Thursday, June 06, 2013
Elder of Ziyon
Is there any difference between "family honor" and the "honor" of a spurned beau?Israeli police on Wednesday identified a 19-year-old Palestinian as the main suspect in the murder of a woman from Jerusalem.
Police spokeswoman Luba al-Samari said 19-year-old Mohammad Shweiki was suspected of choking Minas Qasim to death because her family rejected his marriage proposal.
The body of Qasim, 21, was found near a dump in East Jerusalem's al-Eizariya area on May 6, three days after she disappeared on her way home from work. An autopsy revealed the cause of death as strangling.
Police found Qasim's belongings at the suspect's home, including a necklace and her mobile phone, al-Samari said in a statement.
Not really. In both cases, men decide that when they are embarrassed by a woman for whatever reason, she must be killed. Saying it is to defend "honor" is a deflection, but one that gullible observers swallow.
After all, one major reason there is no Palestinian Arab state now is, indeed, "honor."
Compromise, to an extent, involves swallowing one's pride for the greater good. Since "everyone knows" that Arabs value their honor more than Israeli Jews, it seems logical to push the Israelis to make concessions while justifying Arab intransigence. It is a cultural thing, and to decry Arab culture seems vaguely colonialist.
The same logic that allows Arab nations to minimize punishments for "honor crimes" allows Western nations to give them a free pass for prioritizing "honor" over peace.
