Michigan leaders react to latest Israeli-Palestinian conflict
(CBS DETROIT) - Local leaders in Michigan are reacting to the latest attacks by Hamas in settlement areas of Israel on Saturday.
Osama Siblani, a political activist and founder of the Arab American News, said it's time to consider what is behind the growing tension in the West Bank and Gaza.
"This is the longest occupation in modern time. History teaches us this cannot continue to happen, occupation must go away," Siblani said.
Siblani said the killing of innocent civilians is completely unacceptable, no matter which side does it, but in order to understand the cause of the tension, he insisted that the occupation of Palestine cannot be ignored.
"The core issue is occupation, occupation, people will not yield to occupation, this is not me saying it. It's history," Siblani said.
Meanwhile, Jewish leaders condemned the attack and said it was unprovoked and unjustified.
"We Jews want to live in peace. We want to be able to exist and walk the land that our ancestors walked in," said Rabbi Aaron Starr with Temple Shaarey Zedek in Southfield.
Starr said the images that came out of Israel after Hamas' surprise terrorist attack Saturday were frightening. Starr also said he was devastated to learn how many lives were lost.
"Last I heard, there were 800 murdered, over 100 kidnapped, and 2,000 injured. These are people who simply want to live their lives in peace. They want to go to work in the morning and come home to their families in the evening. And their lives have been uprooted, destroyed by terrorism, and my heart breaks for them," Starr said.
Siblani agreed the goal should be to achieve peace but said he fears the conflict could get much worse.
"Maybe it's not simple, but it's doable, and it should be done because without addressing the core issue, we're going to see this happening at a larger and harsher scale for years to come," Siblani said.
The attack on Israel is the worst attack on Israel since 1973. The Israeli Government has vowed to destroy Hamas "slowly but surely."