Israel and Pakistan are the only 2 nations created on the basis of religion. As soon as they were created, both were attacked by foreign aggression in order to destroy it. India attacked Pakistan to take Kashmir and other vital areas and Arabs attacked Israel in order to destroy it.
Pakistan today has not officially acknowledged Israel. This is due to the fact of extreme pressure by Islamic Fundamentalist in my country who are against the recognition of the Jewish State. Educated Pakistanis who are not blinded by Arab propogranda protraying Israel has a evil country bent on destroying muslims and arabs are held hostage by the country’s economic conditions.
Millions of Pakistanis work in some of the most anti-semetic countries in the Middle East like Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Egypt. The money they sent back home supports the Pakistani economy. If Pakistan were to recognize Israel, the Arabs could hit back by expelling Pakistani expatriate workers in their countries and accept Indian workers. Arabs only care about arab causes. They sympathise with India in Kashmir, are closer to India than to Pakistan simply because India is a larger, economically stronger, military, financially, and has more natural resources than Pakistan. Arab interests lies in a stronger alliance with India than with Pakistan.
Then Why should Pakistan care about Arab causes which when we support make us more enemies than friends.
Pakistanis cannot be more Palestinian than the Palestininas.
The Elite in my country realise this and are willing to establish diplomatic relations with Israel.
I understand Israel’s problems. Israel is in a demographic time bomb. Arabs already make 20% of Israel’s population, not counting the Arabs who live in Gaza or West Bank. The Arabs also demand a right of return which is supported by all muslim countries. This will destroy Israel as a Jewish country. That would be like Pakistan admitting 200,000,000 Hindus into Pakistan who fled after the partition of 1947.
The Arab countries have never supproted Pakistan but used it as tool to build up its countries. They pretend to be our friends and yet support our enemies. I lived in Saudi Arabia for 12 years, and they treat us like dirt.
Both the Pakistani and Israeli Armies are defensive Armies caught in a sturggle of self preservation against much more numerically superior enemies. India has the atomic bomb and Iran is also developing one.
Both Pakistan and Israel have limited natural resource options and have to rely on foreign sources in military goods, finaicial aid and economic support. USA supports Israel and China supports us.
It is time for Pakistans to look beyond the Arab propoganda about Palestine. 60,000 muslims have been killed in Kashmir by the Indian Army and yet not a peep is heard in the Arab world. And in the past 4 years, 3,000 Palestinians and 1,000 Israelis have been killed and yet the Arabs potray it as a massacare on equal with the holocaust. If 1,000 Pakistanis were killed by Afghanis for example in suicide bombings or other things. The Pakistani Army would have annhiliated them. This is a level of restrain that the Israeli Army shows towards the Palestinian people.
Israeli Generals and Politicians have said that a recognition with Pakistan and an alliance with Pakistan will serve both nations interest. Pakistan is strongest muslim military power in the world. It is the most important non-arab muslim country and a recognition by Pakistan of Israel will show other non-arab muslims that the struggle between Israel and Palestine is not a Muslim and Jewish struggle over religion but a struggle over land between Israel and Palestine.
However, this will take a long time to happen. Pakistani illetracy rate is around 60%. Most people have just sterotypical knowledge about Jewish people and take things out of context from the Quran to potray venom towards the Jewish People.
President Musharraf of Pakistan has held secret talks with the left wing leaders of the Israeli Government in particualar with Shimon Peres. In the Pakistani Intelligence Circles there is talk of an Israeli Trade mission and diplomatic exchange in 6 months to 1 year.
Let us hope, that this brings a lasting and strong friendship two nations who share more things in common than its differences.