Netanyahus suggestion, repeated at the White House Wednesday, that neighboring Arab states may develop new means of resolving the Palestinian issue, rings true in light of the diplomatic support Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates gave Israel in its war against Hamas this summer. And even though the Egyptian government later denied the reports, talk persists that Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi did in fact offer the Palestinians sovereignty over a large swathe of the Egyptian Sinai adjacent to Gaza as a means of establishing a viable Palestinian state without sovereignty over Judea, Samaria and Jerusalem. The assessment that a new policy is slowly being developed along these lines was reinforced on Tuesday by Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon. Repeating Netanyahus reference to a regional alliance structure that can be used to resolve the Palestinian conflict with Israel, Yaalon said that it is irrational to even consider an Israeli withdrawal from Judea and Samaria in the aftermath of the war in Gaza. The emerging policy apparently involves the application of Israeli sovereignty over all or parts of Judea and Samaria, along the lines I set out in my book The Israeli Solution: A One-State Plan for Peace in the Middle East, in combination with an Egyptian offer of Sinai territory to the Palestinians in conjunction with the demilitarization of Gaza. From the administrations behavior following Obamas meeting with Netanyahu on Wednesday, we learned that the administration is adamantly opposed to any revision of the current PLO-centric framework, which is predicated on Israeli concessions to an intransigent PLO. Shortly after Netanyahu left the White House, the administration bitterly attacked and threatened Israel because the Jewish state refuses to obey the administration and deny Jews the right to buy and own property in eastern, southern and northern Jerusalem. The administration was enraged because in line with Israels refusal to adopt anti-Semitic housing policies, the Jerusalem Planning Board approved the construction of housing for Jews and Arabs in the city. Also on Wednesday, Channel 10 reported that Secretary of State John Kerry is seeking to scuttle the developing Israeli alliance with Egypt and other anti-jihadist Sunni states by bringing Qatar, Hamass principal Sunni state sponsor into the mix. Kerry is reportedly trying to organize a regional peace conference that would coerce Israel into accepting the so-called Saudi Peace Initiative from 2002. That initiative would require Israel to surrender to all the PLOs territorial demands and accept millions of foreign, hostile Arabs into its shrunken, indefensible territory. In light of Obamas absolute commitment to the anti-Israel, PLO-centric policy model for dealing with the Palestinian rejection of Israel, for the next two years there will be no change in US policy on the issue. Under these circumstances, Netanyahus task is to lay the foundation in Washington for support for an Israeli policy that abandons the PLO as a partner and moves beyond the failed two-state model. Here, Netanyahus statements at the UN and the White House indicate that this is the path he has embarked upon. Unfortunately, while Netanyahu may prefer to lay the groundwork for a new policy indirectly and cautiously, Abbass bid to convince the US to support the passage of a Security Council resolution that would require Israel to withdraw from Judea, Samaria and Jerusalem a week after the 2016 Presidential elections will likely force Netanyahu present an alternative to the PLO-centric two-state plan sooner rather than later. After the 2016 elections, Obama will be unconstrained by concerns for Democratic candidates. Most of the Security Council resolutions against Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria were passed after the 1980 presidential elections when the then lame duck Jimmy Carter felt free to attack Israel at will. To avoid a repetition of that experience in late 2016, Netanyahu will have to offer an alternative to the failed two-state plan ahead of the 2016 presidential conventions. Netanyahus statements in the US this week present us with a mixed picture of his leadership. Netanyahu appears more resolute on the Palestinian threat than he has in the past. This is a good thing. But on the most pressing threat Israel faces today, his strong words rang hollow. The only way to prevent Iran from becoming a nuclear power is for Israel to attack Irans nuclear installations. Until Israel adopts a policy for doing so, words will not suffice. Read more at jewishworldreview/1014/glick100314.php3#hFzDUrswVO2COfup.99
Posted on: Fri, 03 Oct 2014 15:27:35 +0000
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