilians.

The country we call Israel today was created by taking land from Palestine and the other countries in the area in 1948. Well, not created as such, but the boundaries we have today were defined and they were moved quite a ways. That pissed off a LOT of people who rightfully owned the land which suddenly wasn't theirs anymore. Just because there HAD been a state of Israel in the distant past, does not mean there is a right for that to exist in the form it does as a result of the boundary definition made in 1948. Those people were displaced in 1948 when the borders were moved. So, they attack Israel and Israel fights back and the US helps this by arming Israel. Israel did not start the fighting in recent history, but they sure keep on winning things every time something flares up, and the idiots who attack seem to not be learning and repeat the same mistakes, like start another fight and let Israel finish it. You'd think the major players of the region would have learned something from the 6 day war in 1967, when Israel overran the forces of 6 other countries surrounding Israel, but NO! Egypt provoked Israel into a preemptive strike on the forces Egypt was massing at the border and Israel commenced stomping everything in the vicinity, including the forces from 5 other countries who were contributing to the Egyptian forces. None of the beaten countries were very happy with the results. Egypt, Syria, the others, all they want is their land back that they feel was wrongfully taken from them in 1948, an injustice which they feel they have to undo, so they keep on attacking Israel in one way or another. I do not think it is the Jews that keep setting off bombs in Tel Aviv that blow up market places and busses of innocent mothers and school children, do you?

Because it's neighbors don't want peace. (Mostly organizations, many people in fact do want peace.)
http://tinyurl.com/2vw5kh

I blame Arafat for lack of peace between Palestine and Israel. Israel offered to give Arafat 96% of the disputed territories for peace, and Israel wanted 4% for security purposes. He should have taken it when he had the chance, but he never wanted peace.

Israel Is Fighting for its Life
Israel has the right to defend itself

Hello.

I live in a nice little bungalow in a very quiet town. Everybody gets on with everybody else.
Neighbours smile at each other and help each other out.

But, if a nasty person moved in next door and started throwing rocks at me everytime I went into my garden - you know what?

Eventually, I would throw some back - even bigger than the ones they were throwing at me.

Then - when they stopped - I would also stop.

Because her neighbors have sworn to wipe her off the face of the earth.
Because the world won't let Israel do what she needs to do to protect herself.

She enjoys a good argument? Cheers

What does that mean "always fighting"?

You make it sound like this is a schoolyard where Israel is "always getting into trouble".

Well, let us look at the stats, shall we?

Israel has not been in a war with either Egypt, Syria, or Jordan since 1973. That is a grand total of almost 35 years since it has been fighting with most of its closest neighbours.
As for Lebanon, Israel had a war there in the early 1980s (over 20 years ago) and last year. In both cases, Israel did not actually fight Lebanon (translation: They were not fighting the Lebanese army) but rather Islamic radical groups (PLO and Hizbollah respectively).
As for "Palestine", that is not a "neighbor" since there is no independent country of Palestine, your show of solidarity with such a non existent entity notwithstanding.
Israel, for the record, is currently engaged in a war with terrorist groups that present a clear existential threat to it and the security of its citizens which you would know about, assuming you watch the news. Thus it is quite clear why Israel fights. What would you have them do otherwise? Accept suicide bombings? Allow their citizens to be used for target practice for Kassam missiles?

The land of "Israel" should be split in half. The northern half would be Palestine and the southern half Israel.

In the middle occupying Jerusalem would be the new U.N. HQ with a corridor that divides these lands from the Mediterranean to the Red Sea. Stationed there should be 300,000 man Rapid Reaction Force capable of delivering a serious smack down to ANYONE in the region that acts out of line.

This solution creates peace in the region and gets the U.N. out of New York .

Because Israel's neighbors are always attacking Israel.

They have this thing about not being able to accept a Jewish state in their midst.

Not only Syria and Iran, but also Hamas, Fatah and the Palestinian Authority (Mahmoud Abbas -- Abbu Mazzen).


.

鈥淲e will have peace with the Arabs when they love their children more than they hate us.鈥? Golda Meir 1957, before the National Press Club in Washington
.

Because Israel wants as much land as possible with as few non-Jews as possible living in it - also, resources such as water. It's perfectly willing to use threats or just take what doesn't belong to it by force of arms. Naturally those whose property has been taken don't want to give it up without a fight. So Israel kills them, or at least a few of them, and threatens the rest with death.

Israel defends itself
if you keep up with the news, you will see they don't start a confrontation but do fight back