This letter is in response to the column written by Suzanne Fields regarding motives of suicide bombers (Jan. 4).
It’s not that complicated. As it is “difficult for most of us to imagine” what drives young people to take their lives and the lives of others, it is our obligation to try.
The Israelis are wasting their time and money if they think they need interrogators and psychologists to proceed with “the first in-depth study of suicide bomber psychology.” What they could do is talk to some Palestinians. I did.
I asked them why and got a pretty simple answer: the young people are losing hope. They don’t see a future for themselves. They struggle daily to attend school – schools are often closed due to curfews. University semesters must be repeated in some cases because of closings due to the occupation or because professors and students cannot get to classes.
Unemployment is staggering. Entering the work force is a formidable task Those who have jobs often can’t get to work because of the checkpoints they must go through to reach a neighboring town, or because of the unpredictable curfews that cripple the economy and inhibit municipal growth. They wait in lines sometimes two or three hours long before they can proceed.
The Palestinians I met do not condone suicide bombings, but they understand the motivation. The daily degradation and inhumane treatment of their people leads to hopelessness. The Palestinians are very angry with their oppressors. The lives of Palestinian young people are deeply affected. They can’t look forward to supporting a spouse and family or having a career.
American teens get angry when we tell them to do their homework or they can’t go out on Friday night. Palestinian teens want to do their homework. Education is the only way they can get ahead. And they wish they had a place to go on Friday night. They go weeks at a time without even being able to leave their homes or villages.
No, hopelessness is not the only motivator, but to begin to examine the motives of suicide bombers Israel needs to take a hard look at how it is treating the Palestinian people.
Maureen Andrew, Greene
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