In a day of stark contrasts, President Barack Obama urged Israelis to strive towards peaceful relations with Palestine mere hours after Islamic militants in the Gaza Strip fired on the southern town of Sderot.
The rocket fire, which occurred at 7 in the morning today, was more than likely a symbolic welcoming for Obama. In recent years Palestinians have become increasingly upset at U.S. intervention in Israel.
Obama spoke to a group of Israelis in Jerusalem later in the day and, despite that earlier Palestinian show of aggression, urged the gathering to look for a peaceful solution wherein both nations could live side-by-side. His message was especially geared toward the Israeli youth listening, whom he called to action:
"Political leaders will not take risks if the people do not demand that they do," Obama said to applause, adding a familiar theme from his U.S. campaign speeches in declaring "you must create the change that you want to see."
This is the second day of President Obama's Mideast tour, and after touring Israel's national museum he is now headed off to the West Bank to reassure Palestinians that the creation of a Palestinian state is still of chief concern.
The tone of this trip differed quite a bit from previous presidential visits to Jerusalem. Though normally accompanied by requests for peace, the dialogue from American presidents usually has a decidedly pro-Israel slant to it. This time, however, Obama seemed much more ready to empathize with the Palestinian struggle, voicing his support for the creation of a separate Palestinian state.
"Put yourself in their shoes -- look at the world through their eyes," he said. "It is not fair that a Palestinian child cannot grow up in a state of her own, and lives with the presence of a foreign army that controls the movements of her parents every single day. It is not just when settler violence against Palestinians goes unpunished. It is not right to prevent Palestinians from farming their lands; to restrict a student's ability to move around the West Bank; or to displace Palestinian families from their home."
At the same time, President Obama continued to reiterate American support of, and protection for, the nation of Israel. Obama was also keen to note that as of late there had been no fatal attacks on Israelites from the West Bank, an area currently controlled by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.
That same amount of calm has not been achieved in Gaza, the site of the rocket launch today and a region currently run by the militant Hamas movement. However, nobody was hurt in the early morning attack today.
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