Heritage Florida Jewish News - Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice

The cease-fire that ended the 1967 Six Day War left Israel in possession of territories roughly twice the size of the country at the time. Since then, those territories—the Sinai Peninsula, the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and the Golan Heights—have been the subject of negotiations, the keys to peace treaties and the flashpoints for war.

Israel returned the Sinai to Egypt under the 1979 peace treaty, and disengaged from Gaza in 2005. However, her presence in the other territories continues to spark emotionally charged debate. Are these territories “occupied?” If so, what exactly does that mean?

“The concept of territory captured during armed conflict has developed and changed dramatically in the last century,” explains Rabbi David Kay, who will facilitate a three-part series in July entitled “The Straight Dope on Israel, Part II: Territories, Occupation and Sovereignty” as part of Congregation Ohev Shalom’s daytime adult education program, Mondays at 1:00. “As late as the mid-19th century, there was really no such thing as ‘occupation.’ If you lost a war, you were conquered. You lost your sovereignty, too.”

The Mondays at 1:00 series is designed “to shed light, not create heat,” Kay says. “This won’t be a policy discussion or a political debate. The goal is to lay out the basic facts of a very complicated concept. We’ll be applying the Inigo Montoya Principle to ‘occupation’,” Kay continues, referring to the character in the popular book and film, “The Princess Bride.” “You keep using that word—I do not think it means what you think it means.”

“Territories, Occupation, and Sovereignty” will meet at 1 p.m. July 8, 15 and 22 at Congregation Ohev Shalom, 613 Concourse Parkway S., Maitland. The series is open to the public at no charge. RSVPs are encouraged but not required. For more information or to RSVP, contact Susan Sparrow at ClergyAsst@OhevShalom.org or 407-298-4650, or visit the Ohev Shalom website at http://www.OhevShalom.org.