As of Saturday, 25 militants and civilians were killed in Gaza and the West Bank, including innocent women and children, this weekend alone. Fifty more were wounded. More than 20 were kidnapped. In the last weeks, personal vendettas were carried out: little girls were slaughtered in front of their parents, just before their parents themselves were brutally executed.

This time the Israeli army is not responsible. The Israeli army does not carry out such atrocities as killing children intentionally and deliberately, in cold blood in front of their parents. This time it is the brutality of Islamic fanatics. The war between Fatah and Hamas has taken new dimensions, never seen before in the territories under the political control of the Palestinian Authority. Why? How did the world, the PA, Israel, the Muslim community and students groups on U.S. campuses allow this to happen?

“Students groups on US Campuses?” you may wonder. This is not the case.

Finkelstein’s talk on Thursday, organized by CJME and SCAI and supported by Muslim leaders on campus, has made me realize how these students groups not only hinder peace, but are also indirectly responsible for the ongoing violence. On Thursday night, Finkelstein’s controversial statements received much applause from the pro-Arab, pro-Palestinian, mainly Arab audience. When he condemned the construction of the security fence as illegal, many cheered and clapped. When he supported the use of the word apartheid to describe Israel he was loudly acclaimed. He even received deafening applause when he deemed the Holocaust as not unique and asserted that the Jews use the “Holocaust Industry” to promote their agenda. However, in the Q&A session that followed someone asked whether Finkelstein’s arguments can “lead to the conclusion that all of Israel is occupied territory?” Again, much applause. However, when Finkelstein concluded that the final objective of the Palestinians should be a two-state solution, living side by side in peace and prosperity, I was the only one who clapped. I noticed the angry looks of the few Arabs who sat before me. They clearly did not support a two-state solution. I wondered then, how SCAI and CJME define peace? A one-state solution with an Arab majority (i.e. Israel’s destruction)? If not, why don’t you promote the idea of a two-state solution to your audience?

CJME, SCAI, and other Muslim-led groups on campus have hardly organized events denouncing Islamic violence as a mean to an end. They have hardly organized an introspective event highlighting Palestinian culpability that inflames and contributes to the ongoing hatred between Israelis and Palestinians. They have never organized an event attempting to fight the pervasive phenomena of suicide bombers, widespread Nazi-like propaganda in Arab media and anti-Semitic incitement in mosques and other religious activities. Rather, they choose to focus only on Israel’s faults, exaggerating and often even distorting facts in order to further incite and antagonize their mainly Arab audience.

Thus, the Arab world, including student groups at universities, indirectly nurtures violence. Violence is the main instrument Palestinian society as a whole (particularly teens) is familiar with in order to advance its goals. And now, this violence is backfiring. It is being used internally — not only hurting innocent Israeli civilians but also hurting their innocent Palestinian brothers. I can only hope that recent events in Gaza will drive the Muslim community at Stanford to act on this issue.

Moreover, I found the current beliefs among Arab students at Stanford very disturbing. Unlike many comments I received, as both an Israeli and a human being, I am NOT happy with any bloodshed, whether Israeli or Palestinian. On the contrary, I am extremely disturbed that in my country’s backyard our cousins in fate are turning against each other. I cannot comprehend how and why Arab and Muslim students think that I, or any other Israeli, would celebrate any bloodshed. This belief is the product of their anti-Israeli propaganda. By attempting to portray the Israelis as a violent war machine whose sole purpose is to kill Palestinians, Muslim student groups have indoctrinated themselves with the belief that Israelis celebrate Palestinian bloodshed. Nothing could be further from the truth.

ROEI is a junior majoring in Management Science and Engineering and Economics.