One aspect of Israeli negotiations with the Palestinians that’s constant is that whatever Israel offers will be dismissed as an insult or some other epithet.
Now that negotiations are coming down to nitty-gritty details like borders, the cries start anew. The Jerusalem Post reports:
“Today, it’s clear to us that Israel has no intention of withdrawing from all the territories that were occupied in 1967,” said one official.”If the Israelis and Americans think that they will ever find a Palestinian leader who would accept less than the 1967 borders, they are living under an illusion.”
Another top PA official said that maps presented by the Israeli government to the Palestinians in the past few weeks showed that Israel is planning to retain control over nearly half of the West Bank and large parts of eastern Jerusalem.
The Israeli maps, he said, “turn the Palestinian communities in the West Bank into cantons surrounded by Israeli military bases and large settlement blocs.”
The official added: “We have made it clear to both the Israelis and Americans that they should throw away these maps. No Palestinian will ever agree to the presence of settlements or Israeli soldiers in the West Bank. This is in violation of [US President George W.] Bush’s vision of two states living next to each other in peace.”
First of all, even George W. Bush’s vision of two states doesn’t specify the boundaries. If the boundaries are unacceptable to them and the Palestinians refuse to make peace, then they’re the ones who are are refusing to abide by the president’s vision. Maybe they think they have a good reason for doing so, but they’d still be the ones preventing an agreement.
Then there’s this:
“The Israeli government is not serious about the peace talks,” said Yasser Abed Rabbo, a senior PLO official closely associated with Abbas. “We don’t believe that we can reach an agreement [with Israel] before the end of this year.”Abed Rabbo accused Israel of “deceiving” the Palestinians by continuing to build settlements while talking about the need to reach a peace deal.
“Israel does not want to change its policy,” he added. “Israel wants to continue settlement expansion and the construction of the separation wall.”
These statements are clearly designed to elicit Amerian pressure on Israel. By mentioning “the end of the year” – President Bush’s goal – Abed Rabbo is effectively asking the Americans to get Israel to agree to the Palestinian demands rather than attempting to compromise.
The Spine observes that in Belfast, it’s the separation wall that is widely credited with keeping the peace. (He also points out that the “cantons” charge is false.) But in the Middle East the “wall” becomes one more brickbat to toss Israel’s way. Israel Matzav contrasts the (strategic) pessimism of the Palestinians with the expressed optimism of the Israelis.
(via memeorandum)
Of course the real problem might be that Israel wants to hold on to anything.
“The PLO is the sole legitimate representative [of the Palestinian people], and it has not changed its platform even one iota. In light of the weakness of the Arab nation and the lack of values, and in light of the American control over the world, the PLO proceeds through phases, without changing its strategy. Let me tell you, when the ideology of Israel collapses, and we take, at least, Jerusalem, the Israeli ideology will collapse in its entirety, and we will begin to progress with our own ideology, Allah willing, and drive them out of all of Palestine.”
(h/t Daled Amos)
But maybe Israel should at least fight for the life of Imad Sa’ad. I don’t know that he really helped Israel, but that’s what he’s been convicted of. For all I know he looked at someone wrong and got denounced.
However, if Palestinians are executed for helping Israel fight terror, while terrorists are lionized the peace process is a sham. (Another deadly activity for Palestinians is selling land to Jews. Getting killed for real estate transactions is hardly conducive to coexistence.)
Still this is a point Israel ought to pursue. After all the PA considers terrorists worthy of release, Israel should, at least, demand freedom for someone who’s been convicted of helping not harming.
Crossposted on Soccer Dad.
Muslims Against Sharia condemn, in strongest possible terms, death sentence for Imad Sa’ad, which shows the true nature of the Palestinian Authority. If Mahmoud Abbas and the P.A. were serious about combating terrorism, they would not be sentencing their security officers to death for counter-terrorism efforts.
Muslims Against Sharia call on the American government to cease all aid to the Palestinian Authority if Mr. Sa’ad’s sentence is carried out. Imad Sa’ad is a true hero of the Arab people and the American government should demand his immediate release.
http://muslimsagainstsharia.blogspot.com/2008/05/appeal-is-made-to-bush-to-save-arab.html